Is volleyball a commonly played sport there in America?

r/

Is volleyball a commonly played sport there in America?

Comments

  1. firerosearien Avatar

    Pretty common for high school students since you just need a gym and a net, but not as popular as soccer, football, baseball/softball, basketball, or cheerleading

  2. Gold_Telephone_7192 Avatar

    Yeah it’s one of the most common adult rec league sports in the country. It’s also very common as a high school sport.

  3. pikkdogs Avatar

    I played it in gym class and you can play it in college. I see courts sometimes at beaches and stuff. So, it’s played. It’s not like the most common sport, but depending on how you define the word I would say so.

  4. Roadshell Avatar

    Commonly played, not much of a pro/spectator sport outside of college and the olypics.

  5. Predictor92 Avatar

    As an Amateur sport, yes. In fact it was invented in America, in a town in western Massachusetts by a classmate of James Naismith, the inventor of basketball.

  6. Lumpy-Ring-1304 Avatar

    Yes, very popular recreationally, beach volleyball, gym volleyball, pool volleyball, etc.

  7. la-anah Avatar

    It is a popular high school and college sport. Beach volley ball is a popular amateur pastime. My elderly mom plays pool volley ball at the senior center.

    But it isn’t the kind of sport many people follow as fans. Professional leagues do exist. https://provolleyball.com/news/2024/03/player-compensation-increases-announced-for-2025

  8. Subject_Reception681 Avatar

    Yes. But it’s mostly played by ladies up through high school. In most cities, there are intramural leagues, which are often co-ed. Many of the girls I’ve played with have been beasts, whereas most dudes kinda suck (myself included) because they pick it up late in life.

  9. SecretRecipe Avatar

    It’s fairly common, you can find volleyball courts in many parks and it’s played competitively in schools.

  10. Significant-Track797 Avatar

    Women’s volleyball is a popular high school/college sport. Men’s is not.

    Nebraska loves their volleyball, they sold out a football stadium for their girls.

    🚨 Nebraska volleyball sets NEW WORLD RECORD 🚨 Playing in front of 92,003 people! | SportsCenter

  11. ATLien_3000 Avatar

    As a result of title IX it’s mostly a women’s/girl’s sport in the US.

    Within that context it’s reasonably popular.

  12. Ok-Walk-8040 Avatar

    It’s played a lot casually. There are bars that have sand volleyball and a brewery/taproom next door.

  13. TrueInky Avatar

    Yes. Outside of schools, it’s common to see people playing on the beach or set up a net to play in a park.

  14. machuitzil Avatar

    I’m from a beach town, we’ve got ~20 beach courts that are always packed. And my boss who played in highschool and college tore her acl last year playing in a rec league.

    I’d say it’s reasonably popular, sure.

  15. Much-Leek-420 Avatar

    It probably depends on what state you are in. It’s very popular all over for high school. It’s mixed across other states.

    In my state of Nebraska, it’s WILDLY popular! College level volleyball is always sold-out seating, and Omaha just got it’s first professional-level volleyball team.

  16. StrongStyleDragon Avatar

    I’ve noticed it’s gotten more popular. Noticed some girls were having a fundraiser outside of Walmart for their team and noticed more girls wearing their uniform coming into my store(gas station) for things. So while it has always existed it’s gained a bit of popularity.

  17. Self-Comprehensive Avatar

    Yes. It’s very easy to set up and play and lots of parks have volleyball courts. It’s not much of an organized sport outside of school though.

  18. PM_ME_UR__SECRETS Avatar

    I’d say yes. My highschool had a volleyball team. And we’re nowhere near any beaches, where you kind of expect it to be more popular.

    Its not as common as football or basketball but its still pretty popular.

  19. river_tree_nut Avatar

    Yep, sure is. I’m no athlete by any means but played beer league co-Ed volleyball as an adult.

    The play is organized by the city parks department but often teams would a bar sponsor their fees ($400 iirc) and then the team would go there for drinks after matches.

    Then there’s professional beach volleyball which as a whole other level of competition. Those are real athletes.

  20. Redbubble89 Avatar

    If you are over 6 foot for a girl or 6’4″ for a guy and basketball doesn’t work for you, you can get a college scholarship to play volleyball. Beyond that, not much else unless Olympic.

