National volleyball rules in the U.S. are governed by USA Volleyball, a division of the United States Olympic Committee. Volleyball rules govern how many players can be on the court during game play and what actions constitute faults or violations. If you're training to hopefully play at the national level or even Olympic-level volleyball or you're hoping to be a volleyball coach at that level, you will need to understand U.S. volleyball rules.
Participants
A team may consist of no more than 12 players, according to U.S. volleyball rules. One player is indicated on the score sheet as the team captain. A team may designate up to two players, other than the captain, as "libero" players. The libero is a defensive specialist indicated by a different-colored jersey. Libero players may not make an attack hit on the ball if it is entirely above the top of the height of the net.
Positioning
When the ball is served, all defensive players must be in the correct position: three players on the front row in front of the attack line and three defensive players on the back row. The same applies for the offensive team, with the exception of the serving player who stands behind the serving line. Players must rotate through the six positions in order after every point. Failure to do so results in a fault and a point for the other team.
Game Play Rules
Play begins using a coin toss to determine which team will serve first. A player on the serving team stands behind the serving line and must serve the ball over the net to the opposing team. A team scores a point by grounding the ball in the other team's court or when the opposing team commits a fault, such as grabbing or touching the net while not in the act of hitting the ball, failing to get the ball over the net during a serve or hitting the ball so that it lands out of bounds. The boundary lines in U.S. volleyball are considered in-bounds. The first team to score 25 points wins the game. A team must win by two or more points. The first team to win three games wins the set. In the case of a 2-2 game tie, the fifth game is played to 15 points.
Rally Scoring
In 1999, U.S. volleyball adopted rally scoring for all competition. Before, a team could only score a point when it had service of the ball. In rally scoring, teams can score a point whether they have service or are being served the ball, thus speeding up play.
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