Volleyball is an Olympic team sport in which two teams of 6 active players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points against one another by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.^[1]

The complete rules of volleyball are extensive, and points are awarded as follows: If the ball touches the ground outside the court area, the team which made contact with it last loses the point. If the ball touches the ground on team A's side of the net, team B is awarded a point, and vice-versa. The ball must be hit over the net to get a point.The team who wins the point then serves. The first team to reach 25 points wins the set and the first team to win three sets wins the match.^[2] Teams can contact the ball only three times before the ball crosses the net, and consecutive contacts must be made by different players. The ball is usually played with the hands or arms, but players can legally strike or push (short contact) the ball with any part of the body.

Through time, volleyball has developed to involve common techniques of spiking, passing, blocking, and setting, as well as specialized player positions and offensive and defensive structures. Because many plays are made above the top of the net, vertical jumping is an athletic skill emphasised in volleyball. This article focuses on competitive indoor volleyball, which is carefully regulated and played indoors. Numerous variations of volleyball have developed for casual play, including the Olympic spin-off sport beach volleyball.