  21. OttoHemi Avatar

    We used to play volleyball all winter long in the gym for Phys. Ed., then all summer long at the pool. But it was never much of an organized sport.

  22. MangoSalsa89 Avatar

    Volleyball is a very popular women’s sport in school, and many people play recreationally in parks or at the beach. There isn’t a huge pro volleyball following though, outside of some famous Olympians.

  23. jsmeeker Avatar

    Women’s NCAA (college) volleyball shows up on TV pretty regularly, and if you have ESPN+ (streaming) you can see a ton of it.

  24. KalAtharEQ Avatar

    It’s pretty common. Lots of girls play it in highschool. Some colleges have good teams that draw crowds. It’s also a popular “league” sport for socializing and drinking for both men and women around the college age or a bit older.

  25. Farmchuck Avatar

    Plenty of co-ed beer leagues at bars that have the outdoor space in Wisconsin

  26. Devious_Bastard Avatar

    A lot of bars have sand volleyball courts and will have leagues during the summer time. It’s getting pretty popular as a spectator sport too, especially women’s college volleyball. I believe it was a year or two ago that Nebraska set a record for the highest attended women’s college sport event. They had it in their football stadium and some 90,000(?) spectators showed up.

  27. seattlecyclone Avatar

    Yes volleyball is a very common sport to play in the US, especially for girls and women. Most schools that have an athletic program will have a girls/women’s volleyball team; teams for men are less common in most areas.

  28. non_clever_username Avatar

    It’s played in most high schools, but its prevalence beyond that varies wildly. Nebraska had over 90k people come to a match a couple years back.

    In a good chunk of the country, the attendance at most college matches would only be a few hundred to a couple thousand on a good night.

    There are a couple pro leagues that are new, but it’s unclear how successful they’ll be. It seems to be an up-and-coming sport to some extent, but it’s still extremely niche.

  29. thechurchchick Avatar

    Mostly just popular in school and on the beach

  30. Ineffable7980x Avatar

    It’s a very popular high school and college sport. And people play it recreationally, especially on beaches. But it isn’t on most people’s radar otherwise.

  31. DieHardAmerican95 Avatar

    Yes. In fact there’s a bar near me that has volleyball tournaments.

  32. vbsteez Avatar

    its the 2nd most played girls sport in the US behind soccer, i think, and the fastest growing boys sport for several years in a row now.

  33. joesquatchnow Avatar

    In high school and college all over the US, in Cali it’s seen all the time and they have pro level beach versions too

  34. Overall_Falcon_8526 Avatar

    It’s taught in most school gym classes, most middle schools, high schools, and colleges field teams, and many beaches have standing courts.

    Do most people in the US play it? Nah. It’s hard.

  35. Unreasonably-Clutch Avatar

    Playing sand volleyball is huge where I live (circa Scottsdale, AZ). There are many leagues and at least one annual tournament. Some locations have people playing every night.

  36. badbackandgettingfat Avatar

    It sure is in San Diego, CA.

  37. drewcandraw Avatar

    Most junior high, high school, and colleges field volleyball teams. It’s played in gym classes and recreationally, but it does not have the cultural penetration of (gridiron) football, baseball, or basketball. The professional volleyball leagues do not have the revenue or exposure that those sports do.

  38. GriffinArc Avatar

    It’s played at most middle and high schools though in many states it’s often a girls sport only. Pretty much every large university gives out scholarships to players, especially for women’s teams.

  39. DrMindbendersMonocle Avatar

    Yes, common enough. We had physical education class for it in 7th grade and a lot of high schools and colleges have teams. Seems more popular with women, though, because a lot of time there is a womens team and no mens team

  40. Away_Analyst_3107 Avatar

    I might be a bit biased cause my high school’s boys team won every state championship the entire time I was there, but around me it is very big. I would say our order goes soccer (most popular)-> baseball -> football -> volleyball -> basketball -> lacrosse (least popular) for guys. For girls it’s soccer -> lacrosse -> volleyball -> basketball -> softball -> field hockey

  41. Loud_Inspector_9782 Avatar

    It is played a lot depending on the area. Most high schools have teams. Most colleges have women’s volleyball, with fewer having men’s.

  42. Weekly_Barnacle_485 Avatar

    It is here in Western Massachusetts. It was invented here in Holyoke, MA.

  43. Appropriate-Food1757 Avatar

    Like in PE class.

