Ahmedabad, April 10 The Sports Authority of Gujarat hosted the "draw of lots" for the 2026 Asian Volleyball Confederation (AVC) Men's Cup in Ahmedabad on Friday, officials said.
The continental tournament is scheduled to be held from June 20 to 28 this year at the city's Veer Savarkar Sports Complex, they said.
The "draw of lots" is a standard and transparent procedure used in sports to organize teams into groups or to determine pairings.
"The Sports Authority of Gujarat hosted the draw of lots for the 2026 AVC Men's Cup in Ahmedabad. The tournament is a key event in the Asian Volleyball Confederation's 2026 international calendar and is expected to showcase high-quality continental competition while providing national teams with an important platform to compete at the highest level in Asia," an official release said.
SAG Assistant Director Nilofar Sheikh said that the tournament's objective goes beyond competition and aims to promote international friendship, cultural exchange, and regional cooperation.
Following the official draw of lots event, 12 teams, including India (host), Australia, Bahrain, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Korea, New Zealand, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Chinese Taipei, and Thailand, were divided into two pools for the tournament.
Ramon Tatum Suzara, a Filipino sports executive, who serves as the president of the Asian Volleyball Confederation, said that the event will give a boost to Ahmedabad as a sporting venue ahead of the 2030 Commonwealth Games.
"Starting with volleyball, which is one of the important games for the Commonwealth Games, will inspire the local people here. It will also give a boost to Ahmedabad ahead of hosting the 2030 Commonwealth Games," he said.