Help

Sign up and login

On VolleyPlay.Club you don't need to come up with a password — you sign in through familiar services: Telegram, VKontakte, Yandex, Google, and for iPhone/iPad users — Apple. We don't get access to your messages or personal photos — only basic profile data (name, avatar).

On first login the service will ask for your first name, last name and phone number. Other details (city, level, date of birth, gender) are requested later — only when they are needed to sign up for a specific event.

What happens if you log in with a different provider? If you previously signed in via Telegram and now try VK, a new account will be created. To avoid this, link all your accounts in profile settings.

Linking additional accounts

Why link accounts? Linking lets you sign in through any of the providers and receive notifications in several channels at once — for example, both Telegram and VKontakte.

How to link: open your Profile → the "Accounts and linking" section → click the button for the provider you want and complete authorization.

How to unlink: in the same section click "Unlink" next to the provider. Make sure at least one account stays linked — otherwise you won't be able to log in.

Available providers: Telegram, VKontakte, Yandex, Google, Apple (iOS only).

Mobile app

VolleyPlay.Club is available as a native smartphone app. Download it from your device's app store:

• iPhone / iPad: App Store → "VolleyPlay"
• Android: RuStore → "VolleyPlay"

The app gives you several advantages over the browser:

• Push notifications — instant alerts about registrations, changes and reminders right on your phone screen, no messengers needed
• Face ID / Touch ID login — after the first login you can authenticate with biometrics, no button taps needed
• Quick access — home screen icon, works like a regular app

All website features are fully available in the app. You have a single account — data syncs automatically between the website and the app.

How to join an event

Go to the events page, pick a suitable one and click "Join". For some events you'll need to choose a position (setter, outside hitter, etc.).

If all spots are taken, you can join the waitlist. When a spot opens up the system will register you automatically — a notification will arrive via your connected messenger or push.

Private events are only accessible via an invite link from the organizer.

If an event takes place outdoors, the card and the event page show a weather forecast for the game time. The forecast is available no more than 5 days ahead.

Waitlist

If an event has no free spots, you can join the waitlist. As soon as someone cancels their registration, the system automatically adds you to the roster — no separate confirmation needed.

Waitlist priority: Premium players are processed first, then the queue order (by join date). The organizer can manually change the queue order.

If an event has a gender restriction (e.g. "women register first"), the system takes the gender window into account when picking the next participant.

You can leave the waitlist at any time — the "Leave the queue" button on the event page.

Tournaments and teams

In tournaments, registration happens by teams (2×2, 4×4 and other formats). To take part:

• Create a team on the tournament page → give it a name and invite partners
• Or accept an invite from a team captain — a notification will arrive via messenger
• The team submits its application once it has enough players

You can save a permanent team lineup in your profile → "My teams" — so you don't have to assemble it again for every tournament.

Some tournaments use individual registration — players sign up by position, and the organizer forms the teams.

Court booking

If a venue is connected to the club module, its page shows a "🏐 Book a court" button — you can book a court directly, without tying it to someone else's event. Choose a direction (classic/beach), a court, and a date/time from the available slots.

Payment and cancellation: if the club has online payment enabled, the booking is reserved for 30 minutes — pay by card (YooKassa) within that window, or the slot is released automatically. If the club accepts payment on site, the booking waits for the club's confirmation. Refund rules on cancellation (full refund before a deadline, or no refund) are set by the club itself — they are shown when you cancel a booking.

All your court bookings — active ones and history — are in the "Court bookings" section of the profile menu (it appears after your first booking). Event sign-ups are in "My bookings".

Activity tracking

You can record activity data during a game or training session — the "Activity" section in your profile. Several data sources are supported:

• Apple Watch — heart rate, jump count and jump height, steps, calories (calculated from heart rate, weight and age)
• BLE heart-rate sensor — any compatible chest heart-rate monitor connects directly via Bluetooth
• Import from Health / Health Connect — data from Xiaomi, Garmin, Polar, Samsung and other devices synced with Apple Health or Health Connect on Android

After finishing a recording, the service shows a session summary and a jump-height trend compared to your recent games. The activity widget is available on the iOS and Android home screen.

Notifications

The service sends notifications to your connected channels: Telegram, VKontakte, MAX, and push notifications in the mobile app. You get notified about registrations, cancellations, event changes, match results and reminders before games.

