The Indian men`s team has been drawn alongside arch-rivals Pakistan, strong contenders England and Wales in the group stage of the FIH Hockey World Cup to be co-hosted by the Netherlands and Belgium later this year. During the draw ceremony held here on Tuesday at the iconic Wagener Stadium in Amsterdam, the Indian women`s team was placed alongside China, England and South Africa in the prestigious tournament, scheduled to be held from August 15 to 30.
Both the Indian men`s and women`s teams, placed in Pool D in their respective categories, will play their matches in the Netherlands, according to the International Hockey Federation (FIH), which added that the full match schedule will be announced on Wednesday. Germany, the reigning men`s champions who clinched their third World Cup title in 2023 in Bhubaneswar by defeating Belgium, have been placed in Pool B alongside Belgium, France and Malaysia.
“The draw was done by hockey legends Naomie van As, Barbara Neelen and Teun de Nooijer, as well as DJ La Fuente, who was announced as Dutch Ambassador for the World Cup during the ceremony,” said FIH in a release. FIH president Tayyab Ikram said he hoped the tournament would help foster peace at times “when our world is torn apart by conflict”.
“Today`s draw marks another major milestone on the road to the most prestigious FIH event, the FIH Hockey World Cup. The upcoming edition, for both women and men, co-hosted by two hockey powerhouses, promises to be a resounding success,” said Ikram. “We are very grateful to both Belgium and the Netherlands for hosting our top athletes and the global hockey community in less than six months` time. In today`s fractured world, sport — and events such as this in particular — can play a substantial role in bringing people together. It can foster peace at times when our world is torn apart by conflict,” he said.
One
No. of times India have won the Hockey World Cup — in 1975
How the World Cup will play out
Pool Stage
Four pools (A, B, C, D) of four teams playing round-robin matches
Secondary Pool Stage
The top two teams from each pool advance to the new “Super 4” pools (E and F).
Knockout Stage
The top two from the Stage 2 pools (E and F) advance to the semi-finals.
Teams that finish third or fourth in the pool stages move into classification pools (G and H) to determine final rankings from 9th to 16th place.
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