Beach volleyball is a sport played by two teams of two players each on a sand court divided by a net. Both players of each team must always be in play. There is no substitution or replacement of players during a game.

To win a match

The match is won by the team that wins two sets.

In the case of a 1-1 tie, the deciding set (the 3rd) is played to 15 points with a minimum lead of 2 points.

A set (except the deciding 3rd set) is won by the team that first scores 21 points with a minimum lead of two points. In the case of a 20-20 tie, play is continued until a two point lead is reached (22-20, 23-21 etc).

The teams switch after every 7 points (Set 1 and 2) and 5 points (Set 3) played.

To win a rally

Whenever a team fails in its service or fails to return the ball, or commits any other fault, the opposing team wins the rally, with one of the following consequences:

If the opposing team served, it scores a point and continues to serve.
If the opposing team received the service, it gains the right to serve and also scores a point.

Team hits

Each team is entitled to a maximum of three hits for returning the ball over the net.

These team hits include not only intentional hits by the player, but also unintentional contacts with the ball.

Two players may touch the ball at the same moment. When two team mates touch the ball simultaneously, it is counted as two hits except at blocking. The ball may touch any part of the body. The ball must be hit, not caught or thrown. It can rebound in any direction.

SERVICE ORDER

After the first service in a set, the player to serve is determined as follows:

When the serving team wins the rally, the player who served before, serves again.
When the receiving team wins the rally, it gains the right to serve and the player who did not serve last time will serve.

The interval between each set lasts one minute.

Number of Time Outs
Each team is entitled to a maximum of one 30-second time out per set. In Set 1 and 2, one additional 30-second technical time out is automatically allocated when the sum of the points scored by the teams equals 21 points.

Ball crossing the net
The ball sent to the opponent’s court must go over the net within the crossing space.
While crossing the net the ball may touch the net.
A ball driven into the net may be recovered within the limits of the three team hits.

Reaching beyond the net
In blocking, a player may touch the ball beyond the net, provided that he/she does not interfere with the opponent’s play, before or during the latter’s attack hit.
A player is permitted to pass his/her hand beyond the net after his/her attack hit, provided that his/her contact has been made within his/her own playing space.
A player may enter into the opponent’s space, court and/ or free zone, provided that this does not interfere with the opponent’s play.

Refereeing corps

The refereeing corps for a match is composed of the following officials:

The first referee.
The second referee.
The scorer.
Four line judges.

Playing area

The playing area includes the playing court and the free zone. The playing court is a rectangle measuring 16X8 metres, surrounded by a free zone with a minimum of 5 metres from the end lines/side lines and with a space free from any obstruction up to a minimum height of 12.5 metres from the playing surface.

Sand

The sand must be at least 40cm deep and composed of five loosely compacted grains. It must also be sifted to an acceptable size, not too coarse, free of stones and dangerous particles (see FIVB sand requirements at www. fivb.org).

Basic Rules