# Law 1: Playing Area (FIVB Official Volleyball Rules)

Volleyball · Law 1: Playing Area · Insporta Book (https://book.insporta.app/volleyball/laws/law-1-playing-area/)

The playing area: the 18 x 9 m court and the free zone around it, the clear space above, the surface, the lines, the front, service, substitution and Libero Replacement zones, the warm-up areas, and the minimum temperature and lighting, with the stricter values for FIVB, World and Official Competitions.

## 1.11 Court, Surface and Lines

The size of the court and the free zone, the space above it, what the surface must be, and how the lines are drawn.

### Test 1: The court, the free zone and the space above

- The playing court is a rectangle of 18 by 9 metres, with the free zone around it. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.1)
- Outside FIVB, World and Official Competitions the free zone needs a minimum of 3 metres all round. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.1)
- Top-level events need more room behind the court than beside it: 6.5 metres at the ends, 5 at the sides. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.1)
- The space above the playing area must be clear of obstructions up to at least 7 metres. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.1)
- At FIVB, World and Official Competitions nothing may obstruct the space below 12.5 metres. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.1)
- The floor must be even and level and must not endanger the players; rough or slippery floors are excluded. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.2.1)
- At the top level only wood or a synthetic floor is permitted, and the FIVB must have approved it first. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.2.1)
- The axis of the centre line splits the 18 x 9 m court into two equal halves of 9 by 9 metres. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.3.3)
- General minimums: a 3 m free zone and 7 m of clear height; the court itself is 9 m wide and 18 m long. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.1)
- At the top level the free zone is 5 m at the sides and 6.5 m at the ends, the court is 9 m wide and the clear height is 12.5 m. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.1)

### Test 2: Colours, outdoor courts and the lines

- Indoor courts must be light in colour; at the top level the court and the free zone also differ from each other. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.2.2)
- At the top level the lines are white and the court and free zone are each coloured, in colours that differ. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.2.2)
- Outdoors a drainage slope of up to 5 millimetres per metre is permitted. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.2.3)
- Outdoor court lines must not be made of solid materials, whatever their width or colour. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.2.3)
- Every line on the court is five centimetres wide. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.3.1)
- Both boundary lines lie within the 18 x 9 m rectangle, so their full width is part of the court. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.3.2)
- The axis of the centre line is the dividing line, and the whole width of the line counts for both halves alike. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.3.3)
- The attack line runs parallel to the net, 3 m back from the axis of the centre line; A is an end line, C the centre line and D a side line. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.3.4)
- A line is 5 cm wide, a service-zone mark 15 cm long, the broken extension 1.75 m, and the front zone 3 m deep. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.3.1, 1.3.4, 1.4.2)
- Each court has its attack line 3 m from the centre line, so the lines meet you symmetrically about the net. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.3)

## 1.12 Zones, Areas, Heat and Light

The front, service, substitution and Libero Replacement zones, the warm-up areas, and the temperature and lighting limits.

### Test 1: The front zone and the service zone

- The front zone runs from the axis of the centre line back to the rear edge of the attack line. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.4.1)
- The front zone is extended beyond the side lines all the way to the edge of the free zone. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.4.1)
- Measured from the middle of the centre line, the attack line's back edge is exactly 3 metres away. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.3.4)
- The extension is a broken line of five short 15 cm dashes, 5 cm wide and 20 cm apart, totalling 1.75 m. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.3.4)
- The service zone spans the full 9 m width of the court, between the extensions of the side lines. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.4.2)
- The two short marks sit 20 cm behind the end line as extensions of the side lines and limit the zone sideways. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.4.2)
- Both short marks are included in the 9 m width of the service zone. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.4.2)
- The service zone lies behind the end line between the extended side lines; A is a front zone, B the court behind the attack line, D the free zone beside a side line. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.4.2)
- The short marks are 20 cm behind the end line, and the service zone itself runs back to the end of the free zone. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.4.2)
- From the net: centre line, the front zone up to the attack line, the rest of the court to the end line, then the service zone. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.4)

### Test 2: Bench-side zones, temperature and lighting

- Substitutions are made in the strip of free zone between the two attack-line extensions, next to the scorer's table. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.4.3)
- It is the part of the bench-side free zone between the extension of the attack line and the end line. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.4.4)
- Each warm-up area measures approximately three metres by three. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.4.5)
- They go in both bench-side corners outside the free zone, or behind the team bench where the stands begin above 2.5 m. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.4.5)
- The minimum temperature is 10 degrees Celsius, 50 Fahrenheit. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.5)
- The rules give the upper limit at the top level to the match's FIVB Technical Delegate. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.5)
- In general the light should reach at least 300 lux; at the top level 2000 lux, measured 1 m above the playing area. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.6)
- Libero swaps use B; substitutions happen at A in front of the table, C is a warm-up corner and D is free zone opposite the benches. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.4.4)
- Substitutions happen between the attack-line extensions, Libero replacements from there to the end line, and warm-up in the corner beyond the free zone. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.4.3, 1.4.4, 1.4.5)
- A line is 5 cm, a warm-up area about 3 m, the free zone beside a side line 5 m, and the service zone 9 m wide. (Source: FIVB OVR 2025-2028, Rule 1.3.1, 1.4.2, 1.4.5, 1.1)

Sources: FIVB Official Volleyball Rules 2025-2028, Rule 1 (paraphrased in original wording; original questions authored from the Rules, not reproduced)

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