To receive Telegram notifications, message our bot and tap "Start". For VKontakte — same via the VK bot. For push notifications — download the mobile app and allow notifications on first launch.

Notification settings (which types and which channels) are in your profile.

To hear about new games in your city, turn on the "Notify me about new events in my city" switch in your profile, in the "Notifications and mailings" section.

Payment

Some events require prepayment. The payment method is set by the organizer — it can be YooKassa (online), T-Bank or Sberbank (via link).

After transferring the money, click "I paid" — the organizer will get a notification and confirm your registration. With YooKassa, confirmation happens automatically.

Some organizers use subscriptions — if you have an active subscription, the event fee is charged automatically when you register. Manage your subscriptions in the "My subscriptions" section of the profile.

If an organizer has enabled cash payment tracking, after the event they mark on their side who actually paid on site. The event page does not show a cash payment status before that — you will only find out from a notification. If you are marked as unpaid, you will get a reminder to pay within 12 hours; if the organizer does not confirm your payment within that time, registering for any of that organizer's future events will be blocked until they mark your payment as received.

Cancelling a registration

You can cancel a registration on the event page — click "Cancel registration". The organizer can set a deadline until which self-cancellation is possible.

If the self-cancellation window has passed, contact the organizer directly.

After you cancel, the system automatically offers the spot to the first suitable participant on the waitlist.

Profile and skill level

In your profile, set your skill level for classic and beach volleyball — this helps organizers configure the admission filter for events.

Other players can rate your level — the final score is the average of all votes.

You can also add a photo, set your position, preferred zones (for beach), configure the privacy of your contact details, and view your rating history in the profile.

Profile completeness affects access to registration: some events require a birth date, gender or skill level — the system will ask you to fill in the missing data when you try to register.

Player rating

The service uses the OpenSkill rating system — an algorithm similar to the ones used in online games. It evaluates not just the number of wins, but also the strength of your opponents. The rating updates automatically after every completed match.

Conservative Rating (CR) — the public number shown in the table. Formula: CR = μ − 3σ, where μ is the expected skill level and σ is the uncertainty. The more matches played, the more accurate the rating.

• A new player starts at CR ≈ 0 and grows as they play in tournaments
• Ratings are calculated separately for beach and classic volleyball
• Alongside OpenSkill, a classic Elo rating is also tracked — based on tournament results

View the rating table on the rating page. Your profile shows your rating history, regular partners and stats against opponents. A detailed explanation of the algorithm is on the rating info page.

Games with statistics

At some regular games the organizer records matches and scores. For such events the page shows a "Results and statistics" button: the evening podium, player table, top scorers and the course of every match. Results for a series of events over a period are also available.

If an event is marked "Rated", its matches count toward the overall player rating. Regular games with statistics do not affect the rating.

Premium subscription

Premium is a subscription for those who play a lot and do not want to miss spots. A trial (7 days free), a 6-month plan and a yearly plan are available. Current prices are on the Premium page.

• Waitlist priority — a freed-up spot goes to you before regular players in the queue
• Auto sign-up — the system signs you up for an event series as soon as registration opens. Up to 5 series; available for individual sign-up (not for team tournaments). Set it up in Premium settings: find an event by number or venue name and choose a position
• Following players — the "Following sign-ups" section: add friends and find out when they sign up for games. A player can hide from followers in their settings
• Personal notifications about new games at your level in the chosen city and a weekly digest

Confirming an auto sign-up: after an automatic sign-up you must confirm your attendance within 12 hours — otherwise the sign-up is cancelled and the next person in the queue gets the spot. If the event is paid, payment is handled separately as usual. Subscription payment works like other payments: press "I paid" and an admin will confirm.

When the subscription ends, auto sign-ups and following are switched off. A reminder is sent 30 and 7 days before the end (for long plans).

How to become an organizer

By default, all users have the "Player" role. To be able to create events, submit a request in your profile under "I want to become an organizer".

Briefly describe in the comment what you plan to organize: regular games, training sessions, tournaments, a league. An admin will review the request and activate the organizer role. The "Create event" menu item for a regular user leads to exactly this request.

