TSVL is committed to increasing representation from underrepresented groups in the league.

TSVL’s Research and Member Survey (year) data indicates that Intermediate Division team formations rely heavily on referrals and word of mouth. This advantages larger communities while often creating barriers for underrepresented groups in forming teams.

TSVL continues its Equity Priority Groups (EPG) initiative for the increased recruitment and retention of members from underrepresented groups in the league.

EPG includes:

1. Gender minorities – Women, Two-Spirit, Non-Binary, transgender players
2. The following Racial/ethnic minorities – African, Black/African Canadian, Central Asian, Caribbean, Indigenous, Middle Eastern, Pacific Islands, South Asian

Each group currently makes up less than 5% of the division.

• Rosters: 6–10 players; managed by the team, not the league.
• Court Captain: Only player who may speak with the 1st referee or opposing captain. Responsible for team conduct.
• Libero: Allowed if declared before the match.
• Substitutions: Unlimited, but must follow FIVB rules (player can only be replaced by the same player they substituted for).
• Exceptional Subs: Allowed for injury/illness if no legal sub is possible.
• Attendance:
  • 6+ players → the team decides who plays.
  • 4–5 players → allowed with ghosts (missing player spots in rotation; ghosts cause automatic loss of serve with no point to opponent).
• Late arrivals may join play at any time.
• Timeouts: 2 per game (30 sec each), not allowed in the last 2 minutes.

Minimum 7 Players on Roster by Mid-Season.

**NEW in Fall 2026: Removal of Mandatory 7th player rule

Teams must have a minimum of 6 players on their roster to register and throughout the season, absences and subs notwithstanding.

Registration Windows: August, December, April (check https://www.tsvl.org/registration/ for exact dates).

ALL PLAYERS MUST REGISTER. Teams are ranked by the timestamp of their 6th eligible registered player.

EPG Team Allocation 

• 6 team spots reserved for eligible EPG teams.
• Teams must have at least 3 EPG players on their official roster.
• Self-identification is optional, confidential, and must be consistent with lived experience.
• TSVL respects individual’s self-identification and lived experience, expecting that this initiative will serve the EPG community.
• Captains must email both the Comp Coordinator, copying  VP Operations, BEFORE registration to indicate their team’s eligibility and request an EPG allocation.
• If after the initial timestamp registration there are more than 6 EPG teams remaining outside the first 40 teams registered, then the earliest 6 EPG teams by the 6th eligible player registration timestamp get the spots; the rest join the lottery for drawing of the remaining spots.
• If, after the initial 40 timestamped teams, fewer than 6 EPG teams qualify, the remaining spots would be reallocated to other teams as determined by lottery.

Division Coordinator Policy (DCP)

Division Coordinators are granted one team spot in their respective division to support them to successfully manage their respective divisions throughout the season. This team spot is allocated from the initial 40 timestamped/priority ranking spots.

Coordinators and their teammates must register within the first 24 hours of their division’s registration to be eligible.

Priority Ranking (Team Spots)

In the event TSVL cannot accommodate all registered teams, teams will be given spots in the division based on these rankings. The priority ranking is divided into 4 groups. 

If the division is oversubscribed, team spots are assigned in this order:

Priority 1:
≥6 players, ≥4 Returning Players* from any COMP team in Winter 2026 or Spring 2026.

or

≥6 players, ≥4 Returning Players* from the SAME INTERMEDIATE TEAM in Winter 2026 or Spring 2026. Please notify comp@tsvl.org and intermediate@tsvl.org of your intention to register for Comp.

A maximum of 4 Winter 2026/Spring 2026 Intermediate Division teams can have Priority 1 status in the Fall 2026 Competitive Division (as determined by timestamping)

Priority 2:
≥6 players, all Returning Players from any division in Winter 2026 or Spring 2026.

Priority 3:
≥6 players, 1–3 Returning Players from Winter 2026 or Spring 2026

Priority 4:
≥6 players, without any  Returning Players from any Winter 2026 or Spring 2026 division. 

*Returning Player: 

1. On a roster in Winter 2026 or Spring 2026. 
2. Subs count only if officially added to a roster.

How Priority Rankings Work

• Within each priority group, teams are ranked by the timestamp of their 6th eligible registered player.
• If a later player augments the team’s priority rank, the timestamp is updated to that player’s registration time.
• Priority ranks are only assigned in the first 24 hours of registration. After that, spots are first-come, first-served.
• Rankings are locked 24 hours after registration opens and won’t change with additional players.