    It’s a popular sport for women outside of that. I (man) like to play volleyball but the opportunity doesn’t arise often. We do pool volleyball annually for a fantasy football thing we do.

  44. joepierson123 Avatar

    Well it’s very easy and cheap to set up a volleyball net in your backyard

  45. theeternalcowby Avatar

    In California it feels like the most popular youth sport for girls (at least until college). Plus beach volleyball is super popular and many beaches have a sand court.

  46. Tricky_Ad_1870 Avatar

    It’s popular in nudist camp grounds.

  47. davdev Avatar

    I went to all boys HS. We didnt have volleyball, but our sister school did. The girls school didnt have a gym, so they used ours. You have never seen more spectators at a girls HS volleyball game that you did when those games took place in all boys school. We packed that place.

  48. John_Tacos Avatar

    Well beach volleyball is common near the water. Sometimes parks not near water will have beach volleyball too.

    Indoor volleyball is more common as a women’s sport.

    Title 9 has some say in this, it requires equal opportunity for women’s and men’s sports. Typically women’s football and men’s volleyball are not popular so men’s football and women’s volleyball are the sports you see at the same schools often.

  49. PacSan300 Avatar

    Yes, it is a very common sport especially at the school and college level.

  50. batcaveroad Avatar

    It’s a common girls sport in schools. Growing up, was the first school sport that girls could play starting in 7th grade so a lot of girls would play junior high and then switch to something else once they were in high school and had more options.

    Most women I know who played any sports had done volleyball at one point. It’s not something most men have played (outside beach volleyball). I’ve watched a volleyball-based anime and my girlfriend was explaining the positions to me because I’d never played the full version.

  51. Hood_Harmacist Avatar

    it seems more shifted to females in the USA but i’m probably wrong

  52. phred_666 Avatar

    High school, yes. College, yes. Professionally…outside of the Olympics, I have never seen “Pro” volleyball.

  53. semisubterranean Avatar

    I work at a small university. At almost every student event, someone puts up a volleyball net and gets a game going.

    In my region, nearly every school has women’s volleyball as a varsity sport. However, men’s volleyball teams are much more rare here. They are more common outside of the Great Plains. Still, plenty of men here play it recreationally.

  54. Cold-Call-8374 Avatar

    Common in that it’s not weird. Most high schools, especially in metropolitan areas have volleyball teams, and there are volleyball courts around. But it’s not as popular a spectator sport as say football or baseball. But it wouldn’t be considered weird or rare. It’s also probably more popular in coastal areas because beach volleyball.

  55. BreezyBill Avatar

    Super popular among the Latino community. Everyone else, at least in my area, not so much.

  56. The_Menu_Guy Avatar

    It is played a lot in school gym classes and high school and college sports teams. Beyond that, not so much.

    It is kind of like soccer, in that it is not taken very seriously here.

  57. Equivalent-Pin-4759 Avatar

    It’s a common high school and college sport.

  58. agate_ Avatar

    It’s probably one of the top ten most played sports in the country, but not in the top five. But it’s not usually shown on TV.

  59. Foreign-Quality-9190 Avatar

    Most of my family gatherings always have bacci ball, badminton, and volleyball.

  60. therlwl Avatar

    Yes beaches and nudist colonies speak up. 

  61. AldenteAdmin Avatar

    Yeah, it was really common in high school as an activity and in college was usually an easy way to make friends as the games were usually just pick ups similar to basketball in a gym.

    Regarding it as a professional sport? It’s not common nor does it really attract large viewership outside of the Olympics. It’s still respected as a legitimate sport though and people can get scholarships and sponsorships through playing well. It’s in a category of sports much like actual wrestling or swimming where it doesn’t get much attention from spectators, but it’s a pretty common sport for people to play all the way up to the end of college.

  62. musing_codger Avatar

    It is one of the most popular sports for girls in high school in the US. I believe that it is second behind track & field, but ahead of soccer, basketball, and softball. But I don’t think it is in the top 10 in popularity for boys to play.

  63. MrShortPants Avatar

    It’s very common as a high school and college sport and as a recreational pastime.

    It has been televised at times but I can’t recall anything outside of the Olympics in the past 20 years. That’s likely due to the prevalence of streaming services and chord cutters, I’m not watching network TV on a Saturday morning any longer.

