Seven Pro Volleyball Federation teams begin their four-month season this week

The GIST: Circle your entire calendar, because 2024 is the year of women’s volleyball. Seven Pro Volleyball Federation (PVF) teams start their four-month, 84-game season this week, while LOVB’s six teams will begin serving in November. Here’s what you need to know as these competitors start netting gains.

❣️ LOVB signs college stars: After a whirlwind December, LOVB Pro had a flurry of major additions in January, including All-American talent like Logan Eggleston, Madi Kubik, and Dani Drews. LOVB’s innovative pipeline model is also paying off, with stars like Sarah Franklin and Lexi Rodriguez signing NIL deals.

• By focusing on cities with a strong volleyball presence, the league embraced the grassroots model used in the PWHL’s savvy six-city launch. LOVB Pro COO Rosie Spaulding recently told The GIST that the pro league’s launch was specifically designed for LOVB’s fifth year of business so it would play to a built-in community base. Having a plan of attack.

📺 PVF adds media partners: The new league already inked partnerships with USA Volleyball and Spalding, but its latest streaming agreement with Bally Live and Stadium is a win-win that gives the PVF widespread access and the Bally brand a much-needed boost. Bally will showcase a minimum of 40 matches, 20 of which will be simulcast on Stadium.

• This adds to the PVF’s deal with CBS to air at least 10 regular-season matches and the semifinal and championship games, following the WNBA, NWSL, and PWHL’s example of diversifying TV rights.

1️⃣ Athletes Unlimited (AU) as first movers: And we can’t forget AU, which launched in 2020 when the U.S. had no active women’s pro volleyball leagues. AU proved there’s an appetite for pro volleyball in the country, and its short fall season leaves plenty of space for other leagues to have their time in the sun. Sharing is caring.