Major League Volleyball (MLV) has announced an exciting new chapter for the league, unveiling a 26-match regular-season schedule and a two conference alignment beginning this coming season.
The changes coincide with the league's expansion to 12 teams, showcasing balanced scheduling, creating stronger regional rivalries and an enhanced competitive structure.
With the league growing to 12 teams, MLV will be grouped into Eastern and Western Conferences. Atlanta, Columbus, DC, Grand Rapids, Indy and Orlando will make up the Eastern Conference. The Western Conference will showcase Dallas, Los Angeles, Minnesota, Northern California, Omaha and Vegas.
“Adding four teams and shifting to a conference structure changes everything for us,” said Major League Volleyball Commissioner Jaime Weston. “Expanding into these incredible sports markets allows us to create genuine rivalries, energize an exciting postseason race and provide fans with the best volleyball in the country. Our players thrive on high-stakes competition, and this 26-match format delivers the world-class stage both our athletes and supporters deserve.”
Each team will play the 11 other league opponents, once at home and once on the road, for 22 matches. The remaining four matches will be scheduled against teams in the same conference, with each squad missing one of the other five on an annual rotating basis.
Additional details, including the full regular-season schedule and postseason format, will be announced in the coming months. Fans should sign up at provolleyball.com to join the priority list and follow MLV across social channels to learn when the official 2027 schedules are released, as well as get exclusive updates on league teams and more.
SCHEDULE FORMAT 2027 – Frequently Asked Questions
How did Major League Volleyball decide to play 26 matches?
MLV and its teams considered several formats – which included playing the same number, more and fewer matches than in previous seasons. League teams decided that 26 matches was the right amount to maintain a full professional volleyball schedule consistent with other U.S. professional sports leagues, while also fitting well within the permitted volleyball calendar (January – May) for the 2027 MLV season.
In past years, MLV teams played everyone the same number of times. Why could that not be done again?
With the continued league growth to 12 teams, a full round-robin schedule of four matches versus every opponent was no longer practical or possible. Team schedules would have grown from 28 to 44 matches, a total that would have put an unreasonable stress on the players and teams, plus been extremely difficult to schedule during the January – May timeframe.
What was the first step on creating this format?
Major League Volleyball teams needed to determine one conference, two conferences or some other format. Several different formats were considered – including one division, two divisions and other types of formats (such as quads) strictly for scheduling. The two conference format was agreed to be the best for putting together the 2027 schedule.
What was of primary importance to teams when creating the schedule format?
Teams were steadfast in wanting to play every team in MLV during the season – with each team visiting every other one at least one time. Formats that did not satisfy this requirement were eliminated.
Why divide into conferences for the 2027 season?
A need to play every other team resulted in 22 matches. In order to schedule the additional four matches, it made sense to divide into conferences to accomplish that feat. In addition, a conference format is the next logical step now that Major League Volleyball has grown to 12 teams.
How did you determine which teams were in which conference?
Teams were placed into conferences based on geography. The six teams in the Eastern Conference all reside in the Eastern time zone, while the remaining teams make up the Western Conference – with teams in the Central and Pacific time zones.
If my team plays every other conference team, that is more than 26 matches. How will it be determined who will play whom?
With five other opponents in a respective conference, each league squad will play four other teams a third time – skipping just one each season. The skipped opponent will then rotate from season to season. For example, if Atlanta misses Columbus in 2027, they will not miss the Fury the following season.
When will we see our first 12-team schedule?
The schedule is currently being built and Major League Volleyball will look to announce that schedule in the coming months.
With conferences, how will teams advance to the postseason?
The postseason format is still being finalized and will be announced in the near future.