AVC Women's Volleyball Continental Championship

AVC Women's Volleyball Continental Championship
Upcoming season or competition:
Current sports event 2026 AVC Women's Volleyball Continental Championship
FormerlyAsian Women's Volleyball Championship (1975–2023)
SportVolleyball
Founded1975 (1975)
First season1975
No. of teams12
ContinentsAsia and Oceania (AVC)
Most recent
champions
 Thailand
(3rd title)
Most titles China
(13 titles)
BroadcasterVBTV
Websiteasianvolleyball.net

The AVC Women's Volleyball Continental Championship (formerly known as the Asian Women's Volleyball Championship) is an international volleyball competition in Asia and Oceania. It is organized by the Asian Volleyball Confederation (AVC), the sport's continental governing body, and is contested by the senior women's national teams of its member nations.

This tournament serves as a qualification tournament to determine Asian representatives for major global events organized by the Fédération Internationale de Volleyball (FIVB), such as the FIVB Women's Volleyball World Cup and the Olympic Games.[1]

Initially established in 1975 in Australia, the competition was held every four years before shifting to a biennial format starting in 1987. However, the 2021 edition was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[2][3] Most recently, the competition cycle was adjusted again, moving to even-numbered years starting in 2026 to align with the new FIVB global volleyball calendar for 2025–2028.[4]

From its inception until the 2023 edition, the tournament has been held 21 times, with a total of 25 national teams having competed. Throughout its history, only three nations have successfully claimed the championship title: China with 13 titles, Japan with 5 titles, and Thailand with 3 titles.

The reigning champions are Thailand, who successfully secured their third title at the 2023 tournament held on home soil.[5]

History

The inaugural tournament, originally established as the Asian Women's Volleyball Championship, was hosted in Melbourne, Australia, in 1975. Initially, the Asian Volleyball Confederation (AVC) organized the competition on a quadrennial basis. In 1987, the tournament transitioned to a biennial cycle held in odd-numbered years to better align with the international volleyball calendar.

Throughout its history, the championship has functioned as the primary continental qualification pathway for major global tournaments governed by the Fédération Internationale de Volleyball (FIVB). From its early editions through the early 1990s, the tournament served as a direct Olympic qualification event for Asian teams. In subsequent decades, it acted as a continental qualifier for the now-defunct FIVB Women's Volleyball World Cup, which in turn served as a global qualification step for the Olympic Games. Furthermore, between 1993 and 2013, the tournament winners were awarded a continental berth to compete in the quadrennial FIVB World Grand Champions Cup.

The tournament was held consecutively until 2021. The 21st edition, originally scheduled to take place in the Philippines, was intended to allocate Asian qualification spots for the 2022 FIVB Women's Volleyball World Championship. However, the AVC cancelled the event due to international travel restrictions and health concerns related to the COVID-19 pandemic. The World Championship berths were instead distributed based on the FIVB Senior World Rankings. The tournament officially resumed in 2023 with Thailand acting as the host nation.

Following a commercial partnership between the AVC and Volleyball World, first signed in 2022 and later extended through 2052, the tournament was officially rebranded as the AVC Women's Volleyball Continental Championship in 2026.[6][7] This edition also marked the first to be officially sanctioned by Volleyball World, coinciding with the shift to even-numbered years under the FIVB's 2025–2032 global calendar. The stakes of the competition were significantly upgraded, with the tournament now serving as a direct qualifier, awarding the champions an automatic berth to the 2028 Summer Olympics and the top three teams spots in the 2027 FIVB Women's Volleyball World Cup.[8]

Competition formula

Qualification

Beginning with the 2026 edition, a total of twelve teams compete in the tournament. The qualification process is structured to ensure continental representation, with berths distributed through four criteria:[9]

  • Two automatic berths are granted to the host nation and the defending champions.
  • One berth is awarded to the winners of the AVC Women's Volleyball Cup.
  • Five berths are allocated to the five AVC-affiliated zonal associations with each zone receiving one berth decided via zonal qualification tournaments.
  • Four berths are assigned based on the FIVB Senior World Rankings.

Final tournament

Beginning with the 2026 edition, the tournament is split into two main phases:[9]

  • Preliminary phase: The twelve teams are divided into three pools of four (Pools A, B, and C) and play a single round-robin. Pool standings are determined by match wins, followed by match points, set ratio, points ratio, and head-to-head results.
  • Final phase: The top two teams from each pool and the two best third-placed teams advance to the quarterfinals. The quarterfinal matchups are determined by a combined ranking of the eight advancing teams. From this point, the tournament uses a single-elimination knockout bracket consisting of quarterfinals, semifinals, and the gold medal match, alongside a bronze medal match for the semifinal losers.