  64. holymacaroley Avatar

    Played? Yes. People go watch it? Usually loved ones of players and people who are also volleyball players, I’d imagine.

  65. Crayshack Avatar

    Very common as a casual sport. It’s easy to find nets in a lot of parks and you’ll see people playing friendly gsmes.

  66. Voodoo330 Avatar

    It’s a popular high school and college sport, especially for women. You don’t see many people playing recreationally just for fun unless it’s a large gathering.

  67. teewye86 Avatar

    I think I could support a women’s beach volleyball channel.

  68. Adorable_Dust3799 Avatar

    I played a lot in school and never again. It takes equipment and takes several people, even at the minimum of 6. I see beach volleyball played regularly using the public nets

  69. parkz88 Avatar

    We invented it. It is played by beautiful giants.

  70. roiroi1010 Avatar

    It’s extremely popular for teenage girls in Texas.

  71. Icy-Whale-2253 Avatar

    I played in middle school (though I wouldn’t say I was particularly good at it).

  72. Dizzy_Lengthiness_92 Avatar

    I really only see people playing it at the beach every now and then. My high school only had a girls team. I could probably google an event in my area but that’s the only way I’d ever know.

  73. mountednoble99 Avatar

    In beach cities, yes.

  74. MacSteele13 Avatar

    All I know is that wrist injuries are common among beach volleyball viewers.

  75. wmass Avatar

    Volleyball was invented in Holyoke, Massachusetts, USA. We do play volleyball here, especially as a women’s school sport. It isn’t popular as a television spectator sport. Sometimes you might find volleyball on TV but it is uncommon. I think volleyball is more prominent now than it was because of a federal law called Title IX. This law forbids discrimination against women in college sports (among other things). So when it went into effect colleges had to start offering athletic scholarships to women in the same numbers as men. Since there were more men playing college sports volleyball was one sport where new scholarships were funded.

  76. gjp11 Avatar

    Yes and no.

    Many many people play it for fun as a pickup sport. It’s very common to see people playing it in public parks or at the beach and there’s often public sand courts available, but the amount of people who play it in an organized manner, wanting to play the sport competitively, is much lower than our other sports.

    Like you don’t see nearly as many volleyball leagues for kids as you do basketball or baseball/softball.

    As a spectator sport college volleyball is gaining some traction tho it’s still minor compared to other sports. Then there’s some pro leagues and the AVP for beach volleyball which gets televised so there’s at least some audience. And of course people will tune in for team USA in the Olympics.

  77. gutclutterminor Avatar

    Most high schools and colleges have teams. So, yeah, it’s pretty common.

  78. gutclutterminor Avatar

    Most high schools and colleges have teams. So, yeah, it’s pretty common.

  79. FenisDembo82 Avatar

    It’s. It’s a common thing that people will play casually at family picnics or at the beach, in addition to more organized leagues, outside of school, where is is omnipresent. 40 years ago we had recreational intramural volleyball leagues in college. After college we had a group that would get together on Sundays during the Summer too play volleyball in a local park.

  80. Gatsby1923 Avatar

    Yes, it was even invented in my home town… but it’s more of a college, high school sport… its not a pro sport.

  81. PrimusDCE Avatar

    College and Olympics, and it’s mostly associated with women. You usually see people playing it at the beach. No one watches it.

  82. ccoakley Avatar

    My parents used to do a potluck/bbq at the beach every single Friday during daylight savings. This was southern California. We’d play volleyball for hours. We’d do kids vs adults, mixed teams, etc. When some of us kids got to high school, we’d also challenge people not in our group in 2-man pickup games. Their generation got old and my generation went away for college, so it died off after about 8 years. But we weren’t the only people doing it.

  83. Smelle Avatar

    It is growing in men’s in HS, it has mostly been women’s sport. Tall kids that can’t ball.

  84. meganemistake Avatar

    In jr high and highschool it’s extremely common for there to be women’s volleyball teams and I know I watch the olympics volleyball and beach volleyball. It’s pretty common to know how to serve or bump a ball even if one never playe it in an official capacity

  85. Buzzard1022 Avatar

    It seems to be gaining traction. It was strictly a women’s sport when i was growing up (no HS men’s teams) but now men are playing and I see it on TV more than ever. Still a niche thing, though

  86. iknitandigrowthings Avatar

    I played volleyball all through high school. My mom played in a casual women’s league on Wednesday evenings when I was a kid. My kids’ high school has two volleyball teams. There are two different sand volleyball court complexes within 25 minutes of my house. It may not be a huge thing, but it’s definitely a thing.

