European Volleyball Confederation
CEV logo
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| Formation | 1963 |
|---|---|
| Type | Sports organization |
| Headquarters | Luxembourg, Luxembourg |
| Location | |
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Membership
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57 nations |
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President
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 Aleksandar Boricic |
| Website | http://www.cev.lu/ |
The European Volleyball Confederation (French: Confédération Européenne de Volleyball or CEV) is the continental governing body for the sport of volleyball in Europe. Its headquarters are located in Luxembourg, Luxembourg.
Although the CEV was formed on October 21, 1963, in Bucharest, Romania volleyball became popular in Europe many years before. The majority of the teams that attended the Congress which eventually lead to the foundation of the FIVB in 1947 were from this continent. In fact, the foundation itself is supposed to have been a move on the part of European national federations.
Volleyball was invented in the United States, but became for the first time an extremely popular sport in eastern Europe, after being introduced by American soldiers during World War I. By the middle of the century, it had already spread through the rest of the continent as well. Many techniques and tactics that are commonplace in modern volleyball have been allegedly introduced by European teams. Amongst others, it would be worthy of note here: blocking (Czechoslovakia, 1938); penetration of the setter, which eventually led to the development of the so-called 5-1 system (USSR, 1949); forearm pass (Czechoslovakia, 1958); and backrow attack (Poland, 1974).
The long and significant tradition of the sport in the continent may at least partially account for the administrative structure employed by the CEV, that rivals with the FIVB's in size and comprehensiveness. It is the biggest of all volleyball confederations, and the one that organizes the largest number of annual competitions and tournaments. As of 2005, its headquarters are located in Luxembourg, Luxembourg.
As the presiding entity over European volleyball federations, the CEV organizes continental competitions such as the prestigious European Championship (first edition, 1948), the CEV Cup and the European League. It participates in the organization of qualification tournaments for major events such as the Olympic Games or the men's and women's World Championships, and of international competitions hosted by one of its affiliated federations.
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