How to qualify for beach volleyball at Paris 2024. The Olympics qualification system explained

Paris 2024 will represent the eighth time beach volleyball has featured at the Olympics, with the sport making its debut at Atlanta 1996.

Brazil and the USA are the two traditional powerhouses of the game. Brazil will be searching for redemption after failing to make it onto the Olympic podium for the first time at Tokyo 2020, while the USA have won seven gold medals in their history.

The Paris 2024 beach volleyball competitions will be held at the iconic Champs de Mars, where the temporary Eiffel Tower Stadium will hold all beach volleyball events.

Find out everything you need to know about the beach volleyball qualification process for Paris 2024 below.

How many teams will compete in beach volleyball in Paris 2024?

24 men's teams, with a total of 48 athletes, and an equal number of women's teams will participate in the Paris 2024 Olympic tournaments, making a total of 48 teams and 96 athletes.

To be eligible to participate in the Olympic Games Paris 2024, athletes must be born on or before 27 July 2010.

What is the beach volleyball qualification pathway to Paris 2024?

The number of teams remains unchanged from Tokyo 2020. As the host country, France are entitled to one quota for both the men’s and women’s tournaments.

The remaining 23 quotas per gender will qualify for Paris 2024 via three qualification routes, respecting the maximum of four quotas per NOC (two per gender), thus guaranteeing the principle of universal participation:

1. The two winning pairs (one male team and one female team) of the 2023 Beach Volleyball World Championships will automatically obtain a pass for Paris 2024.
2. The top 17 ranked teams (per gender) in the FIVB Olympic Ranking, which will take into account the 12 best performances achieved by a pair in the window from 1 January 2023 to 10 June 2024, will qualify for the Olympics. The events valid for ranking results are as follows: 2023 FIVB Senior World Championships; Beach Pro Tour (Elite, Challenge, Future and Finals); recognised Continental Tours Finals.
3. The last 5 quotas per gender will be allocated in the five Continental Olympic Tournaments**, which will guarantee the pass to the winning pairs.** The final phase of these five events will be held between 13 and 23 June 2024.

What is the schedule, venue and format of the Paris 2024 beach volleyball competition?

Unlike volleyball, the format of the Paris 2024 beach volleyball tournaments will be the same as it was at Tokyo 2020. The Olympic format features 24 teams competing in six round-robin pools, with 16 pairs moving on to the single-elimination knockout phase, with quarterfinals, semifinals and bronze and gold medal matches taking place.

The Paris 2024 beach volleyball competition will take place between 27 July and 10 August at the Eiffel Tower Stadium near the Champ de Mars.

Beach volleyball teams and athletes to watch at Paris 2024

Norway will definitely be among the favourites for the Paris 2024 beach volleyball tournament after 24-year-old Anders Mol and 25-year-old Christian Sorum made history by winning gold at Tokyo 2020. With age on their side, the Norwegian pair look to be the biggest medal threat at the next Olympic Games**.**

However, the most recent FIVB ranking shows Brazilian pairs leading the way in both the men’s and women’s cagegories, with several teams in the top 10 including Andre Stein / George Wanderley and Renato / Vitor Felipe in the men’s ranking, and Barbara / Carol and Duda / Ana Patricia in the women’s.

In the women’s competition at the last Olympics, veteran USA athlete April Ross and partner Alix Klineman took home the gold thanks to a near-faultless performance, with only one set dropped on the road to the Olympic title. However, the Australian Tokyo 2020 silver medallists Taliqua Clancy and Mariafe Artacho del Pilar make them another team to watch.

And we can be sure that the Olympic Ranking will certainly see pairs from other NOCs known to perform well on the sand such as Netherlands, Poland, Italy and Germany in contention when the competition begins in Paris.

Beach Volley qualification timeline to Paris 2024

• 1 July 2022 - 23 June 2024: Beach Volley Continental Qualification Event
• 1 January 2023 - 9 June 2024: Olympic Ranking (OR)
• 31 December 2023: Host country confirms use of the host country places to the FIVB.
• Dates TBD 2023: 2023 FIVB Beach Volleyball Senior World Championships (location TBD)
• 10 June 2024: The FIVB publishes the Qualification Ranking and confirms in writing to the NOCs, NFs their allocated quota places through the OR
• 17 June 2024: The NOCs / NFs confirm in writing to the FIVB the use of the allocated quota places through the OR to the FIVB
• 24 June 2024: The FIVB publishes the Qualification Ranking and confirms in writing to the NOCs, NFs their allocated quota places through the Beach Volley Continental Qualification Event
• 28 June 2024: The NOCs / NFs confirm in writing to the FIVB the use of the allocated quota places through the Beach Volley Continental Qualification Event to the FIVB
• No later than 2 July 2024: The FIVB reallocates all unused quota places.
• 8 July 2024: Paris 2024 Sport Entries Deadline.
• 26 July – 11 August 2024: Olympic Games Paris 2024.

Find out more about the qualification system for other sports that will feature at Paris 2024.