AVC Men's Volleyball Champions League
Asian men's club volleyball tournament
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The AVC Men's Volleyball Champions League is an annual continental club volleyball competition organised by the Asian Volleyball Confederation (AVC), and contested by Asia and Oceania's top-division volleyball clubs. It is the most prestigious club competition in Asia and Oceanian volleyball, played by the national league champions (and, for some nations, one or more runners-up) of their national federations.
- AVC Cup Men's Club Tournament (1999–2003)
- Asian Men's Club Volleyball Championship (2004–2024)
| Most recent season or competition: 2026 AVC Men's Volleyball Champions League | |
| |
| Formerly |
|
|---|---|
| Sport | volleyball |
| Founded | 1999 |
| First season | 1999 |
| Organizing body | AVC |
| No. of teams | 12 |
| Continents | Asia and Oceania |
Most recent champion |  Jakarta Bhayangkara Presisi (2026) |
| Most titles |  Paykan Tehran(8 titles) |
| Qualification | FIVB Men's Club World Championship |
| Streaming partner | Volleyball TV |
| Website | asianvolleyball |
Introduced in 1999 as the AVC Cup Men's Club Tournament, the competition rebranded as Asian Men's Club Volleyball Championship in 2004. It was rebranded again in 2025 to its current name.
Despite its name implying a league format, the competition is structured as a tournament featuring 12 elite clubs from across Asia and Oceania. The champion and runner-up of the competition earn qualification for the prestigious FIVB Men's Volleyball Club World Championship.[1]
The most successful club in the competition is Paykan Tehran with a total of eight titles. Iran's teams have been dominating the tournament by winning 17 times, the most for any nation. The current Asian club champions are Jakarta Bhayangkara Presisi from Indonesia, who defeated Foolad Sirjan Iranian from Iran (3–0) in the 2026 final.
History
The competition began in 1999 when the Asian Volleyball Confederation (AVC) announced the establishment of the first official men's and women's club championships, to be held under its supervision.[2][3] The tournament was initially known as the AVC Cup Men's Club Volleyball Tournament for its first four editions, before being renamed the Asian Men's Club Volleyball Championship in 2004.
The inaugural edition was played in a round-robin format. From 2000 to 2004, the competition adopted a two-round system: a preliminary round (featuring a pool round, from which the top four teams advanced) followed by a final round (consisting of semi-finals and a final). In 2005, the tournament reverted to a round-robin format. Between 2006 and 2009, it once again featured two rounds: preliminary and final rounds. Currently, the tournament follows a similar format to the 2006–2009 editions, but the final stage now includes quarter-finals, semi-finals, and a final.
Starting with the 2025 edition, the tournament will be rebranded as the AVC Men's Volleyball Champions League.[4][5]
Competition formula
Qualification
The tournament features a maximum of 12 participating teams, with the host country automatically qualifying. The host nation is permitted to field up to two teams in the competition.[4][6] Other teams will qualify through the designated qualification pathway established for that particular year.
For the 2025 edition, all remaining participating teams were granted entry by invitation only.[7]
Final tournament
The tournament consists of two rounds: a preliminary round (pool phase) and a final round (direct elimination phase). During the preliminary round, the 12 qualified teams are divided into four pools—labeled A through D—each containing three teams. Within each pool, teams compete in a round-robin format, with each team playing against the other two teams once. Following the pool phase, the top two teams from each pool advance to the final round, which includes the quarter-finals, semi-finals, and the final match.[7][8]
Prize money
The teams advancing to the semifinals of this competition will be awarded a total prize of US$50,000 by the Asian Volleyball Confederation (AVC).[7][8] This marks the first time that a prize has been introduced in an AVC event in 2025.
