South Australia to host top class volleyball

South Australia is fast becoming home to the world’s best volleyball action, with Adelaide set to host an array of indoor and beach volleyball events and development and performance camps during July and November this year.

Volleyball Australia has confirmed Adelaide will be home to the Australian Junior Volleyball Championships (U19 & U23) to be held at the Lights Community & Sports Centre and St Clair Recreation Centre over four days in July, followed by a National Junior Development Program Camp.

In November, several beach volleyball events will be staged over 10 days in addition to a National Performance Program Camp to be held at Glenelg and the South Australian Sporting Institute (SASI).

The opening round of the 2023/24 Australian Beach Volleyball Tour will be held at Glenelg from 8-10 November. Two days later, Glenelg will host the first stop on the 2023/24 Australian Junior Beach Volleyball Tour (U19 & U21).

The events will set the stage for Adelaide to host the 2025 FIVB World Beach Volleyball Championships – its first time to be held in Australia – as announced last June by the State Government.

The World Championships will be held on the courts of The Drive, with around 1000 cubic metres of sand brought in to turn the famed North Adelaide tennis venue into a beach volleyball colosseum.

It is expected the World Championships – what is the biggest global tournament of beach volleyball of the year – will attract more than 11,000 spectators from interstate and more than 6,000 from overseas. 

Minister for Tourism, Zoe Bettison said South Australians love their volleyball and beach volleyball.

"To play host to the FIVB World Championships in 2025 and now also the Australian Junior Championships and a series of development and performance camps in the lead up is very exciting," Minister Bettison said.

"These top-notch sporting events further add to the state’s blockbuster events calendar, with the announcement coming hot on the heels of the Adelaide International, Santos Tour Down Under and the ILCA Laser Men’s World Championships.

"In 2024 we will also welcome back a host of major events like the second editions of AFL Gather Round and LIV Golf Adelaide which have both seen incredible demand for tickets.

"On top of this, a record number of cruise ship visits, another round of River Revival Vouchers, exciting new product including the reopening of Southern Ocean Lodge in Kangaroo Island, and our domestic campaign continuing to entice Australians to ‘Travel Our Way’ – we are pulling all levers to help entice visitors to book a trip to South Australia in 2024.

"There is a certain momentum and real pride amongst all South Australians which we have never seen before as we continue to grow tourism in our state making South Australia a world-class destination that everyone needs to visit and experience."

Major Events Attraction Committee Chair, Leon Bignell said volleyball is one of the most watched Olympic sports around the world and Australia's volleyball program has had an association with Adelaide for more than two decades. 

"We are playing to our strengths by working strategically with sports like volleyball and cycling to combine high performance and major events and SA is a winner by bringing more visitors and money into our visitor economy," Mr Bignell said.

"This year the Olympic Beach Volleyball tournament will be held under the Eiffel Tower during Paris 2024. Next year the best in the world will be swapping Paris for Adelaide as they play on the sand which will be shipped into Memorial Drive."

Volleyball Australia President, Craig Carracher said it is incredibly exciting to be bringing the World Championships to Adelaide in 2025 and staging such a strong series of volleyball tournaments and camps in South Australia in the lead-up is really important to the ultimate success of the event.

"Many of the volunteers who will be integral to the World Championships will get the opportunity to work on these events in 2024, and we will be able to test logistics with everything from technology to transport and accommodation," Mr Carracher said.

"The appetite for volleyball and beach volleyball in South Australia is very high and we can’t wait to bring these events to life."