A sudden boom in popularity for the sport has resulted in the establishment of the PVF (Professional Volleyball Federation) in 2022. The inaugural season of the PVF began on January 24 of this year and consists of seven teams located in various states.
The first match of the PVF took place at the CHI Health Center in Omaha, Nebraska. The two teams facing each other were the Omaha Supernovas and the Atlanta Vibe. The match drew in 11,624 fans to the arena and was a tense five-set game. In the end, Atlanta Vibe was able to beat the Supernovas 3-2. Atlanta Vibe is currently the number two ranked team in the league, with the number one team being the Grand Rapids Rise who is based in Michigan.
Many of the athletes competing on the PVF teams are former college volleyball players that are well known by fans for their performance during the most recent NCAA volleyball season. Some of these athletes include: Asjia O’Neal from the University of Texas at Austin (who is coming off two consecutive national champions wins and was the number one overall pick for the league), Kylie Murr from the University of Minnesota, and Whitney Bower from Brigham Young University.
Women’s volleyball is a sport that has been on the rise recently, both in terms of the number of participants and the amount of viewers that the sport is bringing in. Recently many college volleyball programs have been receiving an immense amount of recognition and support, some of these programs being the University of Nebraska and the University of Wisconsin. Due to this rapid spike in interest the women’s NCAA volleyball finals was able to draw an astounding 1.7 million viewers on average and had 19,727 spectators in attendance.
The creation of this federation and the increasing interest in volleyball is very exciting for players, coaches, and enthusiasts, “By creating this professional league, I think you are going to see some really exciting play and it will give women just more opportunities to become professional athletes!” says Mrs. Walter, one of the GRHS volleyball coaches and a former volleyball player herself. “There are so many opportunities for men in sports to continue on in their careers. There has always been an amazing professional league in Europe for women to play in and many talented athletes have left the country. Now they don’t have to anymore!” Says Mrs. Walter who is also excited to see how these women will perform during their matches as they are currently in their “most physically powerful” years, which don’t usually occur until these women are in their mid 20s and finished with college sports.
The creation of the PVF can potentially open many doors for both volleyball players and female athletes in general, as it is helping to gain more recognition for women’s sports. Due to the sudden surge in popularity of the sport, it is evident that the intensity and level of play that is demonstrated in this sport is only going to increase as time goes on.
