NCAA men's volleyball committee announces championship selections
The NCAA Men’s Volleyball Committee announced today the field of 12 teams vying for the 2026 National Collegiate Men’s Volleyball Championship.
www.ncaa.comHere’s the latest on the 2026 NCAA men's volleyball championship.
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Format and bracket: The NCAA expanded the national championship to a 12-team field in 2026, with four regional sites and three teams per region. The four regional champions advance to the finals at a predetermined site in May 2026. UCLA, Hawaii, Long Beach State, and Ball State were among the top seeds in the field, with regional matchups and times set for early May and the finals later in the month.[1][3][5]
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Regional and TV/streaming details: Regional rounds were scheduled for May 1–2, with semifinals and finals following in the two-week window. Most matches were slated for ESPN+ streaming, with the finals rotation continuing at the host campus site (Pauley Pavilion in Los Angeles hosted games). ESPN platforms were identified as the primary channels for viewing, including the ESPN App for later rounds.[3][7][1]
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Key teams to watch: UCLA entered as a No. 1 seed, Hawaii as No. 2, Long Beach State as No. 3, and Ball State as No. 4, with multiple at-larges joining the bracket from the MPSF and other conferences, such as USC, Pepperdine, UC Irvine, and Penn State, based on selections announced by the NCAA committee.[2][1][3]
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Outcome and context: The championship culminated with the national final in mid-May 2026, featuring a mix of top-seeded teams and upsets from the regional rounds. Recent coverage indicated the possibility of repeat finalists from the same conferences in 2026, as seen in prior years and discussed in season previews.[4][1]
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How to watch: If you’re in Grapevine, Texas, you can stream the matches via ESPN+ on compatible devices. ESPN’s coverage guidance and streaming details were published ahead of the tournament, including how to access the tournament through the ESPN App.[7]
If you’d like, I can pull a concise schedule of the regional pairings and provide direct streaming links or create a quick glance table showing seeds, regions, and match times. I can also add a one-page summary of how the 2026 format differs from 2025 for quick reference.