How to create an event

Once you have the organizer role, a "Create event" button appears in the menu. The creation wizard has three steps:

• Step 1 — Type: direction (classic / beach), format (game, training, tournament, promoted), admission level, coach
• Step 2 — Time and place: date, time, venue, timezone, recurrence, registration settings
• Step 3 — Details: payment, privacy, description, cover image

An event can be made recurring — for example, every Friday. The system automatically generates future dates up to 90 days ahead. Each occurrence of the series can be edited independently — override the venue, description, or registration settings for a specific date.

Extra options: "Outdoors" — the event gets a weather forecast; "Game with statistics" — see the separate section; "Coach — me" — you are listed as the coach (a coach is required for training formats). Up to 10 photos can be added to an event.

Managing participants

On the event page, go to the "Participants" section. There you can:

• Manually add a player by name or nickname
• Change a participant's position
• Confirm or cancel a registration
• Export the participant list to PDF or a text file
• Manage the waitlist — add players manually, change the queue order

If you have a staff team, they can also manage participants for your events.

Assistants (staff)

Assistants manage your events together with you. Open "My assistants" in the menu: enter a user's first or last name (at least 2 characters), pick them from the list and click "Assign as assistant". Remove an assistant with the "Remove" button.

All assistant actions are recorded — see them in the "Action log" section.

Waitlist

The waitlist on game events works automatically: as soon as a participant cancels, the system immediately finds the next suitable candidate in the queue and registers them without extra confirmation.

Priority: Premium players → then queue order (sort_order, then date). As the organizer, you can manually reorder the queue — the ↑↓ buttons in the "Waiting" section.

Gender restrictions are taken into account during auto-booking: if the event has an open "window" for the restricted gender, participants of the other gender don't block access to free spots.

You can also add a player to the waitlist manually from the participant management panel.

Tournaments

For the "Tournament" format there is a dedicated management page — the "Tournament bracket". The process:

• Team sign-up — players register as teams (or you add them manually). Incomplete teams are shown separately ("looking for a partner")
• Draw — assign teams to groups manually or click "Random draw". Available formats: groups + playoffs (including final groups by level), round robin, single elimination, double elimination, Swiss system; for beach also "King of the Court" and the individual "King of the Beach"
• Matches — enter the score right on the page. The standings table, cross-table and bracket update automatically
• Tiebreak — if scores are tied, the system creates a tiebreaker match or offers to resolve the tie by draw

A link to the public tournament page is available to participants — it shows groups, matches, the bracket and detailed stats (match heroes, team comparison, player tables) in real time.

Game with statistics

For a regular game (the "game" format, indoor or beach) you can record matches and scores without a tournament bracket. Turn on the "Game with statistics" checkbox when creating or editing the event. You can also mark it "Rated event" — then its matches go into the overall player rating.

• Game management — a button on the event page and in "My events". Here you also set the match format (1, 3 or 5 sets) and set points
• Line-ups — they change during the evening, so teams are formed for each match from the players who signed up: manually, "split by level" or "random". You can start a new match with the same line-ups
• Score — entered by sets or point by point, with personal player statistics

After the matches participants get a public results page: podium, player table and top scorers.

Leagues and seasons

For running regular competitions (leagues, championships), the platform uses a League → Season → Divisions → Rounds structure:

• League — a long-term structure (e.g. "Amateur Beach League"). Can include a feeder league for promotion/relegation
• Season — a time period (Spring, Summer, Fall). A season contains one or more divisions
• Rounds — individual events (tournaments) that make up the season

Promotion — at the end of a season, the system automatically promotes the best teams to the division above and relegates the bottom teams. Configurable per division: how many teams move up/down.

OpenSkill and Elo ratings are calculated separately per season, in addition to overall career stats.

Managing a sports venue

How to get the role: the sports venue (club) manager role is assigned by a platform admin — contact support and specify which venue you plan to manage.

Once the role is assigned, the location settings — directions (classic/beach), courts (indoor/outdoor) and working hours per weekday — are available on its page in the admin panel. If you simply need a new venue for an event, an organizer can create it themselves: the "+ Create location" button on step 2 of the wizard or on the event edit page. Such a location is visible to everyone at once, and an admin will fill in photos and description later.

Rental pricing is flexible: a base rate per court plus separate rules for prime time, weekdays and weekends — a more specific rule takes priority.

