Volleyball Rules: A Beginner’s Guide to How the Game Is Played

The core rules of volleyball fit in five lines:

• Six players a side, on a court split by a net.
• Each team gets up to three touches to send the ball back.
• Every rally scores a point; sets go to 25, win by two.
• Teams rotate one spot clockwise each time they win back the serve.
• The first team to win three sets wins the match.

This guide explains each rule in plain language, based on the current FIVB Official Volleyball Rules 2025 to 2028, the rulebook used in international competition and the basis for most national leagues.

Teams and players

• On court: six players per team at all times.
• Roster: up to 12 players listed for a match, or up to 14 in top senior international events.
• Substitutions: six per team per set. A starting player can leave and return once per set, and only to their original spot in the rotation.
• Time-outs: two per team per set, 30 seconds each.
• Libero: each team can register up to two liberos, but only one may be on court at once. Libero swaps do not count as substitutions. (More below.)

Scoring: how to win a point, a set and a match

Volleyball uses the rally point system: the team that wins each rally scores a point, whoever served.

Unit	How to win it
Point	Land the ball in the opponent’s court, or the opponent commits a fault
Set (sets 1 to 4)	First to 25 points with a two-point lead; at 24-24, play continues until someone leads by two
Deciding 5th set	First to 15 with a two-point lead; teams switch sides when the leader reaches 8
Match	First team to win three sets

If the receiving team wins a rally, it scores a point and gains the serve. If the serving team wins, it scores and the same player serves again.

Serving rules

The player in the back-right position, position 1, serves from the service zone behind the end line.

• You have 8 seconds to serve after the referee’s whistle.
• You may toss or release the ball only once, then hit it with one hand or arm.
• You cannot touch the court, including the end line, at the moment you hit the serve or take off for a jump serve. You may land inside the court afterwards.
• The serve may touch the net on its way over, as long as it crosses between the antennae.
• Teammates cannot screen the server: no waving arms, jumping or standing grouped to hide the serve. Under the current rules, serving-team players may not raise their hands above their heads until the ball passes the net.

A serve is a fault if it goes out, fails to cross the net properly, touches a teammate, or passes over a screen.

The three-touch rule and contact faults

Each team may touch the ball up to three times before sending it over. A block touch does not count, so after a block a team still has three touches.

The ball may touch any part of the body, including the feet. These are the common contact faults:

Fault	What it means
Four hits	The team touches the ball four times before returning it
Double contact	One player hits the ball twice in a row, or it hits different body parts one after another
Catch	The ball is held or thrown instead of rebounding cleanly
Assisted hit	A player uses a teammate or structure for support to reach the ball

There are two exceptions to the double-contact rule. On a team’s first touch, such as receiving a hard serve, the ball may hit several body parts in one action. And during a block, a player may touch the ball more than once in the same action.

Rotation and positional rules

The six players occupy numbered positions: 4, 3 and 2 across the front row from left to right, and 5, 6 and 1 across the back. See our guide to volleyball positions for what each player does.

• When a team wins back the serve, all players rotate one position clockwise. The player moving from position 2 to position 1 serves.
• At the moment of the serve, the receiving team must be in its correct rotational order: each back-row player behind their front-row partner, and each row in the right left-to-right order.
• The serving team may stand anywhere on its own court at the serve, under the 2025 to 2028 rules.
• After the serve, everyone can move freely.

If the receiving team is out of position, it is a positional fault: the opponent gets a point and the serve. Serving out of order is a rotational fault with the same penalty, and any points scored after the mistake can be cancelled.

Net and centre-line faults

• Touching the net: it is a fault to touch the net between the antennae while playing the ball, which includes the take-off, the hit and the landing. Touching the net outside the antennae is allowed unless it interferes with play.
• Crossing the centre line: a foot may cross into the opponent’s court as long as part of it stays on or above the centre line. A whole foot over the line is a fault.
• Reaching over the net: blockers may reach over, but cannot touch the ball on the opponent’s side before the opponent’s attack hit.
• Ball outside the antennae: the ball must cross the net between the antennae. A ball that touches an antenna is out.

Attack and block rules

Attacking:

• Front-row players may attack the ball at any height.
• Back-row players may attack above net height only from behind the attack line, 3 metres from the net. They must take off from behind the line, but may land in front of it.
• A back-row player may attack from the front zone only if part of the ball is below the top of the net at contact.
• No one may attack an opponent’s serve while the ball is in the front zone and entirely above the net.

