The International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) has adopted a historic change in the name of its most prestigious national-level tournament. The former FIVB Volleyball World Championship will now bear the new name FIVB Volleyball World Cup.
The decision was approved by the FIVB Administration Board and will come into force from the next edition of the tournament in 2027. The men's competition will then be held in Poland, while the women's will be co-organized by the USA and Canada.
Part of FIVB's global strategy
According to the international federation, the change is part of a broader strategy for the development and promotion of volleyball worldwide. The use of the name "World Cup" aligns the tournament with the most prestigious events in other popular sports and makes the competition's brand more recognizable to fans and media.
The FIVB emphasizes that the new name better reflects the tournament's global character and facilitates its positioning in the international sports calendar.
Also with a new format
The name change follows a series of reforms within the tournament itself. As early as 2022 and 2023, the federation introduced significant changes to the competition's structure.
Since the last edition in 2025, 32 men's and 32 women's national teams have participated in the tournament, which significantly increased the event's scale. Furthermore, the championship is now held every two years, instead of the previous four-year cycle.
Classic World Cup format
The tournament's current format follows the well-known model of major world cups in sports. The competition begins with a group stage, then continues with knockout matches, semifinals, and a final that determines the new world champion.
Matches are held in several cities in the host countries, allowing more fans to attend and increasing global interest in the tournament.
The tournament will now also offer Olympic quotas
The new format further increases the competition's importance because the World Cup will also serve as a qualifier for the Olympic Games.
In the 2027 edition, the top three men's and women's teams that have not yet secured participation will earn direct quotas for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games.
With this change, the FIVB takes another step towards modernizing the most important tournament in national volleyball, which will now be known worldwide under the name FIVB Volleyball World Cup.
photo: Nikolay Varadinov
