AVC Men's Volleyball Continental Championship

AVC Men's Volleyball Continental Championship
Upcoming season or competition:
Current sports event 2026 AVC Men's Volleyball Continental Championship
FormerlyAsian Men's Volleyball Championship (1975–2023)
SportVolleyball
Founded1975; 51 years ago (1975)
First season1975
No. of teams12
ContinentsAsia and Oceania (AVC)
Most recent
champions
 Japan
(11th title)
Most titles Japan
(11 titles)
BroadcasterVBTV
Websiteasianvolleyball.net

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

The tournament serves as the primary continental qualification pathway to determine Asian representatives for major global events organized by the Fédération Internationale de Volleyball (FIVB), such as the FIVB Men's Volleyball World Cup and the Olympic Games.

First established in Australia in 1975, the competition was initially held on a quadrennial basis before transitioning to a biennial format in 1987. Most recently, the tournament cycle was adjusted to even-numbered years beginning in 2026, aligning with the FIVB's newly implemented global volleyball calendar for 2025–2028.

Between its inception and the 2023 edition, the tournament has been held 22 times, featuring a total of 38 national teams. Throughout its history, only five nations have captured the championship title: Japan holds the record with 10 titles, followed by South Korea and Iran with four titles each, China with three, and Australia with one.

The reigning champions are Japan, who secured their record-extending evelenth title at the 2026 tournament held in Kitakyushu, Japan.[citation needed]

History

The inaugural tournament, originally established as the Asian Men'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 Men'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.

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 Men's Volleyball Continental Championship in 2026. 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; the tournament now serves 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 Men's Volleyball World Cup.

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:

Final tournament

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

Results summary

Finals

# Year Host Final 3rd place match Teams
Champions Score Runners-up 3rd place Score 4th place
1 1975
Details
Australia
Melbourne

Japan
Round-robin
South Korea

China
Round-robin
Australia
7
2 1979
Details
Bahrain
Manama

China
Round-robin
South Korea

Japan
Round-robin
Australia
15
3 1983
Details
Japan
Tokyo

Japan
Round-robin
China

South Korea
Round-robin
Chinese Taipei
11
4 1987
Details
Kuwait
Kuwait City

Japan
3–0
China

South Korea
3–0
Kuwait
17
5 1989
Details
South Korea
Seoul

South Korea
3–0
Japan

China
3–2
Pakistan
19
6 1991
Details
Australia
Perth

Japan
Round-robin
South Korea

China
Round-robin
Australia
15
7 1993
Details
Thailand
Nakhon Ratchasima

South Korea
3–0
Kazakhstan

Japan
3–2
China
16
8 1995
Details
South Korea
Seoul

Japan
Round-robin
China

South Korea
Round-robin
Iran
14
9 1997
Details
Qatar
Doha

China
Round-robin
Japan

Australia
Round-robin
Chinese Taipei
17
10 1999
Details
Iran
Tehran

China
Round-robin
Australia

South Korea
Round-robin
Japan
14
11 2001
Details
South Korea
Changwon

South Korea
3–1
Australia

Japan
3–1
China
12
12 2003
Details
China
Tianjin

South Korea
Round-robin
China

Iran
Round-robin
Australia
15
13 2005
Details
Thailand
Suphan Buri

Japan
3–0
China

South Korea
3–1
India
18
14 2007
Details
Indonesia
Jakarta

Australia
Round-robin
Japan

South Korea
Round-robin
China
17
15 2009
Details
Philippines
Manila

Japan
3–1
Iran

South Korea
3–1
China
18
16 2011
Details
Iran
Tehran

Iran
3–1
China

South Korea
3–1
Australia
16
17 2013
Details
United Arab Emirates
Dubai

Iran
3–0
South Korea

China
3–1
Japan
21
18 2015
Details
Iran
Tehran

Japan
3–1
Iran

China
3–2
Qatar
16
19 2017
Details
Indonesia
Gresik

Japan
3–1
Kazakhstan

South Korea
3–0
Indonesia
16
20 2019
Details
Iran
Tehran

Iran
3–0
Australia

Japan
3–1
South Korea
16
21 2021
Details
Japan
Chiba / Funabashi

Iran
3–0
Japan

China
3–0
Chinese Taipei
16
22 2023
Details
Iran
Urmia

Japan
3–0
Iran

Qatar
3–0
China
17
23 2026
Details
Japan
Kitakyushu

Japan
3–0
Iran

South Korea
3–2
Australia
12

Performances by country

Team Champions Runners-up 3rd place 4th place Total
 Japan 11 4 4 2 21
 South Korea 4 4 10 1 19
 Iran 4 4 1 1 10
 China 3 6 6 5 20
 Australia 1 3 1 6 11
 Kazakhstan 0 2 0 0 2
 Qatar 0 0 1 1 2
 Chinese Taipei 0 0 0 3 3
 Kuwait 0 0 0 1 1
 Pakistan 0 0 0 1 1
 India 0 0 0 1 1
 Indonesia 0 0 0 1 1

Performances by zonal association

Zonal association Champions Runners-up 3rd place 4th place Total
EAVA (East Asia) 18 14 20 11 63
CAVA (Central Asia) 4 6 1 3 14
OZVA (Oceania) 1 3 1 5 10
WAVA (West Asia) 0 0 1 2 3
SAVA (Southeast Asia) 0 0 0 1 1

Medal summary

RankNationGoldSilverBronzeTotal
1 Japan114419
2 South Korea441018
3 Iran4419
4 China36615
5 Australia1315
6 Kazakhstan0202
7 Qatar0011
Totals (7 entries)23232369

