NCAA Volleyball Tournament 2026: Round Dates and the Dec. 17-20 Finals in San Antonio

The 2026 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) women’s volleyball national semifinals are Thursday, Dec. 17 and the national championship game is Sunday, Dec. 20 at the Alamodome in San Antonio, according to ESPN Press Room. Below: the round-by-round dates computed from the NCAA’s own formula, the Alamodome’s listed times in four U.S. zones, and a one-page printable.

The selection show date, time and channel are not yet announced. Neither are the first-serve times, the regional host sites or the seeds. This story lists only what the NCAA, ESPN, the Alamodome and San Antonio Sports have published, and marks every computed day as computed.

NCAA volleyball tournament 2026 round dates

The NCAA’s bid specifications set a date formula for each round. The first and second rounds are played “First Thursday-Friday or Friday-Saturday following Thanksgiving,” the regionals the “Weekend following First/Second Rounds (Friday-Saturday),” and the semifinals and finals on “Thursday and Saturday after regionals,” with “2026-27 December 17-19 or 20” as the dates. Thanksgiving is Thursday, Nov. 26, 2026 (see when is Thanksgiving). The table applies that formula; the days for the first and second rounds and the regionals are our computation, not an NCAA announcement.

Round	Sites	Days	Source
First and second rounds	16 campus sites	Thu.-Fri., Dec. 3-4 or Fri.-Sat., Dec. 4-5 (computed)	NCAA bid specifications
Regionals	4 sites	Fri.-Sat., Dec. 11-12 (computed)	NCAA bid specifications
National semifinals (the final four)	Alamodome, San Antonio	Thu., Dec. 17	ESPN Press Room
National championship game	Alamodome, San Antonio	Sun., Dec. 20	ESPN Press Room

The exact days for each campus site come with the bracket, which is not yet published. Fans call the semifinal round the Final Four; the NCAA and ESPN call them the national semifinals.

What time are the volleyball semifinals and final in San Antonio?

The Alamodome’s event page lists “Dec 17 Time: 5:30PM” and “Dec 20 Time: 2:30PM.” The page does not call these first-serve times, and the NCAA has not yet posted first-serve times, so treat them as the venue’s listed event times. We converted them from Central Time (CT).

Day	Alamodome listed event time (CT)	Eastern Time (ET)	Mountain Time (MT)	Pacific Time (PT)
Thu., Dec. 17, national semifinals	5:30 p.m.	6:30 p.m.	4:30 p.m.	3:30 p.m.
Sun., Dec. 20, national championship game	2:30 p.m.	3:30 p.m.	1:30 p.m.	12:30 p.m.

Where is the 2026 NCAA volleyball championship and how do tickets work?

ESPN Press Room says “This season’s championship will take place at the San Antonio Alamodome.” San Antonio Sports says the event is hosted by the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) and San Antonio Sports, with the action on December 17 and 20. The Alamodome says tickets are on sale and are available through ncaatickets.com or ticketmaster.com. Its box office hours are to be announced.

Where can I watch the NCAA volleyball tournament in 2026?

ESPN Press Room says “The 2026 season will conclude with the 2026 NCAA Women’s Volleyball Tournament, entirely on ESPN.” The release does not name the channel for each match, so check ESPN’s listings once the bracket is out.

What happened in the 2025 NCAA volleyball final?

In 2025, Texas A&M beat Kentucky 3-0 in the final on Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025, at T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Missouri, according to Sports Illustrated (SI) and the Bryan, Texas, television station (KBTX), which both reported the result that night. SI headlined it Texas A&M’s first national title in program history. That was last year’s event; the 2026 final is in San Antonio.

Is there a printable NCAA volleyball schedule for 2026?

Yes. The one-page watch guide lists the Dec. 17 national semifinals and the Dec. 20 championship game with the Alamodome’s listed times in four U.S. zones, and prints the first and second rounds, regionals, selection show and first-serve times as not yet confirmed. Keep it beside the December 2026 printable calendar or a printable weekly calendar. For the other college postseason, see the college football bowl schedule; for the earlier college basketball tournaments, see Feast Week 2026. Dates and times can change; check ncaa.com and ESPN listings.