ROSEMONT, Ill. – The Big Ten Conference announced the inaugural B1G Volleyball Tournament set to be played Nov. 20-25, 2026, at the Fishers Event Center—home of Major League Volleyball’s Indy Ignite.
“For the first time in its history, the Big Ten Conference will determine its volleyball champion with a postseason tournament featuring the best volleyball teams in the country,” said Commissioner Tony Petitti. “We look forward to bringing the nation’s top talent together for an entire week of exhilarating competition culminating in the crowning of the inaugural Big Ten Volleyball Tournament Champion.”
The tournament will bring 15 of the league’s 18 teams together for a five-day, five-round, tournament to determine one winner, which will be awarded the Big Ten’s automatic berth into the NCAA tournament. As a result of the inclusion of the tournament weekend, the Big Ten regular-season schedule will decrease from 20 to 17 matches, in a single round-robin format. Television distribution and ticket information will be announced at a later time.
The top four seeds in the regular-season standings will each receive byes directly into the quarterfinal round set for Sunday, Nov. 22. The four semifinalists will meet in two matches on Tuesday, Nov. 24, and the championship match is set for Wednesday, Nov. 25; the evening before Thanksgiving Day.
Play begins with three first-round matches on Friday, Nov. 20, in which the 10 through 15 seeds will play. Four second-round matches are scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 21. The three teams that advance out of the first round will be pitted against the fifth, sixth, and seventh seeds. The eighth and ninth seeds will face each other. The four advancing teams then meet the top four seeds in the quarterfinals.
