As part of the World Tour Council meetings on Tuesday, the FIVB announced the 2018-19 slate, addressing the demands of some of the elite players with more high level events and also increasing the prize money by another 27 percent.
“The FIVB World Tour continues to go from strength to strength, and it is wonderful to see emerging markets play a significant role in the success of beach volleyball,” FIVB President Dr. Ary S. Graça said. “Our sport is one that is extremely competitive but built on respect. We want to be the number one family sport in the world, and encourage people of all ages, genders and backgrounds to play. The numbers support our actions and I hope this will continue throughout the next season and beyond.”
Highlights of the 2018-19 slate include:
- 52 tour stops
- 87 combined events per gender
- Prize money of nearly $8 million
- 19 new host cities, five new host countries
Event Breakdown
- Four 5-Star events, including three Beach Major Series events
- 14 4-Star events
- Eight 3-Star events
- Seven 2-Star events
- 19 1-Star events
Among the new stops in 2018-19 is a five-star event in Rome. The World Championships meanwhile will return to Hamburg for the third straight year (June 28 to July 7). The U21 World Championships meanwhile will head to Songkhla, Thailand (June 19-23).
The FIVB also may still announce more one and two star events throughout the year in Europe. Another four-star event in China also is said to be forthcoming.
Teams from 66 countries participated in FIVB events in 2018, nearly double from the 39 that competed in 2013. Meanwhile, the opportunities for women have more than doubled in that span from 787 to 1,675 last year.
The FIVB also announced the inaugural season of snow volleyball will begin in January 2019.
2018-19 FIVB Beach Calendar
August 23-26, 2018: Siofok, Hungary – 1-star – Double gender
August 28-September 1, 2018: Montpellier, France – 1-star – Double gender
September 13-16, 2018: Zhongwei, China, 2-star, Single gender – Women
September 30-October 4: Qinzhou, China – 3-star – Double gender
October 2-5, 2018: Bandar Torkaman, Iran, 1-star, Single gender – Men
October 9-12, 2018: Babolsar, Iran, 1-star, Single gender – Men
October 10-14, 2018: Yangzhou, China, 4-star – Double gender
October 16-19, 2018: Bandar Anzali, Iran, 1-star, Single gender – Men
October 17-21, 2018: Las Vegas, USA, 4-star, Double gender
October 24-28, 2018: Chetumal, Mexico, 3-star, Single gender – Women
November 29-December 2, 2018: Ljubljana, Slovenia, 1-star, Double gender
January 2-6, 2019: The Hague, Netherlands, 4-star, Double gender
January 17-20, 2019: Visakhapatnam, India, 1-star, Double gender
February 5-10, 2019: Fort Lauderdale, USA, 5-star (Beach Major Series), Double gender
February 13-17, 2019: Florida (city TBD), USA, 3-star, Double gender
February 21-24, 2019: Phnom Penh, Cambodia, 2-star, Single gender – Women
March 6-10, 2019: TBC Sydney, Australia, 4-star – Double gender
March 7-10, 2019: Kg Speu, Cambodia, 1-star, Single gender – Men
March 12-16, 2019: Doha, Qatar, 4-star, Single gender – Men
March 20-24, 2019: Texas (city TBD), USA, 3-star, Double gender
March 21-24, 2019: Siem Reap, Cambodia, 2-star, Single gender – Men
April 4-7, 2019: Battambang, Cambodia, 1-star, Single gender – Women
April 8-11, 2019: Satun, Thailand, 1-star, Double gender
April 11-14, 2019: Langkawi, Malaysia,1-star, Double gender
April 24-28, 2019: Xiamen, China, 3-star, Double gender
April 25-28, 2019: Bangkok, Thailand, 1-star, Double gender
May 1-5, 2019: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 3-star, Double gender
May 8-12, 2019: Los Angeles (exact location TBD), USA, 4-star, Double gender
May 8-12, 2019: TBC Lucerne, Switzerland, 3-star, Double gender
May 9-12, 2019: Tuan Chau Island, Vietnam, 1-star, Single gender – Women
May 15-19, 2019: Itapema, Brazil, 4-star, Double gender
May 22-26, 2019: Jinjiang, China,4-star (TBC), Double gender
May 23-26, 2019: Manila, Philippines, 1-star, Double gender
May 29-June 2, 2019: Ostrava, Czech Republic, 4-star, Double gender
May 30-June 2, 2019: TBC Nanjing, China, 2-star, Single gender – Women
June 5-9, 2019: Alexandria, Egypt, 4-star, Single gender – Women
June 6-9, 2019: Singapore, Singapore, 2-star, Double gender
June 12-16, 2019: Warsaw, Poland, 4-star, Double gender
June 13-16, 2019: TBC Nantong, China, 2-star, Single gender – Women
June 19-23, 2019: TBC Rome, Italy, 5-star, Double gender
June 27-30, 2019 Miguel Pereira, Brazil, 1-star, Double gender
June 28-July 7, 2019: FIVB Beach Volleyball World Championships, Hamburg, Germany, Double gender
July 4-7, 2019: Qidong, China, 2-star, Double gender
July 9-14, 2019: Gstaad, Switzerland, 5-star (Beach Major Series), Double gender
July 11-14, 2019: Daegu, Korea, 1-star, Single gender – Women
July 17-21, 2019: Espinho, Portugal, 4-star, Double gender
July 17-21, 2019: Edmonton, Canada, 3-star, Double gender
July 18-21, 2019: Ulsan, Korea, 1-star, Single gender – Women
July 24-28, 2019: Tokyo, Japan, 4-star, Double gender
July 31-August 4, 2019: Vienna, Austria, 5-star (Beach Major Series), Double gender
August 14-18, 2019: Moscow, Russia, 4-star, Double gender
August 21-24, 2019: Salalah, Oman, 1-star, Single gender – Men
August 21-24, 2019: Rubawu, Rwanda, 1-star, Double gender
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