Volleygate: A History of Scandal in the Largest International Sport Federation

Abstract

Neither the history of volleyball nor of its governing body has received much scholarly attention. As such, the objective of this study is to highlight the institutional history of the Fédération Internationale de Volleyball (FIVB) through the organization’s response (or lack of response) to the corrupt practices known as “volleygate” that have embroiled the volleyball world since the mid 1980s. Through this sociohistorical study of the FIVB, many of the challenges facing modern international sport federations can be recognized and critiqued. Yet, despite its moral failings, the show must go on.