Ball Sports 🇺🇸United States Olympic20th century

Beach Volleyball

Two-a-side variant of volleyball played barefoot on sand — the smaller court and no substitutes make endurance, all-round skill, and reading the wind essential.

👥2 per team📐sand court⏱~60 min🌤outdoor

Photo · Wikipedia

What is Beach Volleyball?

Beach volleyball is a variant of volleyball played on sand between two teams of two players separated by a high net. There are no positional specialists — both partners must serve, set, attack, block, and defend. Matches are played best-of-three sets: the first two sets to 21 points, the deciding set to 15 (all win-by-two). The game originated on Santa Monica beaches in the 1920s, went pro in the 1980s with the AVP tour, and joined the Olympic programme in Atlanta 1996. Elite tournaments run on the FIVB Beach Volleyball Pro Tour with title events across Europe, the Americas, Asia and Oceania.

Quick facts

How it works

Objective

Ground the ball on the opponent's court or force an error to win rallies; win 2 sets to take the match.

Match structure

Same rally-scoring structure as indoor volleyball, but with only two players per side, no rotation (partners take turns serving), and no positional specialists. Teams switch ends every 7 points (sets 1-2) or every 5 points (deciding set) to equalise sun and wind.

Rules

Basic rules

Two players, three touches
Same maximum of three team touches per side; no player may touch the ball twice in succession.
Alternating serve
Partners alternate serving throughout the set. When your team wins a rally on the opponent's serve, you get the serve back.
Hand-setting restrictions
Setting the ball to your partner is stricter than indoor — the ball must leave the hands cleanly (no spin) and travel perpendicular to the shoulders.
Block counts as a touch
Unlike indoor volleyball, a block contact counts as one of the team's three touches.
Open-hand tips
Tipping the ball over the net with fingertips or an open hand is illegal; use a knuckle or cobra.
Switch ends
Teams switch ends every 7 points (sets 1-2) or 5 points (deciding set) to neutralise sun / wind advantages.
No footwear
Play is barefoot; ankle braces or socks allowed if approved by the referee.

Advanced rules

Time-outs
One 30-second timeout per team per set; also one 30-second 'technical timeout' when the sum of the score reaches 21 (sets 1-2).
Wind allowances
Retosses on the serve are allowed if wind blows the toss away; only two per server per match.
Screening
Server's partner may not intentionally block the receiver's view of the serve.
Video challenge
One video challenge per set at FIVB level; retained if successful.

Scoring

Rally-point scoring; every rally awards a point to the winning side.

Action	Points
Ball grounded on opponent's court	1
Opponent hits ball out or into the net	1
Opponent commits a fault	1
Ace serve	1

Win condition · Best-of-3 sets: 21-21-15 target; win by 2. First team to 2 sets wins the match.

Playing area

Called

sand court

Dimensions

16 m × 8 m court (smaller than indoor); net height same as indoor (2.43 m men / 2.24 m women).

Level sand court surrounded by a free zone. No attack line — any player may attack the ball from anywhere on their side.

Equipment

Beach volleyball
Slightly larger and softer than the indoor ball; brighter colours for visibility outdoors.
Net & posts
Same as indoor volleyball — 1 m deep, spanning the width of the court.
Antennae
Flexible rods on both ends of the net marking the vertical passage limit.
Sunglasses / visor
Common for outdoor glare and sun in the eyes.
Sun protection
Sunscreen and often taping — long matches on hot sand.

Officiating

Same crew as indoor volleyball but with more emphasis on set-cleanliness and wind rulings.

First referee (on stand)
Second referee (opposite side)
Scorer
Line judges (2 or 4)

Strategies

Serving the weaker passer
Team scouts and hammers the receiver who is more error-prone in wind or under pressure.
Line vs cross-court shots
Attackers vary between straight-down-the-line and diagonal cross-court hits to beat a single blocker.
Cut shot & pokey
Off-speed shots (cut, jumbo, poke) exploit gaps left by a committed defender.
Serving to the sun
In late afternoon, servers target zones where the receiver looks into the sun.

