Current season, competition or edition: 2025 LOVB Pro season | |
 | |
| Sport | Volleyball |
|---|---|
| Founded | October 19, 2021 |
| First season | 2025 |
| Owner | League One Volleyball |
| President | Rosie Spaulding |
| No. of teams | 6 |
| Country | United States |
| Headquarters | Los Angeles, California, United States |
| Most recent champion | LOVB Austin |
| Most titles | LOVB Austin (1st title) |
| Broadcasters | ESPN USA Network |
| Streaming partners | ESPN Victory+ |
| Official website | LOVB.com |
LOVB Pro (pronounced "love" and commonly referred to as League One Volleyball) is a women's professional indoor volleyball league in the United States. The league is owned by League One Volleyball (LOVB), a volleyball body founded in 2020. The league held its first season in 2025.
History
League One Volleyball (LOVB) was founded in 2020 by Katlyn Gao, Peter Hirschmann, and Olympian Kevin Wong as a network of youth volleyball clubs across the United States with the intent of eventually creating and sustaining a professional league.[1] As of July 2025[update], LOVB's youth business includes 77 club locations in 28 states, with over 22,000 youth athletes and 3,500+ coaches. These clubs provide volleyball coaching and preparation for team competition for youth ages 12-18 interested in playing travel volleyball. [2]
On October 19, 2021, LOVB formally announced the creation of its professional league, branded as LOVB Pro.[3]
On March 9, 2023, LOVB announced its first professional cities as Atlanta, Georgia, and Houston, Texas.[4] Upon announcement, each team also announced their first player or players (all of whom have won Olympic medals), dubbed their "founding athletes"; Atlanta announced Fabiana Claudino and Kelsey Robinson-Cook, and Houston announced Micha Hancock and Jordan Thompson.[4] On April 27, a team was added in Madison, Wisconsin, with founding athlete Lauren Carlini.[5] On June 5, the fourth city was announced as Salt Lake City, Utah, led by founding athletes Jordyn Poulter and Haleigh Washington.[6] On August 16, Omaha, Nebraska was announced as the fifth host city with founding athletes Jordan Larson and Justine Wong-Orantes.[7] In December, the league announced it would be building a dedicated training facility for LOVB Madison and area LOVB youth squads in the Madison suburb of Sun Prairie.[8] A week later, the league announced its final city as Austin, Texas, with founding athlete Carli Lloyd.[9]
Inaugural season
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Team venues and schedules for the 2025 season were announced on July 18, 2024.[10] The 2025 season featured four matches per week, a single head-to-head match and a homestand-style "Weekend with LOVB" where one team will host two others for three total matches. An in-season tournament, the LOVB Classic, would be held alongside the Triple Crown NIT youth invitational in February in Kansas City, Missouri. The LOVB Finals would be held in April,[10] with LOVB Austin claiming the crown.
Teams
Future teams:
LOVB Pro teams do not have traditional city-nickname team names, but are only referred to as "LOVB" followed by the city, state, or region they represent.
| Team | Location | Venue | Capacity | Joined |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LOVB Atlanta | College Park, Georgia | Gateway Center Arena | 3,500 | 2025 |
| LOVB Austin | Austin, Texas | H-E-B Center Strahan Arena |
8,700 10,000 |
2025 |
| LOVB Houston | Rosenberg, Texas | Fort Bend Epicenter | 10,000 | 2025 |
| LOVB Madison | Madison, Wisconsin | Wisconsin Field House Alliant Energy Center |
7,540 7,432 |
2025 |
| LOVB Nebraska | Omaha, Nebraska | Liberty First Credit Union Arena Baxter Arena |
4,600 7,898 |
2025 |
| LOVB Salt Lake | Salt Lake City, Utah | Lifetime Activities Center Maverik Center |
5,000 12,500 |
2025 |
Logos
Future
| Team | Location | Venue | Capacity | Joining |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LOVB Los Angeles | Los Angeles, California | TBA | 2027[11] | |
| LOVB Minnesota | Twin Cities, Minnesota | TBA | 2027[12] | |
| LOVB San Francisco | San Francisco, California | TBA | 2027[13] | |
League sponsorship, funding, and ownership
On September 28, 2022, LOVB raised $16.75 million in a Series A funding round, headlined by Billie Jean King and Kevin Durant.[14] A year later, LOVB raised $35 million in a Series B round that included investments from Lindsey Vonn, Jayson Tatum, and Candace Parker.[15]
On June 17, 2024, LOVB and Adidas signed an apparel partnership that would make Adidas the uniform supplier of LOVB Pro.[16] Two days later, LOVB announced a partnership with Spanx, the apparel brand's first sports partnership, to provide apparel and support league initiatives for LOVB's youth and professional circuits.[17]
