The Men's FIH Pro League is an international men's field hockey competition organised by the International Hockey Federation (FIH), which replaces the Men's FIH Hockey World League. The competition also serves as a qualifier for the Hockey World Cup and the Olympic Games.[1]
Current season, competition or edition: 2022–23 Men's FIH Pro League | |
 | |
| Formerly | Hockey World League |
|---|---|
| Sport | Field hockey |
| Founded | 2017 |
| Inaugural season | 2019 |
| No. of teams | 9 |
| Continent | International (FIH) |
| Most recent champion(s) |  Netherlands (2nd title) (2022–23) |
| Most titles | Netherlands (2 titles) |
| Relegation to | FIH Hockey Nations Cup |
| Official website | fihproleague.com |
The first edition started in 2019. Nine teams secured their places for four years.
Format edit
Nine men's and women's teams compete in a round-robin tournament with home and away matches, played from October to June, with the top team at the end of the season winning the league. From 2021-22 onwards, the bottom team at the end of the season will be relegated and will be replaced by the winner of a new competition called the Men's FIH Nations Cup.
Teams edit
In July 2017, Hockey India decided to withdraw both the men's and women's national teams from the competition as they estimated the chances of qualifying for the Summer Olympics to be higher when participating in the Men's FIH Hockey World League. Hockey India also cited lack of clarity in the ranking system.[2][3] The International Hockey Federation subsequently invited Spain instead.[4] Pakistan were suspended on 23 January 2019 after they could not play their first three games.[5] India joined the Pro League from 2020 onwards.[6] On 17 September 2021, both, New Zealand and Australia, withdrew from the 2021–22 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the travel restrictions coming with it.[7][8]
- Current teams
- Former teams
Pakistan (suspended in 2019)
France (competed in the 2021-22 season)
South Africa (competed in the 2021-22 season)
New Zealand (relegated from the 2022-23 season)
Results edit
2019 edit
| Year | Final host | Final | Third place match | Teams GS / FR | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Champions | Score | Runners-up | Third place | Score | Fourth place | ||||||
| 2019 Details |
Amstelveen, Netherlands |  Australia |
3–2 |  Belgium |
 Netherlands |
5–3 |  Great Britain |
8 / 4 | |||
2020–present edit
| Year | Final group rank | Teams | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Champions | Runners-up | Third place | Fourth place | ||||
| 2020–21 Details |
Belgium |
Australia |
 Germany |
 India |
9 | ||
| 2021–22[a] Details |
Netherlands |
Belgium |
India |
Germany |
9 | ||
| 2022–23 Details |
Netherlands |
Great Britain |
Belgium |
India |
9 | ||
| 2023–24 Details |
9 | ||||||
Summary edit
| Team | Winners | Runners-up | Third place | Fourth place |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Netherlands
|
2 (2021–22, 2022-23) | 1 (2019) | ||
 Belgium
|
1 (2020–21) | 2 (2019, 2021–22) | 1 (2022–23) | |
 Australia
|
1 (2019) | 1 (2020–21) | ||
 Great Britain
|
1 (2022–23) | 1 (2019) | ||
 India
|
1 (2021–22) | 2 (2020–21, 2022-23) | ||
 Germany
|
1 (2020–21) | 1 (2021–22) |
Team appearances edit
| Team | 2019 | 2020–21 | 2021–22 | 2022–23 | 2023–24 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Argentina
|
5th | 7th | 5th | 8th | Q | 5 |
| Australia
|
1st | 2nd | WD | 7th | Q | 4 |
| Belgium
|
2nd | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Q | 5 |
 Canada
|
– | – | WD | – | – | 0 |
 England
|
Part of GB | 6th | Part of GB | 1 | ||
 France
|
– | – | 8th | – | – | 1 |
| Germany
|
6th | 3rd | 4th | 6th | Q | 5 |
| Great Britain
|
4th | 6th | – | 2nd | Q | 4 |
| India
|
– | 4th | 3rd | 4th | Q | 4 |
 Ireland
|
– | – | – | – | Q  |
1 |
| Netherlands
|
3rd | 5th | 1st | 1st | Q | 5 |
 New Zealand
|
8th | 8th | WD | 9th  |
– | 3 |
 Pakistan
|
DSQ | – | – | – | – | 0 |
 South Africa
|
– | – | 9th | – | WD | 1 |
 Spain
|
7th | 9th | 7th | 5th | Q | 5 |
| Total | 8 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | |
See also edit
Notes edit
- ^ Australia and New Zealand withdrew from the tournament before it began, being replaced by Canada and South Africa. Six weeks after being declared New Zealand's replacement, Canada withdrew and was replaced by France.
References edit
- ^ "Hockey Pro League Q&A". fih.ch. 9 June 2017. Retrieved 9 June 2017.
- ^ "Hockey India justifies withdrawal from FIH Pro League". The Times of India. 9 July 2017. Retrieved 10 July 2017.
- ^ "FIH statement on the withdrawal of Hockey India from the Hockey Pro League". fih.ch. 10 July 2017. Retrieved 10 July 2017.
- ^ "FIH confirms Spain men and Belgium women join Hockey Pro League". fih.ch. 28 July 2017. Retrieved 28 July 2017.
- ^ "FIH Pro League: Pakistan out of first edition". fih.ch. 23 January 2019. Retrieved 28 July 2017.
- ^ "Executive Board approves 2020 and 2021 FIH Pro League match schedule principles". fih.ch. International Hockey Federation. 16 April 2019. Retrieved 16 April 2019.
- ^ "Hockey Australia announces absence from FIH tournaments". www.hockey.org.au. Hockey Australia. Retrieved 31 January 2022.
- ^ "Hockey New Zealand unable to participate in FIH events in late 2021, early 2022". Hockey New Zealand. 17 September 2021. Retrieved 31 January 2022.