Volleyball School Tournament Software
Eight teams, two halls, one school day and a final before the buses leave
This plan is for 6 to 12 teams in one or two halls, with a hard stop when the buses leave. Two groups of four, then semi-finals, a third-place match and a final, adds up to 16 matches on two courts. Play to two won sets of 25 with a deciding set to 15. JudgeMate ranks the table by FIVB rules unless you pick another option under Standings rules. Fix the net height for each age group before the first serve.
The tournament day, hour by hour
07:45 — nets go up: court 1 in the main hall, court 2 in the small gym. Measure each net in the middle before anyone warms up.
08:30 — group stage. Group A plays on court 1, group B on court 2, six matches each in 45-minute slots. One of the two teams sitting out keeps score for the match on court.
13:00 — the last group matches end. Each group winner meets the runner-up of the other group: A1 against B2, B1 against A2.
13:15 — semi-finals, one on each court.
14:15 — the third-place match on court 2 and the final on court 1, with the rest of the school in the stands.
15:00 — medals. The group tables and the bracket are already on the screen, so nobody is adding up score sheets at the table.
Group size, set format and the table
Eight teams in two groups of four play 4 × 3 / 2 = 6 matches per group, 12 in total. Semi-finals, the third-place match and the final add 4, so the day holds 16 matches. The teams placed third and fourth in each group play three matches; the four semi-finalists play five.
Under FIVB rules a set goes to 25 with a two-point lead and a match to three won sets. A school day has no room for best-of-five, so the event rules can cut it to two won sets. With that setting, a third set runs to 15.
A new volleyball bracket ranks the table by FIVB rules: wins first, then points that depend on the set score (2-0 gives 3 points, 2-1 gives 2, 1-2 gives 1, 0-2 gives 0). The Polish federation's tournament rules (PSO §53) give 2 points for a win and 1 for a loss instead. To use that, open Standings rules in the category creator and pick PZPS tournaments (PSO §52–53). Every team in a group then plays the same number of matches, so points equal matches played plus wins, and a tie on points is always a tie on wins too.
Under the PZPS option, level teams are then separated by set ratio (sets won divided by sets lost), the ratio of rally points, and finally the matches between the tied teams. Custom points puts head-to-head before the set ratio. In a group of four, if one team loses every match and the other three each beat one rival, all three finish on 5 points with one head-to-head win apiece, and the set ratio decides. Print the order you picked in the app in the tournament rules before the first serve.
Two halls, one net height per category, and the scorer's table
FIVB Rule 2.1 sets the net at 2.43 m for men and 2.24 m for women, measured in the middle of the court. Over the sidelines it may be up to 2 cm higher. A national federation can set lower heights for youth play: the Polish federation's edition of the rules lists 2.35 m for its młodzicy (boys) and 2.15 m for its młodziczki (girls) categories. Put the height for each category in the invitation, because a school net tends to stay where the last PE lesson left it.
If girls and boys play on the same day, give each net one height for the whole day and keep each category on its own court. Resetting a net between matches eats into the running order.
The court is 18 × 9 m with a free zone of at least 3 m on every side (Rule 1.1). In a small gym the free zone is the first thing to shrink, so walk the court with both coaches before the first match.
The scorer's table is where students learn to officiate. Each team gets two 30-second time-outs per set (Rule 15). The live scoreboard counts them and shows the serving team's rotation position from 1 to 6, the number a student scorer loses track of first.
Setting the tournament up in JudgeMate
Start from the volleyball event creator. Volleyball runs as a team tournament, so each side of a match is a team with a squad.
- Add a category in the Groups + knockout format: two groups, two teams through from each, the third-place match switched on.
- Under Who enters the teams, pick I enter them myself to type in the school names. Students need no accounts and the squad list is optional. Pick A team manager enters the team if each school's coach should register a squad of up to 14.
- Set Points per set to 25 and Sets to win to 2 for the whole bracket. A single match, such as the final, can get its own setting.
- Under Standings rules, pick PZPS tournaments (PSO §52–53) if the table should give 2 points for a win and 1 for a loss. The default is FIVB (ranking system).
- Add both courts as resources with a start time and a 45-minute slot. The running order is built for you and clashes are flagged.
- Give a seed to last year's semi-finalists if they should start in different groups. Seeded teams are spread over the groups in snake order.
- Print the referee QR sheet, the match slips and the bracket drawing. Scanning a match QR opens the result panel for that match only.
On the day, start a scoreboard from any match and put its display view on the projector; the text scales from 50 to 300%. When the match ends, you confirm the result in one click and the table, the bracket and the public page update. You close the group stage yourself, and the semi-final pairings follow from the tables.
What the app leaves to you
- Money. Entry fees are recorded as paid, waived or unmarked next to each team. Nothing is collected online.
- Messages. There are no email, SMS or push notifications about the next match. Share the public event link in the parents' group chat, or pin the printed running order to the hall door.
- Line-ups and player stats. The scoreboard tracks sets, points, time-outs, cards and the rotation number. It does not know who stands in which position, and points are not credited to individual players.
- The tie-break order. You choose it with the standings rules when you create the category: FIVB (the default), PZPS tournaments, or custom points with head-to-head first. Decide before the first match and publish the same rules in the invitation.
The free bracket generator draws and prints a knockout or round robin without an account. Groups feeding a knockout, courts and live scores need the full event.
Set up your event
Free for organizers. No athlete cap. No commission on registrations. See volleyball features · Organizer guide