How to Get a Professional Volleyball Contract
I’ve talked about what professional volleyball looks like and my journey getting there, but now I think it’s time to talk about actually getting a contract! (If you missed my other blogs talking about pro volleyball, check them out on the blog home page). There’s a lot to know and it can be a little tricky getting your first contract, but here are some tips to help simplify it.
1) Put Together a CV, Collect Your Best 2 Volleyball Matches, and Create a Highlight Video
First thing before you do anything else is to collect video of yourself playing and create a list of your experience, highlights, and awards and put it in a CV. There are many examples of CVs on the Internet, but the main idea is to put where you’ve played; what awards you’ve received, such as All-Conference, MVP, Highest Hitting Percentage, etc; and your height and contact information. Remember, you’re trying to sell yourself to get a contract, so don’t be shy. Next, make sure to have at least 2 full match films of your best games. Coaches want to see how you move, what your style of play is like, and how you would fit in on their team. It’s also important to create a highlight video, showcasing your strengths and highlights from the previous season. Think of it like a movie trailer, where this will be their first impression of you. It doesn’t need to be too long or fancy; mine are usually 5-10 minutes long and I just put them together on iMovie. Once you have your videos ready, upload them to Youtube or Vimeo and get ready to send them out.
Here’s my page on my agent’s website that I use as my CV now: https://elteevolley.com/player/sarah-schmid/
And here’s my highlight video from Switzerland:
2) Find an agent
It is possible to get a volleyball contract without an agent, but from my experience, it’s much easier with an agent because they’re actively looking for a spot for you, and they can help with all the legal and contract stuff. I’m with Joost Kooistra of eLTeeVolley. The best way to find an agent is to ask around and get recommendations from players who are already playing pro, because I’ve heard good but also a lot of challenging things about a lot of agents/agencies, so it’s best to hear firsthand from players. One great resource is to join the Facebook group Hashtag Volleyball Goals, where you can ask questions to a big group of pro volleyball players willing to help out. Once you find a potential agent, reach out in an email with your CV and videos. Pro tip: it helps if you name drop if you have a connection with someone. If you don’t find an agent this way, there are other ways of getting a contract such as combines, where you can play in a camp overseas and have coaches from different countries watching you.
3) Communicate Consistently With Your Agent
My college coach once told me that agents are lazy. Obviously my coach was kidding and overgeneralizing, but sometimes agents do need a little push. They usually have many players so you have to make sure you communicate with them often about how things are going, what countries they’re looking in, what leads they have, and to keep them on top of things. Be clear with what your goals are and where you would like to play. You won’t necessarily get your top choice, especially your first year, but it’s good to be on the same page with your agent. When he or she sends you an offer, again, ask around to get the reputation of the team/club/country and to see if it was a good offer. Your first year you may have to start out in a lower league and work your way up because countries often don’t know the level of the U.S. if you’re coming from a university here. You can start hearing from teams as early as April or as late as September sometimes. You can also find a contract in January, halfway through the season. This waiting period is definitely difficult, because you don’t really have control, but don’t get too upset if you don’t get any contract offers for a while because they can come pretty late.
4) Sign a Contract!
Once you’ve received an offer you like from your agent, asked around to make sure the reputation of the club is good, talked to the coach or someone from the club, and feel good about your decision, it’s time to sign the contract! First thing’s first- make sure the contract is in English!! This may seem totally obvious but it’s really not obvious to the European clubs. Make sure you understand everything in your contract, have multiple people look over it to make sure there’s nothing weird about it, and then if you feel ready and good about it, you can sign and send it back. My biggest tip would be that if the club promises you something that’s not in the contract, it will NOT happen. So make sure everything is in writing, make sure you have multiple people look over it, and if there are things you don’t like, you don’t have to sign! You can communicate through your agent with the club about anything you have questions about or things you want to see. Remember, at the end of the day this is a business contract, and you are in charge of your career! My biggest advice (from a lot of learning from experience) is don’t sign anything you don’t understand or are not completely comfortable with.
I hope this was helpful! Trust me, there are soooo many people willing to help you in the pro volleyball player community, so if you have questions about agents or teams or anything at all, do some research to find pro players and reach out! Players are more than willing to answer your questions. There’s not a lot of information readily available out there, so I hope this was helpful and as always, feel free to reach out to me directly if you have any more questions, too! And follow along on Insta for more!