Girls' Volleyball Shoes That Fit Orthotics: From Club to Varsity

Volleyball is a jumping sport played on a hard floor. A girl who plays for her school and a club team may jump and land many times in a single practice. Most of what goes wrong happens at the ankle. The rest shows up at the knee and the heel. Many girls play in whatever court shoe was on sale, or in running shoes, which are the wrong tool. This guide is for parents of girls from club teams through varsity. It covers what the research shows and what a brace and balance work can do that a shoe cannot. It also explains how to choose a volleyball shoe for a wide, narrow, flat or high-arched foot. Finally, it shows how to fit a custom orthotic inside it.

Shopping for a son? Read our guide to boys' volleyball shoes. For every sport a high-school girl plays, see our varsity guide for girls.

What the Research Shows About Girls in Volleyball

Kerr and colleagues (2018) reviewed nine years of high-school girls' volleyball injuries across the country. The injury rate was 1.11 for every 1,000 practices and games in that study, far lower than in college. Ankle sprains were common, and games were riskier than practices. Brant and colleagues (2019) compared leg and foot injuries in eight high-school sports that boys and girls both play, volleyball among them. Girls had higher rates than boys in every sport compared in that study.

The best data on how volleyball ankles get hurt comes from adult players. Bahr and Bahr (1997) followed the top two divisions of Norwegian volleyball for a season. The ankle accounted for 54 percent of acute injuries in that study, and 79 percent of the ankle injuries were repeat sprains. An ankle sprained in the past six months was almost ten times as likely to be sprained again. The authors advised an external support for six to twelve months after a sprain.

Braces, Balance and the Ankle That Keeps Rolling

Verhagen and colleagues (2004) gave 116 volleyball teams either a balance-board program or their usual training for a season. The balance group had fewer ankle sprains, but only players who had sprained an ankle before benefited in that trial. Players with an old knee injury had more knee overuse problems on the program. A girl with a knee history should start it with a physical therapist.

Brace research in high-school volleyball is weak. Frey and colleagues (2010) followed 957 braced players and only 42 without braces, a lopsided comparison. Bracing made no overall difference in that study, though two brace types helped players who had never sprained an ankle. Among the girls, softer braces did worse than firmer ones. The stronger brace evidence comes from basketball. McGuine and colleagues (2011) randomized 1,460 high-school basketball players to lace-up ankle braces or none. The braced group had about one-third the rate of acute ankle injuries in that trial. That held whether or not the player had been sprained before. For a girl with a previous sprain, we suggest a lace-up brace in every practice and game. Add a few minutes of balance work most days. Read our guides on ankle sprains and strengthening after a sprain.

Protecting Her Knees

Volleyball means landing from a jump again and again. Webster and Hewett (2018) pooled eight earlier reviews of injury-prevention warm-ups. In that review, programs that teach landing, cutting and balance cut all anterior cruciate ligament tears by half. Among female athletes, they cut non-contact tears by two-thirds. A good program teaches her to land softly with her knees over her toes. Ask the coach whether the team does one.

Heel Pain in a Growing Player

In a girl between about eight and thirteen, heel pain is usually irritation of the growth plate at the back of the heel. That is where the Achilles tendon pulls on bone that has not finished growing. Wiegerinck and colleagues (2014) found 3.7 cases for every 1,000 registered patients aged six to seventeen in Dutch family practices. Jumping on a hard floor and a growth spurt both aggravate it. James and colleagues (2016) randomized 124 children with this heel pain to a heel raise or a ready-made orthotic. Every group had improved about the same amount by the end of the year in that trial. A cushioned heel cup, calf stretches and fewer back-to-back days help most girls keep playing. Read more about heel pain that won't go away.

What to Look For in a Youth Volleyball Shoe

Proper fit comes first. Klein and colleagues (2009) measured 858 preschool children and their shoes in Austria. Most wore shoes that were too short, and short shoes were associated with a big toe that angled outward. Measure both feet each season and fit the longer one. Leave about a thumb's width of room past the longest toe with her volleyball socks on.

• A rubber sole that grips a wood floor and does not mark it. Volleyball and indoor court shoes are built for this. Running shoes are not.
• A firm heel counter. Squeeze the back of the shoe. It should not fold.
• A low, stable base. A soft, tall heel wobbles on a landing.
• Firm sides. The foot should stay on the sole when she moves sideways.
• A removable insole. Lift it in the store and look at the depth underneath.

Keep her volleyball shoes for the gym. Outdoor wear dulls the sole, and a dusty sole slips. Youth volleyball shoes are usually sold in shared youth sizes. Once a girl outgrows them, she moves into women's or men's sizing depending on the shoe. A women's size usually runs about one and a half sizes larger in number than the same men's size. Check each size chart and fit by the foot.

