Atlanta Vibe outside hitter Leah Edmond has been there for every first in Major League Volleyball. Now she’s being recognized for it.
Edmond was named to Bloomberg Businessweek’s 2026 Women’s Sports Stars list on Monday as a professional volleyball pioneer. She joins a group of women’s sports icons that includes Breanna Stewart, Livvy Dunne, Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Alysa Liu, Nancy Kerrigan and Doris Burke.
Edmond’s résumé backs it up. She was the league’s first signee, its inaugural MVP and the first player in MLV history to reach 1,000 career kills. She has been making history since day one.
For Edmond, the moment it all became real was the league’s first match against the Omaha Supernovas in 2024. She told Bloomberg that walking into a packed arena that night was when she realized pro volleyball in the United States had arrived.
“I’m used to seeing that place packed for a college game, and then to walk in and see 15,000 people there to watch a pro game? Just sitting there hearing the national anthem, hearing our names,” Edmond said. “All these people came to watch. They might not be cheering me on, but they came to watch pro volleyball, and it’s like, ‘We’re really doing this.’”
She called it one of the coolest things she has ever been a part of.
“Now we’re going to arenas that are packed all the time and getting to play in new cities,” she said. “To be a part of the growth and be able to play in front of the big crowds, I just would have never thought that in college. To be able to say I’m doing this at a pro level, and all these people are paying to watch us play volleyball, I think is amazing.”
When Edmond learned she would be included alongside women who have elevated their sports across generations, the weight of it sank in quickly.
“I was like, ‘Oh my goodness, this is a big deal,’” Edmond said in a release from the Vibe. “It was really cool and I was really thankful. I was like, ‘Wow, they chose me to do that.’ That was really exciting to hear.”
The recognition comes as MLV heads into the final stretch of its offseason, with the league draft and training camp ahead before Year Four. Edmond said she’s ready to see what’s next.
“I was so excited to see our new commissioner, new teams, new conferences, to see how everything is going to go,” she said. “I know it’s going to be a great season.”
The Vibe will split home matches between Gas South Arena and Georgia State Convocation Center in 2027, and season ticket packages are on sale now.
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