WCH 2018: Competition formula

The tournament will feature a total of 24 teams. It will see the participation of two teams from South America, four from Asia, 10 (including the hosts and defending champions Poland) from Europe, three from Africa and five from the North, Central America and Caribbean. As many as 94 matches will be played over the 16-day tournament.

In the first round, the 24 teams will be spread across four pools of six teams playing in a round-robin system. The top four teams from each pool will advance to the second round featuring four pools of four teams playing in four cities.

At the end of the second round matches, the rankings of the four pools will be drawn up taking into account the points scored by each team in the first and second rounds. The four pool-winning teams of the second stage will access the third stage, together with the top two of the second ranked teams.

The six teams competing in the third round will be divided into two three-team pools by a draw. After the matches played in a round-robin system, the top two in each pool will qualify for the semifinals and finals.

SOURCE: FIVB

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