VOLLEYBALL : U.S. Is Among Eight Teams to Play in International League

SAN DIEGO —  The Federation Internationale de Volleyball will try to create a consistent interest in men’s volleyball with an international league offering $1 million in prize money to teams from eight countries, including the United States.

“It’s the first league of this type in sports,” said Doug Beal, director of the U.S. national team, at a press conference Tuesday. “The World League will supplant the World Cup and World Championships. Those events tend to only get tremendous attention in the country that is hosting it.”

Beal said that the league grew out of the frustration in trying to support and train a national team in non-Olympic years.

The FIVB will try to expand Olympic interest with the World League, which includes the U.S., France, Italy and Brazil in one division and the Soviet Union, Japan, China and the Netherlands in the other.

The U.S. will open the season against France April 29 at the Forum in Inglewood. The Americans will also play France on April 30, then Italy on May 5, and Brazil on June 2 at the Forum, and Italy on May 6 and Brazil on June 1 at the San Diego Sports Arena.

Teams will play division opponents four times--two at home and two away--and the top two teams in each division will meet in the playoffs at Osaka, Japan in July.

The FIVB also has an agreement to have all the league matches televised, home and away. The U.S. matches will be shown, delayed, by SportsChannel.

Individual match winners will receive $1,500 and the losers will get $1,000. The division champions will receive $80,000 and the second through fourth-place teams will get $60,000, $40,000 and $30,000, respectively.

The playoff champion will receive $140,000.