Results summary

Finals

Year Host Final 3rd place match Teams
Champions Score Runners-up 3rd place Score 4th place
1975
Details		 Australia
Melbourne
Japan		 Round-robin
South Korea
China		 Round-robin
Australia		 5
1979
Details		 Hong Kong
Hong Kong
China		 Round-robin
Japan
South Korea		 Round-robin
Australia		 7
1983
Details		 Japan
Fukuoka
Japan		 Round-robin
China
South Korea		 Round-robin
Chinese Taipei		 9
1987
Details		 China
Shanghai
China		 3–0
Japan
South Korea		 3–0
New Zealand		 11
1989
Details		 Hong Kong
Hong Kong
China		 3–0
South Korea
Japan		 3–1
Chinese Taipei		 10
1991
Details		 Thailand
Bangkok
China		 3–0
Japan
South Korea		 3–0
North Korea		 14
1993
Details		 China
Shanghai
China		 3–0
Japan
South Korea		 3–1
Chinese Taipei		 14
1995
Details		 Thailand
Chiang Mai
China		 Round-robin
South Korea
Japan		 Round-robin
Chinese Taipei		 9
1997
Details		 Philippines
Manila
China		 Round-robin
South Korea
Japan		 Round-robin
Chinese Taipei		 9
1999
Details		 Hong Kong
Hong Kong
China		 Round-robin
South Korea
Japan		 Round-robin
Thailand		 9
2001
Details		 Thailand
Nakhon Ratchasima
China		 3–0
South Korea
Thailand		 3–2
Japan		 9
2003
Details		 Vietnam
Ho Chi Minh City
China		 3–0
Japan
South Korea		 3–1
Thailand		 10
2005
Details		 China
Taicang
China		 3–0
Kazakhstan
Japan		 3–0
South Korea		 12
2007
Details		 Thailand
Nakhon Ratchasima
Japan		 Round-robin
China
Thailand		 Round-robin
South Korea		 13
2009
Details		 Vietnam
Hanoi
Thailand		 3–1
China
Japan		 3–0
South Korea		 14
2011
Details		 Taiwan
Taipei
China		 3–1
Japan
South Korea		 3–2
Thailand		 14
2013
Details		 Thailand
Nakhon Ratchasima
Thailand		 3–0
Japan
South Korea		 3–2
China		 16
2015
Details		 China
Tianjin
China		 3–0
South Korea
Thailand		 3–0
Chinese Taipei		 14
2017
Details		 Philippines
Biñan / Muntinlupa
Japan		 3–2
Thailand
South Korea		 3–0
China		 14
2019
Details		 South Korea
Seoul
Japan		 3–1
Thailand
South Korea		 3–0
China		 13
2023
Details		 Thailand
Nakhon Ratchasima
Thailand		 3–2
China
Japan		 3–2
Vietnam		 14
2026
Details		 China
Tianjin		 12

Performances by team

Team Champions Runners-up 3rd place 4th place Total
 China 13 4 1 3 21
 Japan 5 7 7 1 20
 Thailand 3 2 3 3 11
 South Korea 0 7 10 3 20
 Kazakhstan 0 1 0 0 1
 Chinese Taipei 0 0 0 6 6
 Australia 0 0 0 2 2
 New Zealand 0 0 0 1 1
 North Korea 0 0 0 1 1
 Vietnam 0 0 0 1 1

Performances by zonal association

Zonal association Champions Runners-up 3rd place 4th place Total
EAVA (East Asia) 18 18 18 14 68
SAVA (Southeast Asia) 3 2 3 4 12
CAVA (Central Asia) 0 1 0 0 1
OZVA (Oceania) 0 0 0 3 3

Medal summary

RankTeamGoldSilverBronzeTotal
1 China134118
2 Japan57719
3 Thailand3238
4 South Korea071017
5 Kazakhstan0101
Totals (5 entries)21212163