Terminology

Sideout: Winning the rally while receiving serve — earning the serve back.
Cut shot: Sharply-angled hit that lands just over the net near the sideline.
Pokey (knuckler): Legal fingertip contact using a curled knuckle to place the ball softly.
Dig: Defensive contact that keeps a spiked ball in play.
Peel: Blocker retreating from the net to play defence instead of blocking.
Chicken wing: Defensive save with elbow tucked to redirect a low ball with the arm.
Line ball / Cross-court ball: Attack down the sideline vs across the diagonal.
Jumbo: Two-handed overhead push shot used as a placement attack.
Skyball: Extremely high serve used to make the receive difficult in wind.
Switch: Partners swap sides of the court based on who's serving or receiving.

Major competitions

Summer Olympic Games
quadrennial · worldwide · since 1996
FIVB Beach Volleyball World Championship
biennial · worldwide · since 1997
FIVB Beach Pro Tour Finals
annual · worldwide · since 2022
AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour
annual · United States · since 1983

Where it is played

Governing bodies

Fédération Internationale de VolleyballFIVB
Founded 1947 · Lausanne, Switzerland
Official site ↗
AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour
Founded 1983 · Los Angeles, USA
Official site ↗

Famous names & records

Famous athletes

Karch Kiraly
Kerri Walsh Jennings
Misty May-Treanor
Emanuel Rego
Ricardo Santos
Alison Cerutti
Bruno Schmidt
Anders Mol
Christian Sørum
April Ross
Talita Antunes

Records

Most Olympic gold medals (individual)
Kerri Walsh Jennings & Misty May-Treanor — 3 (2012)
Most FIVB World Championship titles (men)
Emanuel Rego (BRA) — 3 (2011)
Longest winning streak (women, Olympic)
Kerri Walsh Jennings & Misty May-Treanor — 21 consecutive Olympic-tournament matches (2012)

Learn this sport

beginner

1
Sand footwork
Adapt to running, jumping and landing in soft sand — different from hard court.
2
Bump-set-hit
The standard three-touch flow with only one partner.
3
Underhand serve
Reliable outdoor serve to start.
4
Communication
Constant calls of 'mine!', 'yours!', 'up!' with your only partner.

intermediate

1
Legal setting
Practice clean two-handed sets that meet beach standards (no rotation of the ball).
2
Approach and swing
Two-step or three-step approach and full arm swing.
3
Reading the wind
Adjust toss height on serves, set apex closer to the net when wind is at your back.
4
One-blocker defence
Blocker takes line; defender covers cross-court — most common two-player scheme.

advanced

1
Serving strategy
Vary jump-topspin, jump-float, skyball; target weakest passer under sun/wind.
2
Blocking hand signals
Behind-the-back signals from blocker to defender indicating serve target and block/pull strategy.
3
Match management
Timeout usage, side changes, momentum shifts — mental toughness with no substitutions.

Frequently asked

How is beach volleyball different from indoor?+

Two players per side vs six, no substitutes, smaller court (16×8 m vs 18×9 m), sets to 21 (not 25), stricter setting rules, block counts as a touch, no shoes.

Why do teams switch sides?+

To equalise sun, wind and any court-slope advantages — every 7 points in sets 1-2, every 5 in the deciding set.

Is beach volleyball at the Olympics?+

Yes — since Atlanta 1996 for both men and women.

Do the same players play offence and defence?+

Yes — both partners must serve, pass, set, attack, block and dig. There are no specialists.

What are the hand signals behind the blocker's back?+

They communicate the blocking plan and where the server is aiming — before the serve, the blocker signals with fingers which zone will be attacked and which side will be blocked.

Sources & provenance

Wikipedia — Beach volleyball— Wikipedia
FIVB Official Beach Volleyball Rules— FIVB

Last verified 2026-08-24.community