Right after the current Volleyball World Pro Tour was announced in 2021 and the beach volleyball community was rightly up in arms about it I began dreaming and writing about creating a beach volleyball professional league. I was certain that we had to try something different than before and leagues are hugely successful as the bread and butter of most professional team sports. The closest thing to a league in beach volleyball anywhere in the world is the NCAA sand volleyball championship which is entirely amateur and so not reliant on TV and ticket sales and therefore not designed as an entertainment package.
But now the AVP have announced it will create an 8 city league for later in 2024 and they do rely on TV and ticket sales and will be hoping to create entertainment. While we don't know anything yet of what this will look like the idea is brand new for the sport and one I have been waiting to see tried. In 2022 I wrote down some ideas for a league concept as below so I can't wait to see what the AVP deliver. I firmly believe it will need to be outside the box to succeed and probably take a few tweaks and adjustments along the way.
Firstly the league management should preferably be set up as a non profit like the NBA and must hold full control of all technical competition management including the rules applied and the referees etc. (i.e. not necessarily following standard rules so there should be no interference or control by any governing body).
Pro Beach Volleyball League Beginning Concept Example
8 teams/franchises based in 8 cities.
2 months total season length.
Auction or draft for players.
6 players per squad with 5 named on sheet per game and the substitute can then sub on once per game per player so twice per game or 4 times per match.
Coaches name teams 1 and 2 as they see fit. Done secretly before the match so neither team knows the match ups. Hence the substitute becomes more important.
Powerplay? how/when?
Timed games? Or freeze?
Coaching during games allowed (coach and assistant coach)
Golden set any 2 of the 5 active players. (No substitute?)(must be a different pairing than any of the 2 previous games starting pairings?
Overall champions crowned after finals. Biggest prize is overall league champions.
Champions host finals next year?
More awards than just fastest serve- MVP- etc
Regular Season
2 conferences of 4 teams each. (4 coast and 4 inland franchises?)
1 event per weekend from each conference with all teams in attendance.
1 weekend at each city in your conference so 4 weekends total. (each team hosts once)
Games all televised so no 2 games scheduled at same time.
Schedule of Play example for TV:
Conference 1 (Beach Venue)
Saturday semifinals 9am, 11:30am, 2pm, 4:30pm
Sunday bronze 9am, 11:30am
Sunday Finals 2pm, 4:30pm
Conference 2 (City Venue)
Friday semis (gender a) 5pm 8pm
Saturday Semis (gender b) 10am, 1pm
Saturday bronze and final (gender a) 6pm, 8pm
Sunday bronze and final (gender b) 1pm, 3:30pm (or similar)
Post Season Playoffs - Championship Week
Wednesday night 5pm 3 v 6 (hosted by 3rd ranked team)
Wednesday night 8pm 4 v 5 (hosted by 4th ranked team)
Thursday night Champions dinner for top 4 teams
Friday night Semifinals 1 v 4/5 and 2 v 3/6
Saturday night Finals
(Thursday onwards hosted in designated Championship city (winner of previous season/number 1 seed after regular season?)