National team appearances

Comprehensive team results

Year
Team
Australia
1975
(7)
Bahrain
1979
(15)
Japan
1983
(11)
Kuwait
1987
(17)
South Korea
1989
(19)
Australia
1991
(15)
Thailand
1993
(16)
South Korea
1995
(14)
Qatar
1997
(17)
Iran
1999
(14)
South Korea
2001
(12)
China
2003
(15)
Thailand
2005
(18)
Indonesia
2007
(17)
Philippines
2009
(18)
Iran
2011
(16)
United Arab Emirates
2013
(21)
Iran
2015
(16)
Indonesia
2017
(16)
Iran
2019
(16)
Japan
2021
(16)
Iran
2023
(17)
Japan
2026
(12)
Total
 Afghanistan •••••••••••••••15th20th••••14th• 3
 Australia 4th4th6th11th10th4th6th5th3rd2nd2nd4th8th1st7th4th5th5th8th2nd6th•4th 22
 Bahrain •14th•8th16th•••10th10th•13th10th•••12th12th••10th8th9th 12
 Bangladesh ••••17th•16th••••••••••••••15th• 3
 China 3rd1st2nd2nd3rd3rd4th2nd1st1st4th2nd2nd4th4th2nd3rd3rd6th6th3rd4th6th 23
 Chinese Taipei ••4th6th9th5th10th6th4th7th6th9th13th8th8th13th9th6th7th5th4th6th7th 21
 Hong Kong ••10th•14th•••••12th•18th•17th•••16th16th14th16th• 9
 India •5th5th5th6th10th9th•9th9th7th5th4th9th9th6th7th11th•8th9th11th8th 20
 Indonesia 6th•9th••6th•••6th••11th7th6th11th••4th12th•9th• 11
 Iran •6th•10th8th7th5th4th6th5th5th3rd6th5th2nd1st1st2nd5th1st1st2nd2nd 21
 Iraq •8th•9th7th•••••••••••13th•13th••12th• 6
 Japan 1st3rd1st1st2nd1st3rd1st2nd4th3rd6th1st2nd1st5th4th1st1st3rd2nd1st1st 23
 Jordan •••17th••••••••••••••••••• 1
 Kazakhstan ••••••2nd14th•11th9th8th•10th5th9th10th9th2nd10th11th13th• 14
 Kuwait •7th7th4th5th•14th13th•14th•••17th••17th14th•15th16th•• 12
 Lebanon •13th••••••••••••11th•8th•••••• 3
 Macau ••••••••13th•••••••••••••• 1
 Maldives •••••••••••••16th18th•••••••• 2
 Myanmar ••••••••••••••10th•18th•••••• 2
   Nepal ••11th•18th•••••••••••••••••• 2
 New Zealand 7th11th8th12th12th12th11th12th•••14th15th•••••••••12th 11
 North Korea •••••11th••••••••••••••••• 1
 Oman ••••••••••••••••19th15th•13th••10th 4
 Pakistan •••7th4th8th8th8th7th8th•7th9th13th•7th•10th12th7th7th7th• 16
 Philippines 5th•••••15th11th14th•••14th•15th•••••••• 6
 Qatar ••••19th•12th10th8th13th11th11th7th11th14th12th11th4th9th9th5th3rd11th 18
 Samoa •••••15th••••••••••••••••• 1
 Saudi Arabia •9th•13th•13th••12th•8th12th•12th••21st•15th•12th•• 10
 Singapore •12th••••••••••••••••••••• 1
 South Korea 2nd2nd3rd3rd1st2nd1st3rd5th3rd1st1st3rd3rd3rd3rd2nd7th3rd4th8th5th3rd 23
 Sri Lanka ••••13th•13th9th15th12th•••14th16th8th15th13th14th14th••• 12
 Syria •10th••••••••••••••••••••• 1
 Thailand •••14th15th9th7th7th11th••10th5th6th13th10th6th8th11th11th15th10th5th 18
 Turkmenistan •••••••••••••••14th•16th••••• 2
 United Arab Emirates •••15th11th14th••17th•10th15th17th•••14th•••••• 8
 Uzbekistan ••••••••16th•••16th••16th16th•••13th17th• 6
 Vietnam ••••••••••••12th15th12th•••10th•••• 4
Discontinued team
 South Yemen •15th•16th••••••••••••••••••• 2
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,  Indonesia,  Japan,  New Zealand,  Philippines,  South Korea 7
1979  Bahrain,  India,  Iran,  Iraq,  Kuwait,  Lebanon,  Saudi Arabia,  Singapore,  South Yemen,  Syria 10
1983  Chinese Taipei,  Hong Kong,    Nepal 3
1987  Jordan,  Pakistan,  Thailand,  United Arab Emirates 4
1989  Bangladesh,  Qatar,  Sri Lanka 3
1991  North Korea,  Samoa 2
1993  Kazakhstan 1
1995 None 0
1997  Macau,  Uzbekistan 2
1999 None 0
2001
2003
2005  Vietnam 1
2007  Maldives 1
2009  Myanmar 1
2011  Afghanistan,  Turkmenistan 2
2013  Oman 1
2015 None 0
2017
2019
2021
2023
2026

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. ↑ "Volleyball Calendar 2025-2028 launched: The best ever!". FIVB. Retrieved 11 August 2026.
  3. ↑ "FIVB and Volleyball World sign historic partnership with Asian Volleyball Confederation". Volleyball World. Retrieved 11 August 2026.
  4. ↑ "Volleyball World and Asian Volleyball Confederation extend landmark partnership until 2052". Volleyball World. Retrieved 11 August 2026.
  5. 1 2 "Competition Regulations" (PDF). AVC. Retrieved 12 August 2026.