The International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) has officially launched the bidding process for hosts of the U19 Boys' and Girls' World Championships in 2027, as well as the U17 and U21 Championships in 2028.
The new cycle is part of the ongoing restructuring of the youth World Championships following the introduction of the U17 category in 2024. From 2026 onwards, the U17 tournaments will be expanded from 16 to 24 teams for both genders, thus aligning the format with that of the U19 and U21 Championships.
FIVB is also introducing an updated system for qualification and conducting the tournaments, with the U17 Championships now being included in the world ranking list for juniors. Additionally, all participating teams will be able to register up to 14 players in the final roster, similar to the federation's other international tournaments.
In 2025, the U19 World Championships were held in Tashkent (Uzbekistan) for boys and in Osijek (Croatia) and Vrnjacka Banja (Serbia) for girls. France and Bulgaria became world champions.
For the U21 category, the championships took place in Jiangmen (China) and Surabaya (Indonesia), respectively, with the titles being won by Iran and Italy.
The U17 category debuted in 2024 with the first World Championships held in Lima (Peru) and Sofia (Bulgaria). The first world titles in this age group were claimed by China and Italy. The next editions in 2026 will be held in Chile and Doha (Qatar).
The deadline for submitting bids to host the U19 World Championships in 2027 is July 24, 2026, while applications for the U17 and U21 Championships in 2028 must be submitted by October 16, 2026.