Volleyball Rules of the Game
Senior 6 · Physical Education
Volleyball Rules of the Game
Lesson 3 of 3
25 min
At a world championship match ten people in referee uniform look after one game of volleyball: two referees, a Challenge referee, a reserve referee, a scorer, an assistant scorer and four line judges. Only two of them may blow a whistle. The scorer uses a buzzer, the line judges use flags and the Challenge referee works from a booth of video replays. This lesson sets out who does what under the FIVB Official Volleyball Rules 2025–2028 (Rules 16 and 21 to 30): the refereeing team and where each member stands, the order of hand signals after a whistle, the line judges' flags, and the sanction scale for misconduct and delay. It ends with how to staff a school match with far fewer people.
Definition
Refereeing team: the officials of a match: the 1st referee, the 2nd referee, the Challenge referee, the reserve referee, the scorer (with an assistant scorer) and four or two line judges.
Jurisdiction: the set of faults that an official is responsible for deciding and signalling.
Video Challenge System (VCS): video replay used at top competitions to check a disputed decision; when it is used, a Challenge referee supervises the process and tells the 1st referee the nature of the fault.
Misconduct: incorrect conduct by a team member towards officials, opponents, team-mates or spectators, graded as rude conduct, offensive conduct or aggression.
Delay: an improper action of a team that defers the resumption of the game, such as prolonging an interruption or repeating an improper request.
| Official | Where | Main duties |
|---|---|---|
| 1st referee | On a stand at one end of the net, opposite the scorer, eyes about 50 cm above the net | Directs the match from start to end; decisions are final; may overrule other officials. Before the match: inspects the playing area and balls, performs the toss, controls the warm-up. Whistles every service. Decides faults of the server and of the serving team's positions (including the screen), faults in playing the ball, faults above the net and net contacts mainly on the attacker's side, back-row and Libero attack faults, the ball crossing the lower space |
| 2nd referee | Standing near the other post, facing the 1st referee | Assistant to the 1st referee with own jurisdiction. Checks line-ups at the start of each set; authorises time-outs and substitutions and controls their number; decides positional faults of the receiving team, penetration under the net, net contacts mainly on the blocker's side, the antenna on his or her side, the ball touching an outside object; supervises the benches; controls the scorer |
| Challenge referee | In the challenge booth | Supervises the video challenge process and advises the 1st referee of the nature of the fault |
| Reserve referee | Separate position set by the court layout | Replaces the 2nd referee if needed; controls substitutes in the warm-up area and on the bench; keeps the free zone clear; hands the match balls to the 2nd referee |
| Scorer | At the scorer's table, facing the 1st referee | Keeps the score sheet: line-ups, points, time-outs, substitutions, sanctions; controls the serving order and signals a wrong server by buzzer immediately after the service hit; announces the end of each set and the 8th point in the deciding set |
| Assistant scorer | Beside the scorer | Records Libero replacements and buzzes a faulty one; operates the manual scoreboard; replaces the scorer if needed |
| Line judges (4 or 2) | Near the corners in the free zone | With 40 cm × 40 cm flags: ball in or out near their line, touches by the receiving team, ball crossing outside the antennae, foot faults of the server, players off the court at the service hit, contact with the top 80 cm of the antenna |
For FIVB, World and Official Competitions a reserve referee and an assistant scorer are compulsory, and so is a Challenge referee when the Video Challenge System is used. A school or district match normally uses the core team: two referees, a scorer and two or four line judges.
With four line judges, each stands in the free zone 1 to 3 m from a corner, on the imaginary extension of the one line it controls. With two, they stand at the corners closest to the right hand of each referee, diagonally 1 to 2 m from the corner, and each controls both the end line and the side line on its side.
