The seventh edition of the Brahmaputra Volleyball League will feature around 415 teams from across Assam in four categories: Under-12 boys and girls, and Under-16 boys and girls.
GUWAHATI, June 15: Olympic medallists Abhinav Bindra and Gagan Narang will be among several prominent sports personalities adopting teams in the seventh season of the Brahmaputra Volleyball League (BVL).
Former India hockey captain and Olympian Viren Rasquinha and sports producer and writer Joy Bhattacharya are also set to adopt teams. Arjuna Award-winning badminton player Aparna Popat was among the first team adopters in the inaugural edition.
In a video message, Bindra expressed his delight in being part of the BVL movement, stating, “This is not just about volleyball. It is a movement of mass community participation and change,” said the Beijing Olympic gold medallist.
Narang, who secured a bronze at the London Olympics, praised the league’s impact, particularly in promoting girls’ participation and leadership while transforming lives through sport.
Both Olympians emphasized that community sports serve as one of the most effective tools for nation building.
Speaking at a curtain-raiser event in Guwahati on Sunday, BVL founder and former India volleyball captain Abhijit Bhattacharya mentioned the overwhelming support the initiative has received from across India and abroad, including from the FIVB, the global governing body of volleyball.
The BVL recently gained recognition from the International Olympic Committee for its success in empowering communities and breaking gender barriers through a grassroots sports initiative that has introduced volleyball to children in hundreds of villages across Assam.
Already recognized as one of the world’s largest grassroots sporting initiatives, BVL has more than 400 teams competing in four age-group categories. The model is now being replicated in Odisha, Manipur, Jharkhand, and Jammu and Kashmir.
Bhattacharya, who was recently named the global winner of the IOC Gender Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Champions Award 2025 for the initiative, announced plans for a BVL Mega Cup featuring champions from Odisha, Jharkhand, Manipur, and Jammu and Kashmir.
The league is supported by the Dani Foundation. Its co-founder Vita Dani remarked that the initiative should be replicated across the country, stating, “It is great to see the movement grow. The dream began with Abhijit, but the volunteers, villages, and communities who often remain invisible deserve immense credit. This shared belief brought Dani Foundation and BVL together. The focus is grassroots participation, and BVL has demonstrated what is possible,” Dani said.
The seventh season will be inaugurated in October 2026 in Majuli and will be hosted by the Diamond Volleyball Coaching Centre.
Young girls serving as BVL-UNICEF ambassadors were also present at the event and shared their experiences of social change brought about through the movement.
They discussed how the league has contributed to initiatives ranging from gender equality and prevention of child marriage to environmental conservation.
The movement is supported by several partners, including UNICEF, ONGC, the Volleyball Foundation, Signify, Vector X, SportVot, and Dhatura Films.
