Prior to the start of each season rules briefings are held by the Officials Working Group, designed to help Volleyball England registered referees, coaches and bench personnel, better understand changes to the FIVB Rules of The Game, as well as any new rule interpretations or adoptions. 

These changes apply to Volleyball England competitions. For local, regional or other external competitions, please check with the relevant organiser to confirm whether they have adopted these changes. 

This page will be updated each season, after the pre season briefing has taken place in September.

2026-27 Season 

The FIVB regularly reviews the Rules of The Game and trials changes to support the development of the sport and enhance spectator experience. 

Last season, as part of Volleyball England's implementation of smooth refereeing, several FIVB test rules were adopted and used in Volleyball England competitions. For the 2026-27 season, further test rules have been introduced. 

These changes impact:

• Team Roster and the Libero requirement
• Number of Substitutions
• Position of the recieving team (introduced in the 2025-26 season but expanded guidance)
• Internal pass (introduced in the 2025-26 season and the test continues)
• "Push-Carry-Throw" Attack hit
• Warm up (changes to serving)

These proposals are tests only and do not constitue a rewrite of the Rules of The Game. The next full review will take place following the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. 

Pre season Rule Briefings

Briefings are delivered at the start of each season to explain and clarify these changes in detail. Learn how to access the full referee and coach briefings on Volleyball England Learning below. 

• Log into or sign up to Volleyball England Learning. 
• Once logged in or registered navigate to the webinar section of the platform. 
• The briefing for referees can be found under the 'refereeing' category. 
• The briefing for coaches can be found under the 'coaching' category.