  87. No_Entertainment1931 Avatar

    Yes. On the west coast it’s popular with all genders but in most of America it is more commonly a women’s sport, sort of a counterpoint to football

  88. Don_Q_Jote Avatar

    Very common, i would say. Most would learn/play it in school. Recreations leagues are popular. Beach volleyball where there are beaches. Plenty of opportunity to play at a variety of levels.

  89. OceanPoet87 Avatar

    To play yes especially for girls but guys too.

    Less popular to watch though some college programs like Nebraska(?) fill up stadiums to watch  

  90. Salmundo Avatar

    I’m in the western US. Outdoor (beach) volleyball is popular along with indoor. There is play in schools and college, plus recreational leagues. I played until I was 50 years old, I met players who were older who had played for decades.

  91. Asparagus9000 Avatar

    Lots of public parks where I live have volleyball courts. 

    People play all the time. 

  92. 12B88M Avatar

    Volleyball is a popular sport in the US.

  93. CatOfGrey Avatar

    California here.

    I was raised in that Los Angeles Beach area that was one of the main centers for beach volleyball back to the 1980’s and before. It’s hard to find beaches that don’t have some nets somewhere.

    At least in this area, it’s a commonly played sport. I would say that standard volleyball courts on a school playground or park have been replaced by sand courts.

    In school it’s a popular high school sport – a great alternative to football for kids that aren’t naturally built for football, or whose parents worry about head injury. Girls play it too – alternative to basketball and softball.

  94. seifd Avatar

    From my personal experience, I would assume most people have played volleyball. It was a unit in my middle school compulsory gym class.

    Girls and women have more chances for organized play. My middle school, high school, and college all had volleyball teams for girls/women, but not boys/men. Recently, we even got a professional women’s volleyball team.

    Recreationally, people of both genders like to play volleyball at the beach. I personally was also involved in a game of mud volleyball in middle school, though that was mostly just an excuse for us to get covered in mud.

  95. TheGreenicus Avatar

    Fairly common when groups get together.

    Very very common among recreational nudists with more than a few naked vb tournaments around the country. Quite fun.

  96. earlyre98 Avatar

    Pretty much every highschool and college has volleyball teams.
    It’s the sport the girls play, while the boys play football. ( Same season)

  97. Turdulator Avatar

    Much more popular in beach towns. The public beach volleyball courts are almost always busy where I live now, but where I grew up I didn’t know anyone who played

  98. Turdulator Avatar

    Much more popular in beach towns. The public beach volleyball courts are almost always busy where I live now, but where I grew up I didn’t know anyone who played

  99. DGlen Avatar

    Highschool/college yes. Some bar league

  100. Communal-Lipstick Avatar

    Yes. It’s played in Hogh Schools and colleges.

  101. _Silent_Android_ Avatar

    In beaches and in colleges, yes.

  102. AnitaIvanaMartini Avatar

    It’s common in schools, and in back yards. I don’t know of adults going to a volleyball “pick up game.” My granddaughter is on her school team.

  103. BankManager69420 Avatar

    Sorta. It’s universally known as it’s something we all learn in school PE, but it’s more of a hobby sport. Something you play during family, gatherings, at the beach, for pickup games or rec leagues, during church activities, etc… it can be big in high school in college as team sports too, but there’s not really any real professional following.

  104. Zip83 Avatar

    Very common in highschool and college.

  105. TheOfficialKramer Avatar

    High schools have teams and colleges, but its not something that people go to unless their kids play or somwthing. People might play at a picnic or somwthing, but not sone super popular thing. It’s not like football, baseball or hockey.

  106. XrayGuy08 Avatar

    Commonly played? Yes. It’s absolutely massive especially among girls below college age.

  107. ironmanchris Avatar

    Mostly by kids in school or competitive clubs, and the high school aged kids will play at the sand courts at the local park. So, it’s not totally a fringe thing.

  108. hemibearcuda Avatar

    It’s unreal. My youngest got on a travel team last year, I was so surprised how big this sport is.

    At least regarding teenagers.

