Volleyball Betting

Volleyball is an Olympic sport that often gets overlooked when it comes to placing bets online. Played by men and women around the world both competitively and for fun, there are various different ways to play the popular game. The rules of each game vary depending on the version, which also means that the betting markets vary slightly depending on which version you play. The two versions of Volleyball are beach and indoor. Overall, the two games are similar enough that the discrepancies don't dramatically impact the betting.

Betting markets for Volleyball

When placing a bet on volleyball, it's important to analyse all the different ways to place a volleyball bet. Whether you're looking at outright or live betting, it isn't uncommon for volleyball betting odds to be highly skewed in one direction, which means that if you're looking for volleyball betting, we recommend making yourself an expert before placing a bet.

The different markets that you can bet on for volleyball can be found below:

Match Winner - Bet on which team will win the game at the end of the allocated time set.
Outright winner - For any of the major professional volleyball tournaments taking place around the world, you can make a prediction on the team to win the overall competition.
Handicap Betting - Bet on the score difference. If you think a team is going to win by 5 points, set a handicap spread of -4.5. If you're looking to learn more about Asian Handicaps, check out our Asian Handicap guide
Correct Score - Predict the final score of the game.
Sets Betting - Betting on the number of sets in a game of volleyball.
Set Betting - Bet on the impact of individual sets, including the volleyball markets above.
Double Chance - Bet on a winner after set 2, so a team will either have won, or the game will still be a draw. Basically, bet on a team not winning 2-0.

Above are all the volleyball bets available for our bettors to place online today at Bet UK on an individual volleyball match. If you're looking for volleyball odds or match betting, be sure to check out Bet UK's online sportsbook for all the information you'll need to place a bet on volleyball.

International Volleyball betting

International volleyball tournaments bring the best players in the world together to face off in the biggest tournaments in Volleyball. Both the men's and women's games are divided up into a series of major tournaments by the Federation Internationale de Volleyball, governed by a team in Lausanne, Switzerland. There are five major events for both genders. Typically, one of these competitions occurs every year. For example, the last renditions of each tournament can be found below.

World Grand Champions Cup - 2017 (Men's won by Brazil, Women's won by China)
World Championship - 2018 (Men's won by Poland, Women's won by Serbia)
World Cup - 2019 (Men's won by Brazil, Women's won by China)
Olympic Games - 2020 (Men's won by France, Women's won by USA)
Volleyball Nations League - 2022/23 (Men's won by France, Women's won by Italy)

Poland currently ranks top of the men's FVIB world rankings, with Serbia topping the women's standings.

Volleyball International Betting - Confederations

Other than the five main tournaments at the international level, there are also confederation titles that are handed for the best nations in Africa (CAVB), Asia & Oceania (AVC), Europe (CEV), North America (NORCECA) and South America (CSV). The winners of each confederation automatically qualify for major tournaments such as the World Championship and the World Grand Prix.

Africa

In the men's category, Tunisia seems to be one of the best teams around at the moment at the senior and youth levels. They won three out of four tournaments across all levels, with only Algeria stopping them in the U23s category. However, Tunisia has continued to dominate African volleyball at an international level.

In the women's category, we saw a dominant performance at the 2021 games. After Egypt had dominated youth categories, it was Cameroon's time to dominate. They won four games in a row without losing a single set before dropping a set to Kenya in the final, which they won 3-1.

Asia & Oceania

In the men's category, we saw a shock victory for Iran in the last tournament. Many expected China and Japan to dominate, but Iran beat them both to win the tournament. In future tournaments, China and Japan will look to dominate.

In the women's category, Japan has had substantial success across all levels, their main competition has come from the likes of China and Thailand, but they've had no problem blowing away the competition at all levels.

Europe

In the men's category, Europe saw a similar story in Volleyball to football. The year 2021 belonged to Italy when it came to the European Championships, as Italy won nine games in a row to win the tournament comfortably. Only Slovenia, Serbia, Bulgaria and the Czech Republic won a set against the World Champions.

For the Women's category, it was once again Italian dominance, as they won all games in their group losing just 1 set. However, the team they beat in the final, Serbia, are one of the best teams in the world and beating them on home turf was a remarkable achievement for the Italians. Could Italy continue to dominate at the international level?

North America

In the men's section of the North American competition, there was a major shock as Puerto Rico ended up victorious, they were expected to lose out against Canada and Mexico in the groups, but they finished second in the group behind Mexico before smashing Canada 3-0 in the final of the competition. We don't think Puerto Rico is likely to win again, but it may be worth keeping an eye on Cuba.

In the women's section, we saw dominance from the Dominican Republic, who lost just 1 set against Mexico, USA, Costa Rica and Trinidad and Tobago before a tough contest against Puerto Rico ended in victory. In this section, Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic are light-years ahead of the competition.

South America

Across South America, there is only one nation to look out for, and that is Brazil, they have dominated every level of Volleyball, and the only area that stopped a clean sweep for the country was the Women's under 18's, where they suffered a shock defeat to Peru. Otherwise, Brazil's dominance remains prominent across South American volleyball betting.

Betting on Olympic Volleyball

From international competitions in volleyball, the Olympic games are among the most prestigious for athletes to compete, and betting markets will be available for each game.

With Brazil's dominance in the sport, they are certainly the team to look out for if you're considering any of the odds relating to their games or the outright result of the competition. The 2016 Olympic Games saw Brazil win the top spot on home soil, reinforcing their elite title in the sport.

Italy and the United States have a proven track record at the Olympics, and they shouldn't be forgotten when looking at favourites for upcoming competitions. Regardless, when the next competition comes around, it is important to pay attention to the recent form of sides before selecting from the latest odds on the betting markets.

Volleyball Betting FAQs

What are the differences between Beach and Indoor volleyball?

The main difference is the size of the team. Indoor volleyball allows for significantly bigger squads, while beach volleyball can have as many as four fewer players per side. Indoor volleyball is also played with a significantly harder ball, meaning it moves faster and it hits harder. The court is also bigger indoors, 18m x 9m, compared to 16m x 8m on a beach volleyball court. Furthermore, beach volleyball is a quicker game, with a best of three games rather than the best of five games featured in indoor volleyball.

Is volleyball good for betting?

Similarly to most sports, any sport can be good for betting if you know the sport. For example, you could look at the volleyball odds for the World Championship final and know that one team is significantly better than the odds suggest, then you would back that team. However, as most volleyball games have heavy favourites, the only time you will get good value is if you back the underdog. If you're looking at major events in sports betting, such as Olympic volleyball, then the sport is a fantastic choice for betting.

What is set betting in volleyball?

Set betting is the process of betting on one of the individual games in a game. For example, you may find that games often end 3-1. If you can guess which game the underdog wins in that 3-1 defeat, it can prove to be very profitable, which is why we always recommend checking out in-play odds for the latest volleyball odds and games.

Can you bet on Volleyball?

Yes! You can bet on Volleyball at Bet UK. Check out our wide range of betting odds available both outright and live in-play for a number of events and matches.