National team appearances

Comprehensive team results

Year
Team
 Australia
1975
(5)		 Hong Kong
1979
(7)		 Japan
1983
(9)		 China
1987
(11)		 Hong Kong
1989
(10)		 Thailand
1991
(14)		 China
1993
(14)		 Thailand
1995
(9)		 Philippines
1997
(9)		 Hong Kong
1999
(9)		 Thailand
2001
(9)		 Vietnam
2003
(10)		 China
2005
(12)		 Thailand
2007
(13)		 Vietnam
2009
(14)		 Taiwan
2011
(14)		 Thailand
2013
(16)		 China
2015
(14)		 Philippines
2017
(14)		 South Korea
2019
(13)		 Thailand
2023
(14)		 China
2026
(12)		 Total
 Australia 4th4th7th7th7th6th10th6th7th6th6th9th10th8th9th10th9th9th10th9th8thQ 22
 China 3rd1st2nd1st1st1st1st1st1st1st1st1st1st2nd2nd1st4th1st4th4th2ndQ 22
 Chinese Taipei ••4th•4th5th4th4th4th5th5th5th5th6th6th5th7th4th6th6th9thQ 19
 Hong Kong •6th8th10th8th11th12th9th9th8th••12th•10th•13th13th11th11th11thQ 17
 India •7th•••14th••••••11th•11th11th11th•10th10th7th• 9
 Indonesia •5th6th6th9th9th8th••••••9th13th13th10th••8th•Q 12
 Iran •••••••••••••12th8th8th8th8th9th7th10thQ 9
 Iraq •••••••••••••••••••••12th 1
 Japan 1st2nd1st2nd3rd2nd2nd3rd3rd3rd4th2nd3rd1st3rd2nd2nd6th1st1st3rdQ 22
 Kazakhstan ••••••5th••9th•7th2nd5th5th9th5th7th7th5th5thQ 13
 Macau •••11th10th••••••••••••••••• 2
 Malaysia •••9th•••••••••••••••••• 1
 Maldives ••••••••••••••••••14th••• 1
 Mongolia ••••••••••••••••14th11th••12th• 3
 Myanmar ••••••••••••••••16th••••• 1
 New Zealand 5th•9th4th•10th11th7th••8th10th•11th••••12th12th•• 11
 North Korea ••••5th4th9th•••••7th••6th•••••• 5
 Philippines ••5th••13th13th8th8th••8th9th•••12th12th8th•13th• 11
 Singapore •••8th•••••••••••••••••• 1
 South Korea 2nd3rd3rd3rd2nd3rd3rd2nd2nd2nd2nd3rd4th4th4th3rd3rd2nd3rd3rd6thQ 22
 Sri Lanka •••••12th14th•••9th••10th14th12th15th14th13th13th•• 10
 Thailand •••5th6th7th7th5th5th4th3rd4th6th3rd1st4th1st3rd2nd2nd1stQ 19
 Turkmenistan •••••••••••••••14th•••••• 1
 Uzbekistan ••••••6th•6th7th•••13th12th•••••14th• 6
 Vietnam •••••8th••••7th6th8th7th7th7th6th5th5th•4thQ 12
Legend
1st Champions
2nd Runners-up
3rd 3rd place
4th 4th place
Q Qualified for upcoming tournament
•• Qualified but withdrew
• Did not qualify
× Withdrew before qualification / Banned by FIVB
Hosts
Did not enter
N/a Not a FIVB member

Debut of teams

Year Debutants Total
1975  Australia,  China,  Japan,  New Zealand,  South Korea 5
1979  Hong Kong,  India,  Indonesia 3
1983  Chinese Taipei,  Philippines 2
1987  Macau,  Malaysia,  Singapore,  Thailand 4
1989  North Korea 1
1991  Sri Lanka,  Vietnam 2
1993  Kazakhstan,  Uzbekistan 2
1995 None 0
1997
1999
2001
2003
2005
2007  Iran 1
2009 None 0
2011  Turkmenistan 1
2013  Mongolia,  Myanmar 2
2015 None 0
2017  Maldives 1
2019 None 0
2023
2026  Iraq 1

Awards

Current awards

Former awards

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Continental Championships set the course for LA28 and World Cup qualification". FIVB. Retrieved 11 August 2026.
  2. ↑ "A Busy Year Awaits Asian Volleyball Community as AVC Unveils 2022 Competition Calendar". AVC. Retrieved 11 August 2026.
  3. ↑ "No Asian Women's Volleyball Championship in 2021 after COVID-19 delays". Inside the Games. Retrieved 11 August 2026.
  4. ↑ "Volleyball Calendar 2025-2028 launched: The best ever!". FIVB. Retrieved 11 August 2026.
  5. ↑ "Thailand Capture Third Asian Title on Home Soil After Stunning 3-2 Win Against Mighty China in Showdown". AVC. Archived from the original on 6 September 2023. Retrieved 11 August 2026.
  6. ↑ "FIVB and Volleyball World sign historic partnership with Asian Volleyball Confederation". Volleyball World. Retrieved 11 August 2026.
  7. ↑ "Volleyball World and Asian Volleyball Confederation extend landmark partnership until 2052". Volleyball World. Retrieved 11 August 2026.
  8. ↑ "Pools confirmed for AVC Women's Continental Championship Tianjin 2026". AVC. Retrieved 11 August 2026.
  9. 1 2 "Competition Regulations" (PDF). AVC. Retrieved 12 August 2026.
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