Blocking:

• Only front-row players can block, and part of their body must be above the top of the net at contact.
• Blocking or attempting to block a serve is a fault.
• A ball sent out off the block is a point to the attacking team.

Libero rules

The libero is a back-row defensive specialist wearing a clearly different jersey colour.

• Can replace any back-row player; these replacements are unlimited and are not counted as substitutions, but there must be a completed rally between them.
• Cannot serve, block or attempt to block.
• Cannot attack a ball that is entirely above the net, from anywhere on the court.
• If the libero makes an overhand finger set from inside the front zone, a teammate cannot attack that ball above net height. The same set from behind the attack line can be attacked freely.
• Only one libero may be on court at a time.

What changed in the 2025 to 2028 rules

The current FIVB rulebook applies to competitions that started after 1 January 2025. Two changes are the ones fans are most likely to notice:

1. The serving team can line up anywhere. Only the receiving team now has to be in rotational order at the serve. The serving team’s players are free to stand where they like on their own court, so there are no more positional faults for the serving side.
2. Balls played outside the antennae. A team’s first touch that crosses into the opponent’s free zone outside the antennae can still be chased and played back on the same side. But if the second or third touch goes out that way, it is called out the moment it crosses the net plane.

The rulebook also spells out a strict anti-screening rule: players on the serving team may not raise their hands above their heads until the served ball has passed the net.

Cards and sanctions

Referees use a scale of warnings and sanctions for misconduct:

Signal	Meaning	Consequence
Verbal warning	Minor misconduct	None
Yellow card	Formal warning	Recorded, no immediate penalty
Red card	Penalty for rude conduct	Point and serve to the opponent
Red and yellow together	Expulsion	Player sits out the rest of the set
Red and yellow separately	Disqualification	Player leaves for the rest of the match

Teams can also be warned and then penalised a point for delaying the game, such as making improper substitution requests.

How the PVL applies these rules

PVL matches follow the standard structure above, with a few league features worth knowing:

• Video challenge: the PVL first used a video challenge system in the 2022 Reinforced Conference (Wikipedia), letting coaches ask for a review of close calls.
• All-to-play rule: in the 2026–27 Siklab Series, every player on a team’s roster must play at least three rallies (PVL).
• Standings points: a 3-0 or 3-1 win earns three points; a 3-2 result gives the winner two and the loser one. See the latest PVL standings.

Frequently asked questions

Can you hit the ball with your foot in volleyball? Yes. The ball may touch any part of the body, as long as it is not caught or thrown.

Can you touch the net in volleyball? Not between the antennae while you are playing the ball. Touching the net outside the antennae is allowed if it does not interfere with play.

How many substitutions are allowed? Six per team per set. Libero replacements are separate and unlimited.

Can the ball touch the net on a serve? Yes. A serve that clips the net and continues over between the antennae is in play.

Can a back-row player spike? Yes, but only from behind the attack line if the ball is above the net at contact.

How many sets are in a volleyball match? Matches are best of five: the first team to win three sets wins.

Keep learning

Start from the beginning with what volleyball is, learn the skills in how to play volleyball, and see the rules in action across the PVL with ArenaPlus Insider.

Claim ledger (editor only, remove before publishing)

All rule numbers refer to the FIVB Official Volleyball Rules 2025 to 2028.

Claim	Status	Rule or source
Team size, substitutions, time-outs	Verified	4.1, 15.1, 15.4, 15.6
Scoring, sets, match, 5th-set court change at 8	Verified	6.1 to 6.3, 18.2
Serve: 8 seconds, one toss, foot rules, screening, hands above head	Verified	12.4, 12.5
Serve may touch the net	Verified	10.2, 12.6.2.1
Contact faults and exceptions	Verified	9.1 to 9.3
Positions, rotation, positional and rotational faults	Verified	7.4 to 7.7
Net, centre line, antennae	Verified	8.4, 11
Attack and block restrictions	Verified	13, 14
Libero rules	Verified	19
Cards and sanctions	Verified	16, 21
Serving-team position and outside-antenna rule are new in 2025	Current text verified; “new” status from a secondary source	Compare with the 2021 to 2024 edition before publishing
PVL video challenge since 2022; all-to-play in Siklab	Verified	Wikipedia, PVL
PVL follows FIVB rules	Assumed; not stated in the article as fact	Confirm with PVL rules or league media office