The Fédération Internationale de Volleyball is the international governing body for volleyball. FIVB adopted the rally point system in 1998 to streamline the game and draw fans. The rally point system awards a point for each successful attack while the serve remains with or moves to the scoring team. Prior to 1998, the side-out scoring system awarded points only to serving teams. A successful attack by a non-serving team won the serve, but did not earn a point. The term "side-out," two teams exchanging the serve, is still used today.
Set and Match Today
The team that takes three sets wins a match. Sets are played to 25 points, with the exception of the fifth, tie-breaking set, which is played to 15 points. A team must have a minimum advantage of two points to win a set. If Team A is ahead 24 to 23 and scores the next point, it wins the set 25-23. If Team B ties the game at 24-all, however, either team must score the next two points to win 26-24. There is no ceiling, so play continues until a team builds a two-point edge.
Set and Match Past
The 26th FIVB World Congress unanimously approved the rally point system and new scoring rules on October 28, 1998. The changes took effect on January 1, 1999, and became compulsory at all levels in 2000. The governing body for volleyball in the United States, USA Volleyball, adopted the changes in 1999. U.S. high schools voted in 2003 to effect rally scoring by the 2004-05 school year. Before then, all five sets were played to 15 points. The first four sets had 17-point ceilings and only the fifth set required a two-point advantage.
Play
Volleyball is played by two teams of six players each on a court divided by a net. Players are assigned a position in the front and back rows. The ball is served, hit over the net to the opposing team. A team has up to three hits to return it back over the net. If the serving team wins a point, it continues to serve. If the opposing team wins a point, it wins the serve as well, and rotates one position. The only time the ball is not in motion is before it is served. The rally continues until the ball touches a team's court or lands out of bounds, or a team fails to follow the rules of the game.
Points
A rally begins with a serve and ends with a point award. Points are earned three ways: A successful attack hits the opposing team's court, a fault is committed or a penalty called. A fault is an action that is against the rules. Faults include ball handling errors, centerline or net violations, and balls hit out of bounds. Penalties include misconducts and delays. Referees call faults and assess penalties.
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