Getting an Orthotic Into a Volleyball Shoe

A court shoe is usually deep enough for a device, and the factory insole often lifts out. Take the insole out, set the orthotic in, and check that her heel still sits deep in the counter. A low, snug volleyball shoe can pinch a bulky device, so a slimmer one often works better. Bring the shoes to the fitting.

A flat foot alone is not a reason for an orthotic. Wenger and colleagues (1989) followed 129 children with flexible flat feet in corrective shoes, heel cups, custom inserts or nothing. The arches improved in every group, and the treated children did no better than the untreated ones in that trial. An orthotic earns its place when there is a problem to treat. Heel pain, an arch that aches after tournaments and pain under the ball of the foot all count. See our guide to flat feet in children.

Match the Shoe to Your Daughter's Foot

Wide Feet

We found no youth volleyball shoe sold in a wide width. The roomiest indoor court shoe we found is the Nike Omni Multi-Court for big kids. Nike describes it as wide around the heel and forefoot. Once she fits women's sizes, New Balance sells its 996 and 796 court shoes in wide and extra-wide.

Narrow Feet

Many girls have a narrow heel, and a shoe built for a broad foot lets it slide. Lace to the top eyelet with a heel-lock loop, and choose a firm heel counter and a snug midfoot.

Flat Feet

A flexible flat foot is common and usually does not hurt. If it aches, a firm heel counter and an orthotic help more than a soft shoe. A stiff flat foot that does not form an arch on tiptoe needs an examination.

High Arches

A high-arched foot lands hard and rolls outward easily. Choose a stable base, a roomy instep and some cushion under the forefoot. Wear a brace if she has rolled an ankle before.

Loose Ankles

A brace in every practice and game, a balance program, and a low, firm shoe.

Club Season and Rest

Many girls play school volleyball in the fall and club volleyball most of the rest of the year. Jayanthi and colleagues (2015) compared 822 injured athletes aged seven to eighteen with 368 who were not injured. Training in a single sport was linked to more injuries and more serious overuse injuries in that study. Playing more hours a week than the athlete's age in years was linked to serious overuse injuries as well. A real break each year, or a second sport, gives heels and knees a chance to recover.

Girls' Volleyball Shoes to Try

No shoe company pays for placement here. No brand sponsors this article. Every shoe here is our own pick, based on the features above and on what we see in the office.

We do run a separate website, footshop.cc. Patients kept asking where to find the products we talk about in the exam room. So we built a separate site that keeps the links in one place. It includes links to Amazon and other retailers. Every affiliate link over there is disclosed where it appears. If you buy through one of those links, we earn a small commission. It costs you nothing extra. We run it as a convenience for our patients, not as a condition of care. You are free to buy any of these shoes anywhere you like, at whatever price you find, with or without our links. Our advice is the same either way.

Medical footwear is not part of that. Prescription shoes, inserts, boots and braces are never on our affiliate site. They are not a shopping link, and we will not treat them like one.

Volleyball and Indoor Court Shoes

• ASICS Upcourt (grade school): an indoor court shoe in one standard width. Kohl's lists its insole as removable.
• Mizuno Cyclone (junior volleyball shoe): one medium width, with a non-marking sole, in youth sizes.
• adidas Crazyflight Mid (kids'): a mid-cut volleyball shoe in kids' unisex sizes. A higher collar does not replace a brace.

A Roomier Fit

• Nike Omni Multi-Court (big kids'): Nike describes it as wide around the heel and forefoot, with a non-marking sole for indoor courts. It runs small, so Nike suggests half a size up.

Once She Outgrows Youth Sizes

• New Balance 996 and New Balance 796: court shoes sold in women's narrow, medium, wide and extra-wide.

For every shoe on this page, lift the insole in the store. If it comes out and the orthotic sits flat with her heel still inside the counter, you are in business. If it is glued, bring the shoe to our office, and we will design the orthotic around it.

What to Check Every Season

• Measure both feet standing, at the end of the day, in volleyball socks. Fit the longer foot.
• Put her orthotic in the new shoe at the store, with the factory insole out. If her heel lifts, try another shoe.
• If she has sprained an ankle before, buy the brace before the first practice and start the balance work.
• Ask the coach whether the team does a landing warm-up.
• Keep the shoes for indoor courts only, and wipe the soles during matches.
• Ask about heel pain, knee pain and blisters.

When to See a Podiatrist

Bring her in for heel pain that lasts more than a couple of weeks. A limp, swelling or night pain needs an examination too. Come in after a sprain that is still swollen after a week, or for an ankle that keeps rolling. Pain on the outside of the foot after a landing needs an examination to rule out a fracture. A knee that gave way or swelled after a landing needs a sports medicine exam the same week. If she already wears orthotics and has grown a size, bring the orthotics and her volleyball shoes. Our pediatric foot care page explains how we see young athletes. Our custom orthotics page explains how we make devices.

More reading: everyday athletic shoes for kids and foot care for athletes.