| Competition: | Men's World Cup |
| Continent: | World |
| Year: | 1981 |
| Dates: | 19–28 November |
| Teams: | 8 |
| Venues: | 4 |
| Cities: | 4 |
| Champions: | URS |
| Title Number: | 3 |
| Second: | CUB |
| Third: | BRA |
| Fourth: | POL |
| Mvp: | Vyacheslav Zaytsev |
| Last: | 1977 FIVB Volleyball Men's World Cup |
| Next: | 1985 FIVB Volleyball Men's World Cup |
The 1981 FIVB Men's World Cup was held from 19 to 28 November 1981 in Japan. It was the 4th edition of the competition.
| Means of qualification | Date | Host | Vacancies | Qualified | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Host Country | — | ― | 1 | ||
| Volleyball at the 1980 Summer Olympics | 20 Jul – 1 Aug 1980 | Moscow | 1 | ||
| 1978 FIVB Volleyball Men's World Championship | 20 September – 1 October 1978 | 1 | |||
| 1981 Men's European Volleyball Championship | 19–27 September 1981 | Bulgaria | 1 | ||
| 1981 Men's NORCECA Volleyball Championship | 4–10 July 1981 |  Mexico City | 1 | ||
| 1981 Men's South American Volleyball Championship | 12–19 July 1981 | Santiago | 1 | ||
| Asian Qualifier | 14–23 March 1981 |  Hong Kong | 1 | ||
| 1979 Men's African Volleyball Championship | 9–15 November 1979 | Tripoli | 1 | ||
| Total | 8 | ||||
Source:[1]
Location: Fukuoka
Location: Hiroshima and Matsuyama
Location: Gifu
Location: Tokyo
Location: Yokohama
Location: Tokyo
| Rank | Team | |
|---|---|---|
| align=center | ||
| align=center | ||
| align=center | ||
| align=center | 4 | |
| align=center | 5 | |
| align=center | 6 | |
| align=center | 7 | |
| align=center | 8 | |
| Team roster |
| Vyacheslav Zaytsev, Vladimir Kondra, Aleksandr Borisovich Savin, Viljar Loor, Vladimir Dorokhov, Yury Panchenko, Pāvels Seļivanovs, Oleg Moliboga, Vladimir Shkurikhin, Yury Kuznetsov, Aleksandr Sapega, Pavel Voronkov |
| Head coach |
| Viacheslav Platonov |
Shen Fu Lin
Haruhiko Hanawa
