Fox Sports announced Monday it will broadcast 35 women's college volleyball matches this season, marking an increase in television coverage for the sport. Eight of these matches will air on the Fox broadcast network, the most ever for a single season on a major broadcast channel.
The schedule includes the inaugural Players Era Volleyball Showcase in Las Vegas on Aug. 30, featuring a top-ranked matchup between Nebraska and No. 2 Texas. The remaining 27 matches will be available on FS1 and FS2.
Mike Mulvihill, Fox Sports president for insight and analytics, drew parallels between the current rise of women's volleyball and the trajectory of women's basketball several years ago. "I think when you look across women’s sports, to me, volleyball is the next basketball," Mulvihill stated. "I think the same patterns that we saw in basketball five years ago are what we’re now seeing in volleyball. We want to lean in to this year the same way that we leaned into basketball five years ago."
He further explained that while women's volleyball may not yet have a national star comparable to Caitlin Clark in women's basketball, the sport's growing popularity is evident in the strong fan bases of programs like Nebraska, Wisconsin, and Texas, as well as recent successes from Pitt and Louisville.
Fox's broadcast schedule kicks off with the Jeep AVCA First Serve on Saturday, featuring Louisville against Wisconsin at 4 p.m. Eastern. The network will also broadcast a Big Ten/SEC Volleyball Challenge Week primetime doubleheader from Wrigley Field on Sept. 6, with No. 3 Kentucky facing No. 10 Penn State, followed by Missouri and No. 1 Nebraska. Additionally, Fox will air the Big Ten Volleyball Championship on Nov. 25.
Last season, ESPN and ESPN2 aired 26 matches, with two broadcasts on ABC, including the Division I NCAA championship. The expanded coverage by Fox Sports suggests a strategic effort to capitalize on the increasing viewership and engagement with women's volleyball.