LOVB Pro owned and operated each of the six franchises that played its inaugural 2025 season. In June 2025, LOVB announced its first sale of a franchise, with a group headed by David Blitzer, Peter Holt (investing through his San Antonio-based Spurs Sports & Entertainment), and Amy Griffin purchasing the LOVB Austin franchise as well as acquiring an equity stake in the league.[18] In August 2025, it was announced that LOVB Omaha would be acquired by a group headlined by former Nebraska Cornhuskers volleyball star Jordan Larson; it coincided with a team rebrand to LOVB Nebraska.[19]
Broadcasting
On May 9, 2024, LOVB and ESPN announced an international media rights agreement that would see 10 matches broadcast on ESPN networks and an additional 18 streamed on ESPN+ in the United States for the 2025 season. Alongside ESPN, Women's Sports Network, a free ad-supported streaming television (FAST) network, would air 16 matches, most of which were Saturday doubleheaders.[20] Another streaming service, DAZN, also aired 16 matches both in the U.S. and globally.[21]
Outside the U.S., 28 LOVB matches in 2025 aired on ESPN networks in Brazil, Canada, the Caribbean, Mexico, Dominican Republic, Central America, Spanish-speaking South America, Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands. SPOTV also aired all 60 LOVB matches to audiences in Southeast Asia.[21]
For the 2026 season, ESPN returned as a broadcaster for 28 matches. In addition, LOVB reached an agreement with USA Network to broadcast Wednesday night matches, the LOVB Playoffs and the LOVB Championships. The remaining matches 22 matches will stream on FAST network Victory+.[22]
See also
- Volleyball in the United States
- National Volleyball Association
- Athletes Unlimited Volleyball
- Pro Volleyball Federation
- Major League Volleyball
References
- ^ "USA Volleyball and League One Volleyball Announce Partnership". USA Volleyball. Retrieved May 9, 2024.
- ^ Pimental, Joseph (March 11, 2023). "Are you ready for some volleyball? A new women's pro league hopes the answer is yes". Spectrum News.
- ^ Chappell, Bill (October 19, 2021). "Are you ready for some volleyball? A new women's pro league hopes the answer is yes". NPR.
- ^ a b "LOVB, eyeing 2024 pro volleyball season, announces Atlanta and Houston locations". Volleyballmag.com. March 9, 2023. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
- ^ Jacques, Mike; Nijhawan, Shaina (April 27, 2023). "Professional volleyball coming to Madison". WMTV-TV. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
- ^ Page, Jared (June 5, 2023). "LOVB invites Salt Lake City to host new pro women's volleyball team". Gephardt Daily. Retrieved August 3, 2024.
- ^ Krueger, Adam (August 16, 2023). "Omaha named new team in League One Volleyball". KMTV-TV. Retrieved August 3, 2024.
- ^ Jacobs, Kylie (December 4, 2023). "LOVB Madison to open first pro facility; announce first pro player". WMTV-TV. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
- ^ Jones, Kimberley (December 11, 2023). "A New Women's Pro Volleyball League Is Launching in Austin in 2024". The Austin Chronicle. Retrieved August 3, 2024.
- ^ a b Feinswog, Lee (July 18, 2024). "League One Volleyball announces 2025 pro venues, six-team schedule". Volleyballmag.com. Retrieved July 25, 2024.
- ^ Henderson, Cydney (October 15, 2025). "LOVB announces Los Angeles expansion team founded by Alexis Ohanian". USA Today. Retrieved October 24, 2025.
- ^ "League One Volleyball Brings Pro Volleyball to Minnesota Debuting in 2027". November 14, 2025.
- ^ "LOVB Brings Pro Team to San Francisco With Women-Led Ownership Group of Sports Icons and Entrepreneurs". December 18, 2025.
- ^ Smith, Chris (September 28, 2022). "League One Volleyball looks to accelerate growth after Series A funding round". Sports Business Journal. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
- ^ Feldman, Jacob (September 27, 2023). "League One Volleyball Raises $35 Million to Serve Growing Fanbase". Sportico.com. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
- ^ Pelit, Asli (June 17, 2024). "Adidas, League One Volleyball Ink Multiyear Partnership". Sportico.com. Retrieved August 3, 2024.
- ^ Hendriksz, Vivian (June 19, 2024). "Spanx partners with League One Volleyball to support young volleyball players". FashionUnited. Retrieved August 3, 2024.
- ^ Sim, Josh (June 20, 2025). "David Blitzer and Spurs' Peter Holt among LOVB volleyball league's first team owners". SportsPro. Retrieved August 8, 2025.
- ^ Patterson, Mike (August 6, 2025). "Jordan Larson, Kirsten Bernthal Booth lead rebrand of Nebraska's pro volleyball team". Omaha World-Herald. Omaha, NE. Retrieved August 8, 2025.
- ^ Cahillane, Mollie (May 9, 2024). "League One Volleyball signs media deal with ESPN ahead of debut". Sports Business Journal. Retrieved May 9, 2024.
- ^ a b "LOVB Announces Season Broadcast and Streaming Schedule for Inaugural Pro Season". LOVB. December 10, 2024. Retrieved January 15, 2024.
- ^ "League One Volleyball Announces Broadcast and Streaming Schedule Plus Announcer Line-Up for 2026 Pro Season". LOVB. December 26, 2025. Retrieved January 4, 2026.
External links
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