History of Volleyball Rules
By: Holden Schinzer
Did you know?
Original Rules
Net Height: 6 Feet 6 Inches
Any number of participants
Multiple people could assist a serve
Second serve was allowed if first was out of bounds
Players had an infinite amount of hits per side
Any ball that touched the net, even if it only skimmed it, was considered out of bounds
Faults by the recieving team (when a ball lands on the recieving teams court or when the recieving team hits it out of bounds) resulted in a point for the serving team.
Faults by the serving team result in a "side out" for the serving team
Games were nine "innings" long.
One inning was three serves for each team if there were three or more people
One inning was two serves for each team if there was two people
One inning was one serve for each team if there was only one person.
Rules changes over time
1900: Net height was raised to 7 feet, 6 inches. Dribbling line was eliminated. Length of game was changed to 21 points.
1912:
1. Court size became 35 X 60 feet.
2. Official ball was designated as 26 inches in circumference and was to weigh between 7 and 9 ounces.
3. Number of players on a side was established at six.
4. Teams required to rotate prior to serving.
1915Number of players on a side could range from one to six. Losing team served in each subsequent game. Official timer was included.Between 1897 and 1915, the rules were published in the HANDBOOK OF THE ATHLETIC LEAGUE OF THE Y.M.C.A. In 1916 the American Sports published the rules through Publishing Company in a separate book called OFFICIAL VOLLEYBALL RULES.
1916: Game points were reduced from 21 to 15 points. Two out of three games determined the winner of a match. The ball could be struck with the feet. The net height was raised to eight feet. The weight of the ball was changed to range from 8 to 10 ounces. Each man rotated in order and served in turn. A serve that hit the net or any outside object was out of bounds. The ball could not come to rest in the hands. The ball could not be touched a second time unless another player had played it.
1920: The ball could be played by any part of the body above the waist. The court size was changed to 30 feet by 60 feet. The ball could only be played three times by each team on its side of the court.
1922: Reaching over the net in any manner was prohibited. A back position player was prohibited from spiking when playing a back position. The double foul was written in the rules. The centerline was added as well as a scorer. It was necessary for one team to score two consecutive points to win if the score was tied at 14-14.
1923: Ceiling height minimum was to be 15 feet. Six players constituted a team and 12, a squad. Players were numbered. The team receiving the serve rotated clockwise. The right back player served. If a player touched the opponents’ court in completing a play it constituted a foul.
1924: In 1924 the net specifications were written in detail: 3 feet wide, 4-inch square mesh of number 30 brown thread, canvas cover, top and bottom with 1/4 inch cable at tope and 1/4 inch rope at the bottom.
1925: The ball weight was changed to range from 9 to 10 ounces. An umpire was added. A player could not leave the court without the referee’s permission. The ball had to cross the net over the sidelines. A team was permitted two times out per game. A 14-14-tie game was won by a team having a two-point advantage instead of 2 consecutive points.
1926: The court was measured to the outside edges of the lines. The net length was placed at 32 feet. A team that was reduced to less than six players would forfeit the game.
1928: Four different sets of rules were published: the official rules, simplified rules, modified rules for the playground, and rules for girls and women. Although the last three sets of rules were changed many times and had interest and support from various groups, the official rules are the only ones covered.
No changes occurred from 1927 to 1931.
1932: The centerline was extended indefinitely. A tape was put on the net over the sidelines. Times out were limited to one minute. A player could not interchange positions or move outside his understood playing area. A player could go outside his court to make a play.
1934: A 3/8-inch cable replaced the 1/4-inch cable in the top of the net.
1935: Crosses were placed on the floor defining player positions. All players were required to wear numbers on their suits. It became a foul to deliberately screen an opponent from the server. Players could not leave their court unless the ball was on their side of the net. (At this time spikers would stand outside their court and wait till the ball was set to the outside of the court and come running in with a one-leg take-off spike). Any touching of the net was a foul. A play was not complete unless a player resumed normal control on the floor. Deliberate shouting and stomping the feet at an opponent was deemed unsportsmanlike.
1937: A third contact ball driven into the net causing the net to contact the opponent was not a foul. A player could re-enter a game once. A substitute was no longer restricted from talking to his teammate until the ball was put into play. Multiple contacts were allowed in receiving a hard drive spike.
1938: Blocking was first included in the rules in 1938. Blocking was defined as impeding the ball at the net. A one or two-man block was permitted, providing the blockers played in adjacent positions.
1939: No changes occurred
1940: The official ball must be a twelve-piece lace less leather-covered ball.
1941: Rules are reworded and clarified
1942: Ball could be played with any part of the body from the knees upward. The score of a forfeited game would be 15-0.
1947: Only the front line players could interchange positions to make a two-man block. The numbers on players’ shirts had to be 4 inches high.
1948: The rules were clarified and rewritten to aid in interpretation. Blocking was defined and the service area stipulated as being the right third of the back line. Other items clarified were:Each player should be in his own area before the ball leaves the server’s hands. Points made from wrong server were cancelled. Simultaneous hits by two players constituted one hit. Time out for rest was one minute. Time out for injury was five minutes. Time out between games was three minutes.
1949: The game was allowed to be played under a time limit of 8 minutes of ball in playtime. The winner was to have a 20-point advantage after expiration of time or 15 points, whichever came first. A timekeeper was included as one of the officials. Time-out period for injury was reduced to three minutes. A three-man block was made legal, provided they were front line players.
1950: There should be no warm-up time allowed substitutes. A clarification of what constituted a held ball included “the ball must be clearly batted.”
