MOJI Officially Launches National University Volleyball League 2026: 36 Teams to Compete Across 3 Cities

Sports media platform MOJI has officially announced the launch of the National University Volleyball League (Liga Voli Mahasiswa - LVM) 2026, marking the first time a collegiate volleyball competition is organized under an integrated media-sports model in Indonesia. The tournament will gather 36 teams from 24 universities nationwide, evenly divided into 18 men's and 18 women's teams. Each university will field at least one team per division, creating a significant platform for the student volleyball community. The tournament will span 15 days, from October 7 to 31, 2026, with 60 matches distributed equally across three host cities: Yogyakarta, Surabaya, and Jakarta. Each city will host a separate competition phase with 20 matches over 5 days at 4 matches per day. The format in each city follows a pool structure, with 6 teams divided into 2 groups (A and B) of 3 teams each playing round-robin. After the group stage, teams will compete in placement matches to determine final rankings. Notably, the Jakarta schedule differs from the other two cities. While Yogyakarta and Surabaya start matches from 13:00 to 19:00 WIB, GOR Pertamina Simprug in Jakarta will begin earlier at 11:00, 13:00, 15:00, and 17:00. This adjustment reportedly reflects venue availability and scheduling constraints. Regarding prizes, the tournament is clearly positioned at the development and training level. Each division (men's and women's) will have "uanginaan" (coaching money) funds: champion receives 10 million rupiah (approximately 620 USD), runner-up 7.5 million rupiah, third place 5 million rupiah, and fourth place 2.5 million rupiah. The total prize fund per division is 25 million rupiah, approximately 3,100 USD for the entire tournament. Mr. Banardi Rachmad, Deputy Director of Programming at MOJI, stated that the tournament is part of Indonesia's volleyball ecosystem development strategy from the grassroots. "Campus is the new stage for volleyball - this is not just a slogan but our strategic direction. We want to create a platform where young talents can step into the spotlight and progress to the national team," Banardi shared. Year 2026 is positioned as a mid-Olympic cycle year (after Paris 2026, before Los Angeles 2028), considered an ideal window for building talent development pipelines. The results of the Indonesian women's volleyball team at the latest Asian Games - finishing sixth overall, beating Vietnam 3-0 but losing to Japan and Chinese Taipei - show Indonesia is at the top of Southeast Asia but cannot compete at the top tier of Asia. This tournament marks MOJI's bold move to play both the organizer and broadcaster role through the VIDIO platform. This is a vertical integration model in sports - where one media entity controls the entire value chain from event production to content distribution. Operationally, the preparation time for the tournament is relatively short. The draw ceremony took place on September 25, 2026, while the first match was less than two weeks later. This poses a particular challenge for a first-time tournament organized simultaneously in three cities. Yogyakarta's selection as the starting point is not coincidental. The city is renowned for its strong collegiate sports culture, serves as Indonesia's academic capital, and hosts many universities with excellent volleyball traditions such as UNESA and UNY. Surabaya and Jakarta will host subsequent phases, expanding the tournament's national reach. An important question is whether the relationship between the organizers and the Indonesian Volleyball Association (PBVSI) is still unclear. While the tournament is positioned as a national platform with ambitions to develop talent for the national team, the lack of information about coordination with the country's governing volleyball federation may lead to authority disputes in the future. Long-term, the most critical question is whether LVM will become an annual event or just a one-time trial. Many media-sponsored tournaments have struggled to maintain events after the first year due to viewership and profitability pressures. If the 2026 edition does not meet expectations, the talent development pipeline that MOJI committed to could be disrupted - completely contrary to the original goal. Following the success at Asian Games 2026 with the women's team finishing sixth, Indonesian sports audiences are expecting greater progress. LVM 2026, despite its modest prizes and academic scope, could play a crucial role in the national volleyball talent development system - if maintained and sustainably developed in subsequent seasons.