Originating in Santa Monica, California, in 1920, beach volleyball has evolved from a casual seaside pastime into one of the world’s most popular professional sports.

Unlike indoor volleyball, beach volleyball is played outdoors on sand, with two players per team and no substitutions allowed, being a real test of stamina, skill, and coordination.

The playing area is a 16 m × 8 m rectangle, surrounded by a 5–6 m free zone on all sides. The sand must be at least 40 cm deep and free of stones or shells. The net height is 2.43 meters for men and 2.24 meters for women.

Beach volleyball is played in a best-of-three format. In the first two sets, a technical timeout is taken when the combined score of both teams reaches 21 points. Additionally, each team is permitted one timeout per set, which lasts 30 seconds. In the first two sets, teams switch sides when the combined score reaches 7 points, and in the third set, teams switch sides when the combined score reaches 5 points. 

Beach volleyball adopts rally scoring, where the winner of the first two sets is the team that reaches 21 points and leads by at least 2 points, and the winner of the third set is the team that reaches 15 points and leads by at least 2 points.

As a sport that unites beach, sunshine, competition, and spectator-engaging, beach volleyball is hailed as the most outstanding sport of the 21st century.