- Champions: US$20,000
- Runners-up: US$15,000
- Third place: US$10,000
- Fourth place: US$5,000
Results
Performances by club
Performances by country
| Country | Champions | Runners-up | Third place | Years champions | Years runners-up | Years third place |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Iran |
17 | 6 | 4 | 2002, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2024 |
2000, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2024, 2026 |
1999, 2012, 2015, 2022 |
 Qatar |
2 | 6 | 5 | 2012, 2025 | 2010, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2021 |
2007, 2009, 2017, 2019, 2023 |
 South Korea |
2 | 1 | 0 | 2000, 2001 | 1999 | — |
 Japan |
1 | 5 | 5 | 2023 | 2001, 2017, 2019, 2022, 2025 | 2008, 2010, 2016, 2025, 2026 |
 Kazakhstan |
1 | 4 | 3 | 2005 | 2006, 2008, 2011, 2018 | 2002, 2004, 2021 |
 China |
1 | 1 | 5 | 1999 | 2012 | 2000, 2001, 2005, 2011, 2014 |
| Indonesia |
1 | 1 | 2 | 2026 | 2023 | 2006, 2024 |
 Chinese Taipei |
1 | 0 | 1 | 2015 | — | 2013 |
 Saudi Arabia |
0 | 2 | 0 | — | 2007, 2009 | — |
 Pakistan |
0 | 0 | 1 | — | — | 2018 |
Performances by zonal association
Hosts
List of hosts by number of championships hosted.
| Times hosted | Nations | Year(s) |
|---|---|---|
| 5 | Iran | 2002, 2004, 2013, 2022, 2024 |
| 4 | China | 1999, 2001, 2010, 2012 |
| 2 |  Thailand | 2000, 2021 |
 Vietnam | 2006, 2017 | |
 Bahrain | 2007, 2023 | |
 Taiwan | 2015, 2019 | |
 Myanmar | 2016, 2018 | |
| Indonesia | 2011, 2026 | |
| 1 | Pakistan | 2005 |
| Kazakhstan | 2008 | |
 United Arab Emirates | 2009 | |
 Philippines | 2014 | |
| Japan | 2025 | |
Medals
As of 2026 AVC Men's Volleyball Champions League.
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Iran | 17 | 6 | 4 | 27 |
| 2 | Qatar | 2 | 6 | 5 | 13 |
| 3 | South Korea | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| 4 | Japan | 1 | 5 | 5 | 11 |
| 5 | Kazakhstan | 1 | 4 | 3 | 8 |
| 6 | China | 1 | 1 | 5 | 7 |
| 7 | Indonesia | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| 8 | Chinese Taipei | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 9 | Saudi Arabia | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| 10 | Pakistan | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Totals (10 entries) | 26 | 26 | 26 | 78 | |
MVP by edition
- 1999 –
Zhang Xiang (CHN) (Sichuan Fulan) - 2000 –
Kim Se-jin (KOR) (Samsung Fire) - 2001 – Shin Jin-sik (KOR) (Samsung Fire)
- 2002 –
Behnam Mahmoudi (IRI) (Paykan Tehran) - 2003 – tournament canceled
- 2004 – Mohammad Torkashvand (IRI) (Sanam Tehran)
- 2005 – not awarded
- 2006 – Mohammad Soleimani (IRI) (Paykan Tehran)
- 2007 – Mohammad Soleimani (IRI) (Paykan Tehran)
- 2008 –
Marat Imangaliyev (KAZ) (Rahat Almaty) - 2009 –
Hicham Guemmadi (ALG) (Al Nasr) - 2010 – Peyman Akbari (IRI) (Paykan Tehran)
- 2011 – Hamzeh Zarini (IRI) (Paykan Tehran)
- 2012 –
Salvador Hidalgo (CUB) (Al Arabi) - 2013 – Hamzeh Zarini (IRI) (Kalleh Mazandaran)
- 2014 – Shahram Mahmoudi (IRI) (Matin Varamin)
- 2015 –
Huang Pei-hung (TPE) (Taichung Bank) - 2016 – Shahram Mahmoudi (IRI) (Sarmayeh Bank Tehran)
- 2017 – Shahram Mahmoudi (IRI) (Sarmayeh Bank Tehran)
- 2018 – Hamzeh Zarini (IRI) (Khatam Ardakan)
- 2019 – Alireza Jalali (IRI) (Shahrdari Varamin)
- 2020 – tournament canceled
- 2021 – Saber Kazemi (IRI) (Foolad Sirjan Iranian)
- 2022 – Saeid Marouf (IRI) (Paykan Tehran)
- 2023 –
Dmitry Muserskiy (RUS) (Suntory Sunbirds) - 2024 – Ali Hajipour (IRI) (Foolad Sirjan Iranian)
- 2025 –
Nimir Abdel-Aziz (NED) (Al-Rayyan Sports Club) - 2026 –
Noumory Keita (MLI) (Jakarta Bhayangkara Presisi)
