History of volleyball in Brazil

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Volleyball - or volleyball - arrived in Brazil in 1915. It is not known for sure who brought the sport to the country, but it was in that year that the first volleyball match took place in the city of Recife, Pernambuco.

However, the sport, which is now widespread in the country, only began to gain strength in 1923. That's because that year the first championship was organized in Rio de Janeiro, with Fluminense being the first professional Brazilian club created.

Since then, the sport has been growing and acquiring followers and today it is widely practiced, especially in physical education classes.

Note that, after football, volleyball is currently the most popular sport in Brazil.

How was the beginning of volleyball in Brazil?

In the beginning, this sport was considered especially for women. Because it was not very violent, men did not practice it.

As time went by, it was also spread among males and today, in addition to the court modality, volleyball is played on the beach (beach volleyball).

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First, it started in the northeast, at Colégio Marista de Recife in 1925. In the following years, through the Young Men's Christian Association of the city of São Paulo, it began to spread to other states.

The foundation of the Brazilian Volleyball Confederation (CBV)

In 1954 the Brazilian Volleyball Confederation (CBV) was founded. Until today, the CBV is the entity responsible for the sport in the country and thanks to it volleyball was consolidated in Brazil.

After its creation, many volleyball schools were created in the country, which promoted the spread of the sport.

The first president of the CBV was former player Denis Rupet Hathaway, who held the position for two years (1955 to 1957).

Thanks to the work developed by this entity, today Brazil is one of the best countries in the world in volleyball.

The development of volleyball in Brazil

Volleyball only began to strengthen in the country in the 70s. At the end of that decade, more precisely in 1977, the 1st World Youth Championship in the men's and women's categories took place. The result was third and fourth places, respectively.

The beginning of Brazil's victories in volleyball

In 1951, men's volleyball had its first major prominence in the South American Championship. However, it was in the 1980s that the men's team, known at the time as the "Silver Generation", began to consolidate itself on the world stage.

That's how he won another victory at the 1983 Pan American Games and, the following year, the men's team acquired the first Olympic silver medal at the Los Angeles Olympic Games.

The first gold medal at the Olympic Games

The much sought after gold was won in the 1990s by the men's team. Thus, he won the final against the Netherlands in 1992 at the Barcelona Olympics, acquiring his first gold medal.

Men's Volleyball Olympics in Barcelona, 1992 — The victory of the men's volleyball team in Barcelona, 1992. Photo: Aníbal Philot/O Globo Agency

From then on, the sport gained worldwide notoriety and began to have large investments with the arrival of good players, which resulted in subsequent achievements.

To find out how volleyball was created, read: Volleyball history.

The volleyball teams in Brazil

Currently, the Brazilian volleyball team is considered one of the best in the world.

In the men's category, the team is three-time world champion (1992, in Barcelona; 2004 in Athens; and 2016, in Rio de Janeiro) and has already won 6 Olympic medals (3 gold and 3 silver).

In the female category, the team is two-time Olympic champion (2008, in Beijing; 2012 in London) and has already won 5 Olympic medals (3 gold and 2 bronze).