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When you go to watch a volleyball match, whether it may be a high school or college match, you will very likely hear this question: What is the deal with the player with the different color jersey? It is amusing for two reasons: 1. It is not a new thing to see a libero on the court 2. People still do not understand much about the game of volleyball The second reason is my favorite because I love to think that volleyball is still in its infancy (in some ways) in the United States. Around the U.S., men's volleyball is still a bit rare. Many high schools and colleges, including the Big Ten here in the midwest, do not have men's or boy's volleyball teams. Because there still is not a huge volleyball influence in this country, not one match goes by that I do not hear someone in the stands asking about the rules of volleyball, and especially the question about the libero. I often think about my high school playing days, which was now 10 years ago. Ten years ago no one really new about club volleyball. I obviously played for a team, but there were not many teams to play. You would play tournaments in all different locations and would constantly see the same teams. I know for a fact that this is still happening today. So the libero is… Essentially a defensive specialist that can come in and out for any player on the court without using an official substitution. The libero should be and generally is the best, and smartest defensive player on your team. They should be able to pass, dig, and read the court better than anyone else on your team. Where did this rule come from? The libero position was added to the game in 1999. Adding the libero did a few things: it sped up the game. Now play did not have to stop when middles needed to be subbed out (I have not seen too many teams that keep their middles in all game. Adding the libero to the game also made vollies, defense and rallies much more entertaining to watch. Believe it or not there are still many purists that believe that the libero position should never have been added (there is also controversy on how to pronounce it: Italian way or American way). In my experience though, adding this position has for sure made the game much more entertaining to watch and also to coach. Many thanks for reading my article. To get more detailed volleyball rules and volleyball drills, you should visit us here.
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