The first seven days of competition features pool play matches as ninth-seeded Nila Ann Hakedal and Ingrid Torlen of Norway will play the opening match on June 25 during against 40th-seeded Stine Andreasen and Lotte Vestergaard of Denmark.

The women's medal matches will be July 4 followed by the men's podium placement matches July 5. The winning teams will share the USD 60,000 first-place prizes.

With a new women's champion to be crowned, the men's competition features the gold medal teams from the past three SWATCH FIVB World Championships led by 2007 winners Phil Dalhausser and Todd Rogers of the United States. All three past champions also filled the podium at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games where the Americans defeated Marcio Araujo and Fabio Magalhaes of Brazil for the gold medal in three sets.
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Featuring USD 1-million in prize money, the 2009 SWATCH FIVB World Championships will have 48 men's and 48 women's teams competing on the courts on the Vaagen Harbour docks as Stavanger hosts a SWATCH FIVB World Tour event for the 11th-straight season.

Over 64,000 tickets have already been sold for the 2009 SWATCH FIVB World Championships. A "World Championship Pass" is available which offers a 35 discount off the normal price of each ticket.

Following the 2009 SWATCH FIVB World Championships, the SWATCH FIVB World Tour will stage four-straight Grand Slam events in Gstaad, Moscow, Marseille and Klagenfurt. With USD 7.39-million in prize money this year, the 2009 SWATCH FIVB World Tour continues through the fall with the men's final event in China and the women's last stop in Thailand.