The 1st referee whistles to authorise every service. Either referee may whistle the end of a rally, but only when sure that a fault has been committed and what it was. Straight after the whistle the official hand signals follow a fixed order (Rule 22.2.3):
A one-handed signal is made with the hand on the side of the team that made the fault or request. The most used of the 25 referees' signals:
| Decision | Referee's signal |
|---|---|
| Authorisation to serve | Move the hand to show the direction of service |
| Team to serve | Extend the arm to the side of the team that will serve |
| Time-out | Palm of one hand over the fingers of the other held vertically (a T), then point to the team |
| Substitution | Circular motion of the forearms around each other |
| Ball in | Point the arm and fingers to the floor |
| Ball out | Raise the forearms vertically, hands open, palms towards the body |
| Catch | Slowly lift the forearm, palm up |
| Double contact | Raise two fingers spread open |
| Four hits | Raise four fingers spread open |
| Delay in service | Raise eight fingers spread open |
| Blocking fault or screening | Raise both arms vertically, palms forward |
| Positional or rotational fault | Circular motion with the forefinger |
| Net touched by a player | Indicate the relevant side of the net with the corresponding hand |
| Reaching beyond the net | Place a hand above the net, palm down |
| Attack hit fault | Downward motion of the forearm, hand open |
| Penetration, or foot over the line at service | Point to the centre line or the relevant line |
| Ball touched | Brush the palm of one hand over the fingers of the other, held vertically |
| Double fault and replay | Raise both thumbs vertically |
| End of set or match | Cross the forearms in front of the chest, hands open |
| Decision | Flag signal |
|---|---|
| Ball in | Point down with the flag |
| Ball out | Raise the flag vertically |
| Ball touched (by the receiving team before going out) | Raise the flag and touch its top with the palm of the free hand |
| Crossing-space fault, antenna touched, ball touched an outside object, or foot fault at the service | Wave the flag over the head and point to the antenna or the line |
| Judgement impossible | Raise and cross both arms and hands in front of the chest |
Minor misconduct is not sanctioned, but the 1st referee must stop a team approaching the sanctioning level, in two stages: first a verbal warning through the game captain, then a yellow card to the team member. The yellow card is not a sanction: it is recorded on the score sheet with no immediate consequence. Real sanctions follow the sanction scale (Rule 21.3); each is individual, lasts the whole match and is recorded.
| Category | Occurrence (same member) | Sanction and cards | Consequence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rude conduct (against good manners) | First | Penalty: red | Point and service to the opponent |
| Second | Expulsion: red + yellow jointly | Substituted at once; to the dressing room for the rest of the set | |
| Third | Disqualification: red + yellow separately | Substituted at once; to the dressing room for the rest of the match | |
| Offensive conduct (insulting words or gestures) | First | Expulsion | Rest of the set |
| Second | Disqualification | Rest of the match | |
| Aggression (physical attack or threat) | First | Disqualification | Rest of the match |
Expulsion and disqualification cost no point: they cost a player. Offensive conduct or aggression needs no earlier warning.
Delays (Rule 16) are team sanctions. The first delay in the match by any member of a team brings a delay warning: the referee covers the wrist with a yellow card, and there is no point lost. The second and every later delay of any kind by that team brings a delay penalty: the wrist covered with a red card, and a point and service to the opponent.
Worked example
Worked example 1: who whistles a net touch? Team A spikes from position 4. Team B's middle blocker lands after the block and brushes the net between the antennae.
Worked example
Worked example 2: the sanction scale in one set. Team A leads 22–21 and Team B is serving.
Video: "Volleyball Referee and Line Judge Signals Explained (For Beginners)", Volleyball Tools. Copy each signal as it is shown, then test a partner: one calls the decision, the other gives the signal.
Tip
Staffing a school match. With five helpers: a teacher as 1st referee on a firm, stable platform at the net (never a stacked chair), a trained pupil as 2nd referee, a scorer with a printed score sheet, and two line judges at the corners closest to each referee's right hand. Before the first whistle, measure the net at the centre with a marked pole, check both ends are level, check the floor for water and stones, and hold the toss with both captains.
Warning
Common mistakes. The yellow card on its own is a warning, not a sanction, and costs no point. Expulsion and disqualification cost no point either; only a penalty or a delay penalty gives the opponent a point. The scorer never whistles: he or she uses a buzzer. When the 2nd referee whistles a fault, the 1st referee does not repeat the nature of the fault, only the team to serve.
Practice
Remember
Further reading
Sources and credits
This lesson adapts CC BY-SA material and is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.