• Timeline — a visual view of court occupancy by day, including both platform events and manual bookings
• Bookings — the "Court bookings" panel: requests from players and organizers, confirm/reject, manually add a booking (including for guests without an account)
• Analytics — court occupancy and revenue (online/on-site) by period: month, quarter, half-year, year

Renters receive automatic notifications and booking reminders in their connected channels — Telegram, VKontakte, MAX.

Schools and coaches

Volleyball school — a school page with a description, training group schedule, subscriptions and a link to a venue; the school appears in the common catalog.

Coach — tick "I am a coach" in your profile: add a specialization, experience and an "About me". When creating an event, tick "Coach — me". Training participants can rate the coach, and ratings and reviews appear in the coach profile.

Payments and transactions

Set up your payment method in your profile → "Payment settings". Available methods: YooKassa (automatic confirmation), T-Bank and Sberbank (manual confirmation).

The full payment history is available in the "Transactions" section. There you can also confirm a link payment or issue a refund.

Virtual wallet — participants can top up their balance, and event fees will be charged automatically. You can manage the balance as an organizer in each participant's profile.

Subscriptions — create a subscription template (number of visits / duration), and players can purchase it. The system automatically deducts a visit when they register for your events.

Cash payment tracking — if you choose "Cash" as the payment method for a paid event, a "Payment tracking" checkbox appears at creation. Without it, cash payment is just "pay on site" with no control at all. Enable the checkbox if you want to check after the event who actually paid: go to "Transactions" → "Cash control" → the event, tick the players who paid, and save. Once the event has started, you will get a reminder to go and mark the payments.

Marking someone as paid immediately lifts any restriction they may have. Marking someone as unpaid after the event has started starts a 12-hour timer — if you do not confirm the payment within that time, the player's access to registering for ANY of your events is automatically restricted (indefinitely, until you mark the payment as received). If you never open the tracking page, the system marks everyone as paid automatically 24 hours after the event ends, with no restrictions at all; if you mark only some players, the rest get a reminder and the same 12-hour timer applies.

Notifications to participants

When an event is changed or cancelled, all participants automatically get a notification in their connected channels (Telegram, VKontakte, MAX, push in the app).

Automatic reminders also work — at a configurable time before the event starts.

Organizer channels — you can link a Telegram group, channel, or VKontakte chat so event announcements are published there automatically. Set this up in event management → "Notification channels".

CRM and analytics

Go to the "Organizer panel" in the organizer menu. The basic summary is available to every organizer — event occupancy and revenue. Detailed audience analytics is part of Organizer Pro:

• Overall participant stats — total, active, new in the last 30 days
• Top active players with a period filter (7 / 30 / 90 days / all time)
• Players at risk of churn — previously active but haven't registered in a while
• Breakdown by gender, level and position
• Frequently placed in reserve — potential candidates for a permanent spot

Also there — tournament analytics: stats on teams, matches and participant progress within your tournaments. Without a Pro subscription these two pages are closed.

Organizer Pro

Organizer Pro is an extended plan. There is a trial (7 days free), a 6-month plan and a yearly plan. Prices and sign-up are on the Organizer Pro page.

• Your own bot — announcements are sent by your personal bot in Telegram and MAX (the bot must be a channel administrator). When the subscription ends, announcements go back to the system bot
• Website widget — a list of your events via iFrame or a JS script. Without an active subscription the widget shows an unavailability message; the key and settings are kept
• Player and tournament analytics — audience, top players, churn, CSV/PDF export
• Priority support

How to pay: choose a plan on the Pro page → pay → press "I paid". An admin confirms the payment and the term is added to the remainder of your current subscription. A reminder is sent 30 and 7 days before the end (for long plans).

Your own app (White Label) — a separate mobile app under the name and colors of your club, school or league; players see only your events in it. It is not part of the subscription and is connected on request — message us on Telegram.

Promoted events

A promoted event is one without online registration through the service (e.g. a tournament with its own registration system). It's shown in the public catalog as an announcement.

Listing a promoted event is paid. After creating it you'll get a payment link. Once payment is confirmed, the event appears in the public list.

Didn't find an answer?

If you still have questions, write to us. We try to respond within one business day.