Let’s cover all the highlights before the upcoming Volleyball World Cup. Which teams to cheer for, where and when will it take place?
The Men’s Volleyball World Championship will be held in three group stages from August 26 to September 11. In the first group stage, 24 national teams will play, divided into six groups. The second phase will be played by the top two teams in each group and the four best third-ranked teams. Finally, the tournament’s winner will be determined in a playoff, qualifying two teams from each of the two groups in the third leg.
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The 2022 World Volleyball Championship was to be held in Russia.
The International Volleyball Federation made its first attempt to take the tournament away from Russia back in 2019. Then, because of sanctions from WADA (the world anti-doping agency), many countries opposed holding the game in the country. In 2019, the decision to cancel the championship could not be sold, but nothing prevented it in 2022. Because of the military operation in Ukraine, the entire international community condemned Russia.
The sanctions affected not only political and economic events but also sports. The International Olympic Committee recommended that sports federations ban Russian athletes from the international arena and cancel international competitions in the country. UEFA was the first to follow the IOC recommendations and moved the Champions League final from St. Petersburg to Paris. However, FIVB (International Volleyball Federation) did not stand aside and decided to postpone the World Championships from Russia.
The 2022 World Volleyball Championship will be held in two European countries. The new hosts of the tournament are Poland and Slovenia. Most bookmakers accept bets on volleyball, but the most comprehensive coverage they offer for major games: the World Cup, the European Championships, and the Olympic Games. For Poland, this is the second Volleyball World Championship in history. In 2014, Poland already hosted the Mundial. For Slovenia, it is the first World Championship in history.
Russia was left without a home Mundial and banned from participating in the tournament. The Ukrainian team took Russia’s place at the World Volleyball Championship. In 2022, the World Cup will be held under an updated format with the participation of 24 national teams. The structure of the selection was changed. First, Russia was given a place in the tournament as the country hosting the championship. Then 11 teams were selected by the results of the continental games. Finally, another 12 teams were invited to the Mundial based on their position in the international ranking.
Ukraine didn’t manage to pass the qualifying tournament in Europe and was not among the participants who qualified through the world ranking. The last team in the ranking was China. The Chinese team ranks 22nd in the world ranking. Ukraine has 23rd place in the order at the end of the selection. Due to Russia’s exclusion, Ukraine got a place in the world championship as the next best team in the world ranking.
For the Ukrainian national team, the 2022 Men’s World Championship will be the second in history. Previously, the team played in the 1998 Mundial and finished 10th.
A Brief History of Volleyball
Volleyball is a team sport in which two competing teams play on a particular court divided by a net. During the game, participants try to direct the ball to the opponent’s area so that it touches the floor in the playground area. The ball may only be handled by hand and may only be kicked in flight. Only three touches may be made to organize one attack. Touching on the block does not count.
The history of volleyball goes back to the late 19th century, when William Morgan, a teacher at a Young Christians Association college, hung a tennis net two meters high and let his students, whose number was not limited. Instead, they used a basketball-sword camera that they threw over the stretched net to play. They decided to call the new game “Mintonet. The game became so popular that it was demonstrated at a college conference held in Springfield after a while. At the suggestion of Professor Alfred Halsten, it was then that the game was given a new name – “volleyball,” which means “soaring ball. Since then, the history of volleyball has begun.
Thus, in 1922 the first national competition in the world was held in Brooklyn, with over 20 men’s teams participating. In the same year, the first volleyball organization in the world was established in Poland. In 1923-1925 national federations of the USA, Bulgaria, Japan and USSR were organized. During this period, most of the current rules for volleyball were formed.
- In 1936, the idea of creating a technical committee in charge of the sport was proposed. As a result of this initiative, a committee was organized, which included five American countries, four Asian countries, and 13 European countries. Then the history of volleyball went into a sharp decline – World War II was on the brink. After it ended, the situation improved significantly – already in 1947, a congress of the International Federation was organized, which was held in Paris. Fourteen countries attended it.
- In 1949, the first championship was held, which took place among the men’s teams. Based on its results, it was decided to make changes to the rules, so in 1951, at the Congress in Marseilles, official international rules were approved, and an arbitration committee and a department were formed to develop further and improve further the set of rules.
- In 1964 volleyball entered a new era in its history, becoming part of the Olympic family.
- Today the International Federation includes 220 national federations.
Participating teams
At tournament 24, national teams will participate. Among the participants are the host team and the reigning world champion (Poland), champions and vice-champions of regional tournaments (Iran, Japan, Tunisia, Italy, Slovenia, Brazil, Puerto Rico, and Canada). Another 12 teams made it to the game by ranking: Netherlands, USA, Serbia, Cuba, France, Germany, Mexico, Turkey, Egypt, Qatar, Bulgaria, and China. Ukraine took Russia’s place in the championship.
About the favorites
Among the national teams, first of all, groups of Serbia and the United States stand out. Very strong teams also have the Netherlands and Germany. Thus, without any exaggeration, we can say that at least eight or even ten teams out of 24 participants in the World Cup will set themselves only the maximum task. You’d be hard-pressed to find such competition in other sports.