Tiebreaker within priorities: Earliest timestamp of the 6th registered player.

In an effort to alleviate the “fastest to register” advantage, TSVL continues to allocate a portion of the Competitive teams through Lottery System:

1. First 40 teams by timestamp will make it into the division (including the division coordinator, should they be on a registered team).
2. Up to 6 EPG teams (not already in top 40) fill spots 41–46.
3. Remaining available spots as permits allow are filled via lottery. 

Note: Teams must register within the first 24 hours to be eligible. +24 hours registration teams are waitlisted behind any timestamped/lottery teams.

Hypothetical Scenario for clarity:

• 14 courts available, making room for 56 teams;
• 6 EPG teams outside the first 34 team, if applied, get spots 41-46 (timestamped if more than 6 EPG); 

The remaining 9 spots (47-56) go to the first 9 teams drawn in the lottery.

Teams: ~52+

Weeks of play: 12 (barring any cancellations of permits that would be out of our control) 

Playoffs: One night of Playoffs - The playoff format will be determined closer to the end of the season, based on permit availability.

Format: Each week, teams play 28-minute matches against the three other teams in their pool. Each match has:

• Game 1: To 25 points (win by 2, cap at 27).
• Game 2: Until time runs out (no cap).

Scoring:

• Win Game 1 → 3 pts
• Win Game 2 → 2 pts (or 3 pts if to 25)
• Loss → 1 pt
• Default → 0 pts (Game 1 score: 25-0; Game 2 score: 15-0)

No ties: if tied at the end, play one extra point.

If Game 1 isn’t finished at 28 min, the 1st referee signals “last point” to declare a winner, then a short Game 2 (3 points).

Pools: Pools: The first 2 weeks are ranking weeks where teams do not accumulate ranking points, to allow for adjustment of initial placements.

Re-Ranking: At night’s end, teams are re-ranked by pool points. Ties are broken by head-to-head total points from both Games. The top and bottom seeds of each pool are then sent up and down a pool respectively for the next week of play (i.e. the top seed of F pool at the end of the night will play as E4 the following week).

This keeps matches between teams of similar skill levels.

Points towards the overall divisional standings are then awarded to each team based on their new pool ranking (see Standings link).

Defaults: A team defaults Game 1 if fewer than 4 players are ready at start time (nets ready) up to 5-minutes (add 5-min more grace time for first match of night).  Game 2 must be played with a minimum of 3 points (at the end of the scheduled time if Set 1 is still not done, call last serve and immediately play a best-of-3-points Game 2).

For Competitive (and ID) teams seeking players and free agents seeking a team:

Date: Tuesday, Sep 15, 2026 at 6:45 pm.
Loc: Rosedale Heights School Of The Arts - 711 Bloor St E, Toronto, ON M4W 1J4

For the attention of the seeking teams: 

Please  attend only if you are looking to recruit a player(s) or only send 1 or 2 representatives from your team to scope out the recruits.

For individual players who missed this night or being recruited, reach out to the COMP Coordinator at comp@tsvl.org

ROSTER FREEZE

• Teams may not remove players from their roster until the end of the 4th week of the respective play season.
• They may add players at any point to their roster, to a maximum of 10.

PLAYOFFS ROSTER DEADLINE

Eligibility Criteria for Playoffs:

Players must have registered to their roster by 6:30 p.m by the 3rd last night of play of the respective play.

The ghost rule applies if the team only has 4 or 5 players.  The "ghost" position must be identified to the ref.  Teams playing with a ghost player will lose serve and not a point when the ghost player rotates into the serving position.

*NEW FALL 2026: When the ghost player rotates into the serving position, the opposing team will automatically be awarded a point and the team with the ghost will lose serve.

If a team only has 3 players or does not show up, the match will be defaulted, teams that default will gain points as if they lost the match (i.e. 1 point). The team that defaulted will still lose a defaulted set by a score of 25-0.

*NEW FALL 2026:

If the ball touches the ceiling, basketball nets, rafters, beams, or any other ceiling infrastructure on the first or second team contact, the ball can still be played as long as it is within the area of the volleyball court. However, if it bounces or ricochets more than once, it is a fault.

If the ball touches any ceiling infrastructure outside the area of the volleyball court, it is a fault. If the ball rebounds directly into the opponent’s court after hitting the ceiling, it is also a fault.

Season Map Fall '26 

Team Rosters Fall '26

Team Standings and Pools Fall '26

Score-Sheets to be printed and brought to gym just by the captain of team #3 each week.