The Bangkok Glass Volleyball Club, which was founded in 2014 and enjoyed a meteoric raise to become the most successful club in southeast Asia, has shut its doors. They have transferred the rights to participate in the league to the Air Force Volleyball Club.
The club says that they have decided that they don’t believe in the ability to develop ‘true professionals’ in volleyball in the country. They don’t think that the national federation or the industry as a whole is supporting their mission of turning volleyball into a career in the country. Among the specific complaints:
- The changing of the national team quota every year
- Players having to cover their own expenses at National Team tournaments.
- Athletes staying with clubs for less than 3 months, in spite of having year-long contracts.
- National team not providing salaries to its players, leaving the full burden of ‘professionalism’ on the clubs
The club says that team development is difficult and incomplete, which leads to inconsistencies in the promotion of volleyball as a ‘professional sports business.’
The team finished 3rd in the Thailand League and 2nd in the Thai-Denmark Superleague last season. They won Thailand League titles in the 2014-2015 and 2015-2016 season, and SuperLeague titles in 2014 and 2016. They were also the 2014 Asian Club Champions, and finished 7th at the 2016 FIVB Club World Championships.
Out of the 21 players on Thailand’s roster for this summer’s Volleyball Nationals League, 19 played domestically last season. That includes 3 who played for Bangkok Glass: Pornpun Guedpard, Jaraspor Bundasak, and team captain Pleumjit Thinkaow.
The volleyball club is an arm of the Bangkok Glass Football Club, who play in Thailand’s Premier League.
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