This might come as a surprise to even the most experienced Volleyball players amongst us.
The reason this might surprise many players is because they are very rarely seen and to be honest pretty difficult to receive.
This surprise is that there is in fact both Yellow and Red Cards in Volleyball.
Much like many other sports these are given as sanctions or warnings for misconduct or unsportsmanlike behaviour.
So what exactly do these cards mean?
Yellow Cards when shown act as a warning, no penalty is incurred when a yellow card is shown.
Red Cards when shown indicate a sanction or penalty, in Volleyball the team of the offending player would lose the point and if applicable the serve
Unlike soccer the player is allowed to continue playing unless further sanctions are taken.
Now there is actually a couple more ways in which these cards can be used to give out penalties and warnings which I will dive into below.
I will also go over the yellow and red cards in a bit more detail and offer examples of how they are used.
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Table of Contents
What is a Yellow Card in Volleyball?
As mentioned above a yellow card indicates a warning however it is often the second phase of the sanctioning process in Volleyball.
Usually if something is going on during the match that the officials don’t like, the team captains will be called over to the referee stand and informed of the issue they feel is occuring.
The captain will then relay this message to the team as a first warning.
If misconduct or unsportsmanlike behavior continues this is when yellow cards will be awarded to individuals.
At this stage there is no further penalties and play will continue as normal.
However with that being said the player (or coach) in question that received the warning will be noted down on the scoresheet meaning a red card is much more likely to be given.
Why Would Yellow Cards Be Given Out In Volleyball
There is actually quite a lot of different reasons why a yellow card may be issued in volleyball.
Some of the main reasons that spring to mind are as follows:
- Arguing with the referee about decisions
- Shouting Abuse at any of the officials, coaching staff, opposition players or spectators
- Kicking the ball away
- Pulling the net out of frustration
- Delaying play by refusing to give the ball back to the opposition after a lost point
There are many more reasons however these are some of the more common ones.
As stated above Yellow cards are normally the second phase in the sanctioning process so this would often be a repeat offense that the captains have already been warned on.
One of the main reasons that yellow cards may be issued immediately is if assistant coaches become vocal or argue with officials.
What Is A Red Card In Volleyball
A red card in volleyball is slightly more serious than the yellow card as you would expect.
However unlike most sports, a red card is actually a lot less severe than you may think.
If a player is shown a red card this would often be for consistent repeat offences of something the captain and individual has been warned about.
If a red card is shown the team of the offending player would lose the point and if applicable the serve also.
With that being said, unlike many other sports when a player is shown a red card they are in fact allowed to continue playing as the loss of point (and or serve) is seen as enough of a penalty at this stage.
Why Might a Red Card Be Shown In Volleyball
Red cards much like yellow cards be shown for many reasons and often these reasons are for continuation of a yellow card offense.
However if the offense is severe enough to warant it an official can choose to issue a red immediately.
Times when this may occur often include sanctions involving rude conduct such as:
- Using profanity towards officials, players, coaches and spectators.
- Ignoring or mocking officials during decisions.
So remember when I said earlier that there are actually other ways in which these cards can be used to issue sanctions?
Well these are the more serious ways which include expulsion from the set or even the match as a whole.
Red & Yellow Card Jointly Issued In Volleyball
In Volleyball is an official feels it necessary players (or coaches) can be expelled from the game for a period of time or the entire match if required.
If a referee issues a sanction in which they are holding both a red and yellow card jointly in one hand than the player of coach who receives this must leave the playing area for the remainder of the set.
After the set has finished they may be allowed back on the court to continue playing.
Unlike games such as soccer if a player is removed from play the team in question is allowed to replace the removed player with a substitute.
When Would A Yellow and Red card combined be issued in Volleyball
Now as this is a more serious offense which includes physically removing an individual from play, these sanctions are often for more serious offences or again consistent repetition of an offense already sanctioned for with both yellow and red cards.
There are some circumstances in which a yellow and red card jointly shown would be awarded.
These are often shown when a player (or Coach) commits offensive conduct.
This could be things such as insults directed at officials, players, coaches or spectators.
Or things such as belittling or derogatory comments.
Yellow and Red Card Shown Separately In Volleyball
The last and most severe sanction in volleyball is the red and yellow card awarded at the same time but shown separately.
What I mean by this is the referee shows both yellow and red cards however he has one in each hand.
If an individual receives this sanction they are banished from the match entirely and must leave the competition controlled area until the end of the event itself.
As I said this is the most severe form of sanction offered in volleyball and you will very rarely see this shown in volleyball.
Why Might a Red and yellow Card Be Shown Separately In Volleyball.
So you are probably wondering what someone would have to do to receive such a severe sanction well again it could be a constant repetition of yellow and red card offense however this isn’t likely to be the case as most players learn their lessons are being removed from play the set before.
These are given for much more serious offenses such as:
- Repeat offensive behavior
- Aggressive behaviour
- Racial slurs
Generally speaking these do not occur, mainly due to the nature of the sport keeping teams separated by a net and being the game is very stop start.
In sports such as soccer, the game is continuous and played over such a large surface area monitoring every little thing can be a challenge.
With volleyball it is more compartmentalised but confided making it much easier to intervene in any potential issues that may be brewing.
So there you have it the in-depth guide of the sanctions and warnings given in volleyball and what might lead to each of these sanctions.
Hopefully now you know what they mean and how they might be received you can make sure you stay clear of ever receiving any.
Like I said cards are very rarely shown in the sport of volleyball and partly that is to keep a higher level of decorum and the other part is due to the nature and format of the game.