  109. Zaidswith Avatar

    Very common youth and high school sport. Very common college sport especially for women.

    It’s also one of those sports you can generally get anyone to play on a whim. Everyone has played it at some point.

  110. ngshafer Avatar

    Yes, it is, although it’s not one of our professional sports you can easily watch on TV. Volleyball on a court is generally seen as more of a women’s sport, but volleyball on sand is frequently played by both men and women. 

  111. RamenLoveEggs Avatar

    Not really, it’s played on the beach and in college sports but it’s not too common (not rare either)

  112. VeryPogi Avatar

    I do not think it is possible to grow up in here (Iowa, USA) without playing volleyball if your physically capable of playing.

  113. boborocola Avatar

    It’s common, especially for recreation (like beach volleyball, etc). They have girls and boys teams in hs and college, but it isn’t as common to go pro (as there aren’t many pro leagues).

  114. MicrophoneFapper Avatar

    It’s a very popular beach game

  115. OldDogWithOldTricks Avatar

    I love volleyball. I used to play in tournaments for cash prizes in Hawaii.

  116. AnymooseProphet Avatar

    Yes, especially in school and on the beach or at company picnics.

  117. FaithlessnessSure523 Avatar

    Like baseball/softball/soccer, these sports are mostly played in suburban areas or private schools, where they charge 1000s of dollars to just to join a team. If the opportunity to play these sports were available for more lower income families, the sports landscape in America would be different now.

  118. VeronaMoreau Avatar

    Yup, especially popular to watch from the university levels. Most secondary schools have a team too

  119. kibbeuneom Avatar

    Yeah, volleyball is the main sport for girls in high school. Other main sports for high school girls are cheer leading, basketball, swimming and track. I’m sure there are others, but those were the main ones in the 90s – 2010s at least.

  120. gangleskhan Avatar

    Depends what you mean.

    It’s not a popular professional sport. Yes there are leagues and tournaments but they are nowhere near as popular as the “major”sports — American football, basketball, baseball, hockey, and more recently soccer.

    I never see volleyball covered in the news, and outside of my small volleyball community, I’ve never heard people talking about volleyball matches like they talk about other sports.

    Amateur volleyball is very common, especially in certain places, like California.

    Where I live, volleyball is a very common girls high school sport. My state only introduced boys volleyball in the last 3 years. The major university in my state also doesn’t have a men’s volleyball program (there are rec teams, but not “real” teams like other sports).

  121. Individual_Check_442 Avatar

    When we’d rotate playing through different sports in P.E. class it was always in the rotation, and we had a high school team so most people are at least familiar with the basics. But if you go to a public park, you’re way more likely to see a basketball or tennis court than a volleyball court.

  122. cracksilog Avatar

    Commonly played at parks and beaches recreationally, but not common as a competitive sport in college or high school. My high school didn’t have a boys volleyball team, only girls

  123. Dahl_E_Lama Avatar

    Common enough that people won’t think you weird for playing it. Still not widely popular.

  124. Wolf_E_13 Avatar

    Mostly high school and collegiate woman’s sport

  125. Vyckerz Avatar

    Yeah, we played it a lot when I was in my 20’s-30s. With our friend group it was somewhat common to have a volleyball match spring up during a barbecue or whatever.

  126. nomadschomad Avatar

    Yes, very common as a girls’/womens’ sport. Most people have access to community teams. Not as common as a men’s sport (until college).

  127. TheSouthsideSlacker Avatar

    Big girls sport in my area of the Southeast.

  128. TacosNGuns Avatar

    Volleyball is popular. There are youth leagues, school teams. College, Olympic and pro leagues. Adult leagues at recreation centers and the YMCA. Then there’s beach volleyball & pool volleyball. I’d say is quite popular.

  129. Sea-Seesaw-8699 Avatar

    Every high school seems to have a team, I’m old but we always played in gym class

    There is a nice sand volleyball court in my small college town that gets lots of groups playing

  130. Particular-Move-3860 Avatar

    Yes it is, in fact it’s quite popular. It is played on an interscholastic (high school) level in some parts of the country and on an intercollegiate level at quite a few universities. It is also very popular as a recreational activity, played in parks and backyards, and a volleyball net is set up at nearly every beach.

  131. Amazonsslut Avatar

    I played it and still do once in a while.