1951: The service area and the court with crosses were clearly defined. A backcourt spiker was allowed to spike the ball provided he remained in the back court.
1952: Any player was allowed to block at the net. A 7-foot line drawn back and parallel to the net as a restraining line for back court players blocking at the net. The restriction was lifted on players leaving their position to perform any play except the back line spiker. A defensive player, when blocking, must indicate whether or not he touched the ball. The server was allowed to serve the ball from anywhere back of the service line. Teams were allowed to warm up during time out for rest or for injury. The players were allowed to leave the court without the referee’s permission. The coach, captain, or manager was allowed to call time out.
1953: The rubber ball was ruled legal. A substitute was allowed to re-enter the game twice instead of once. Players were allowed to use any part of the body to play the ball. The whole format of the rules was changed and each rule items was numbered from 1 to 75 under 8 major headings. Errors and fouls were defined.
1954: Clarified the rule concerning players being in position until the ball was struck on the serve. A set of co-ed rules was adopted. An attempt to draft a standard set of rules failed due to the different styles of play used by various groups. Screening the serve was allowed.
1955: The official rules came out in a new format with 5 main headings and 24 sub-titles for cross reference and coverage. A back line player was allowed to take-off from in front of the 7-foot line but had to alight behind the line. Movement during a screen was allowed.
1956: The players were allowed to stand anywhere in the court during the serve as long as they were in rotation order. Teams automatically changed courts during the third game of a match when one team reached 8 points or 4 minutes of playtime expired.
1957: There were no changes but various innovations were tried.Using a higher net. Twenty-one and fifty point games. Playing the ball off obstacles. Playing all underhand balls with the fist.
1958: There were no major changes made.
1959: Players screening the serve were allowed to wave their hands and move during the serve. The umpire was given the authority to call ball-handling errors and to keep time between games.
1960: Women’s net height was lowered to 7 feet 4 inches. Teams were to alternate the initial serve of each succeeding game in a match.
1961: Gloves were allowed to be worn during play.
1962: Clarification of timing rule and player position. A player was not allowed to grab the officials’ platform to keep from going over the centerline.
1963: Clarification of the overlapping rule of player positions on the serve.
1964: Defined the method of service whereby a server could hit the serve from a toss by a teammate or from a bounce.
1965: Center line was limited only to the side of the court. A player could cross the assumed extension if he did not attempt to play the ball. Screening was made illegal.
1966: The blocker’s fingers were permitted to stray across the net inadvertently as long as they did not contact the ball or affect the play.
1967: No changes made due to the widespread use of International Rules.
1968: An attempt was made to draw USVBA rules and International Rules together, causing several major changes to be made: Definition of fouls changed to include ball-handling errors. Ceiling minimum height was raised to 26 feet. Lines depicting the 10-foot serving area were added to the court. The server was required to toss the ball into the air when initiating the serve. The spiking line was moved from 7 feet to 10 feet back from the net. Blockers were allowed to reach across the net as long as they did not contact the ball until after the attacker had contacted it. One player from the rear could block but at no time could there be more than three players deployed in position to block. Back line spikers were allowed to land in front of the spiking line as long as they left the ground behind it. The ball could not be played with any part of the body below the waist.
1969: Only front line players were permitted to block. A team was limited to 12 substitutions per game.
1970: Numbers on uniforms must be 6 inches on the front, 3 inches on the back, and at least 4 inches above the waist. The centerline was widened from 2 inches to 4 inches. Upon request by the referee, the umpire can call all violations not viable to the referee. The ball on the serve does not have to be tossed in the air before it is struck. When a player is injured, a substitute shall be put in without undue delay. Once a team has received the signal to take the court, the lineup cannot be changed.
1974: Antennae were added on the net, one ball’s width outside the sidelines. Playe ended as soon as the ball was “dead” (rescinding the “continuation” rule). Players were allowed three entries (starting counts as an entry) per game (completing the “twelve substitution” rule)
1976: (Adoption of the International Rules and rules format; old numbering system abandoned). Metric measurements introduced. Metric net heights introduced: 2.43m for men and 2.24m for women. Center lines reduced to 5cm. Antennae moved to the sidelines. Best of five games determined the winner of a match. Six substitutions per team and one entry per player allowed. (“Six substitution” rule). Balls must be released before they were served. Balls hitting the ceiling or any other obstruction were “dead.” Blocks no longer counted as the first of a team’s three hits. Double hits were prohibited on any type of dig (rescinding the “hard driven spike” rule).
Note:Major international rules changes are generally introduced only after Olympic competition
1984: A player could make multiple contacts of a teams’s first hit if there was only one attempt and there was no “finger action” on the ball. Blocking or attacking served became illegal
1988: “Rally point” scoring introduced for deciding games of three or five game matches. 17 point “cap” introduced for all games (i.e. 17-16 wins any game)
1990: Attacking a served ball is legal if the ball is not played entirely above the height of the net
1994: Prosthetic limbs may be worn if the referee determines the player will gain no artificial advantage. Ball may be contacted with any part of a player’s body on or above the knee. Point limit on deciding games eliminated
1996: Service zone extended to include full width of 9m area behind end lines. Ball may be contacted with any part of a player’s body.
1998: Server only receives one toss of the ball to execute the service
1999: All scoring changed to “rally.” Non-deciding games played to 25 with no cap, deciding games to 15 with no cap.
2001: Ball allowed to touch the net while crossing it on the serve
2002: During play, a coach may give instructions to players on the court without delaying the match