Pick teams and courts. You get the match order with a work team for every match, start times, a printable pool sheet and standings that fill in as scores come in.
Pool of 4 on 1 court
6 matches in 6 rounds, 9:00 am to about 1:30 pm (4 hr 30 min). Each team plays 3 and works 1 or 2.
Show one team's day
9:00 amMatch 1
Team 2vTeam 4Work: Team 3
9:45 amMatch 2
Team 1vTeam 3Work: Team 4
10:30 amMatch 3
Team 2vTeam 3Work: Team 1
11:15 amMatch 4
Team 1vTeam 4Work: Team 2
12:00 pmMatch 5
Team 3vTeam 4Work: Team 1
12:45 pmMatch 6
Team 1vTeam 2Work: Team 3
Scores and standings
Type scores as matches finish. The table re-sorts with the tiebreakers you pick.
USA Volleyball style: match record, head-to-head, set %, point %.
Place
Team
Matches
Sets
Set %
Points
Point %
Team 1
Team 2
Team 3
Team 4
Enter scores
Names and scores are saved in this browser.
Volleyball pool play
4 teams, 1 court · 2 sets to 25, third to 15 if needed · starts 9:00 am, about 45 min a match
DateSiteCourt
#
Time
Teams
Set 1
Set 2
Set 3
Work team
1
9:00 am
Team 2
Team 3
Team 4
2
9:45 am
Team 1
Team 4
Team 3
3
10:30 am
Team 2
Team 1
Team 3
4
11:15 am
Team 1
Team 2
Team 4
5
12:00 pm
Team 3
Team 1
Team 4
6
12:45 pm
Team 1
Team 3
Team 2
Team
Plays match
Works match
Team 1
2, 4, 6
3, 5
Team 2
1, 3, 6
4
Team 3
2, 3, 5
1, 6
Team 4
1, 4, 5
2
Standings
Place
Team
Matches
Sets
Set %
Points
Point %
Team 1
Team 2
Team 3
Team 4
Tiebreakers: USA Volleyball style: match record, head-to-head, set %, point %.
How ties are broken
Events don't all use the same rules, so pick yours above the standings. The USA Volleyball tie-break flow chart for junior qualifiers goes: match record first. Two tied teams are split by their head-to-head match. With three or more, a team that beat all the others goes first and one that lost to all of them goes last; then set percentage (sets won out of sets played), then point percentage. Volleyball World events rank on matches won, then match points, then set ratio (sets won divided by sets lost), then point ratio, then the match between the tied teams. Their match points (3 for a 3-0 or 3-1 win, 2 for 3-2, 1 for a 2-3 loss) are for best of 5. For best of 3 the international option uses FIVB's best-of-3 scale: 2 for a win, 1 for a loss. Once every match is played that can't change the order, so set ratio does the work. Regions set their own order too: Ohio Valley's pool sheets use match record, set percentage, then point differential, and never use head-to-head in a three-way tie. Many rec pools count sets won (a count, not a percentage), which the "Sets won first" option does.
After pool play: crossovers for two pools
With two pools, the usual finish is a crossover: each pool winner plays the other pool's runner-up, and the winners meet in the final. The third-place teams work the crossovers, and the loser of the first crossover works the final.
Crossover 11st Pool A v 2nd Pool Bwork: 3rd Pool A
Crossover 21st Pool B v 2nd Pool Awork: 3rd Pool B
FinalWinner 1 v Winner 2work: loser of crossover 1
Seed the pools in a snake so they are even: pool A gets seeds 1, 4, 5, 8 and pool B gets 2, 3, 6, 7. With 6 to 8 teams, pick 2 pools above to get both pools, the crossovers and the final on one sheet.
Questions organisers ask
How does pool play work in volleyball?
Teams are split into pools, usually of 3 to 6 teams. Everyone in a pool plays everyone else once, and a team that is not playing works each match. The pool standings then decide who moves on to the bracket or crossover matches.
How do you read a volleyball pool sheet?
Read it top to bottom: match 1 is played first, then match 2, and so on. Each line shows the two teams, the court and the work team. If you are listed as the work team, you referee and keep score for that match.
What does the work team do?
It runs the match: usually a referee or second referee, the scorekeeper, and line judges, depending on the event. The schedule tries to give the job to a team that just finished playing, so nobody leaves the gym in between.
How many courts can a pool use?
Each court needs three teams: two playing and one working. So 3 to 5 teams fit on 1 court and 6 to 8 teams on 2. A third court only works if teams referee their own matches or you have outside officials.
How long does a pool of 4 take?
Six matches. At about 45 minutes each for two sets to 25 with a third to 15, that is roughly 4 hours 30 minutes on one court. Two sets to 25 with no third set runs closer to 3 hours 30 minutes.
How are ties broken in volleyball pool play?
USA Volleyball national qualifiers use match record first. Two tied teams are split by head-to-head. With three or more, a team that beat all the others goes first, then set percentage, then point percentage. Regions differ (some use point differential and never use head-to-head in a three-way tie), so check your event's rules.