Australia will participate in their fourth World League. They first joined the World League in 1999 but it took them 15 years to return to the elite men’s competition. They finished ninth in 2014 and improved two places in 2015. In 2014 Australia were bottom of Group 2's Pool C but defeated France in five sets in the Group 2 final in Sydney. That secured them a spot in the Group 1 Finals but they were defeated by the United States and Italy. In 2015, Australia took on Brazil, Serbia and Italy in Group 1 Pool A, but failed to progress to the Finals in Rio de Janeiro. A refreshed Volleyroos side will continue their World League journey in 2016 under Italian head coach Roberto Santilli, who replaced veteran Argentine coach Jon Uriarte in February 2015. Australia also represented Asia at the 2014 FIVB Volleyball Men’s World Championship, finishing joint-15th after reaching the second round in Poland.
The Australian Volleyball Federation was founded in 1963 and the sport has rapidly increased in popularity since, particularly in schools and recreation centres. The national team has been supported by the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) since 1990 and based in Canberra since 1997. At the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games the team came eighth, beating Spain in the process and taking a set from then world champions Italy. There has been steady improvement including an appearance at London 2012 and victory in the Asian Championship in 2007.