The International Hockey Federation announced the schedule for the 2023-24 FIH Pro League on Thursday with champions Great Britain (men) and Argentina (women) starting the upcoming edition in Santiago, Argentina in December.
The season will include six mini-tournaments and end in the Netherlands in June 2024.
Promoted from the inaugural FIH Hockey Nations Cup, the India women’s team and Ireland men’s squad will play their first match against China and the Netherlands respectively, in Bhubaneswar, India.
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The Indian women’s team take the place of New Zealand who withdrew from the upcoming season, while Ireland are replacing New Zealand’s men’s team who were relegated at the end of the 2022-23 season.
The Indian men’s team will also begin their FIH Pro League campaign on home soil against Spain in April 2024.
In an upgrade, the champions of the 2023-24 FIH Pro League will qualify directly for the Men’s and Women’s FIH Hockey World Cup in 2026.
The upcoming season of the FIH Pro League will be hosted in six cities:
December 6-11, 2023 – Santiago del Estero, Argentina
February 14-19, 2024 – Buenos Aires, Argentina
February 3-25, 2024 – Bhubaneswar and Rourkela, India
May 22-June 2, 2024 – Antwerp, Belgium
June 1-12, 2024 – Lee Valley Hockey and Tennis Centre, Great Britain
June 22-30, 2024 – Utrecht and Amsterdam, Netherlands
The Indian men’s team finished fourth out of nine teams in the 2022-23 season with eight wins, three draws and five losses. Captain Harmanpreet Singh finished as the top scorer of the 2022-23 edition with 18 goals.
They will aim to start their upcoming campaign on a good note when they face Spain on the first day of the FIH Pro League mini-tournament in Bhubaneshwar in February 2024. Champions Netherlands, newly-promoted Ireland and Tokyo Olympics silver medallists Australia will be their other opponents in the Indian leg which includes Rourkela as a venue.
The European leg for India begins in May 2024 in Antwerp, Belgium and will include hosts and Tokyo Olympic champions Belgium and Rio Olympic champions Argentina as their opponents. The Indian campaign will wrap up in London, England where the men’s team will face Great Britain and world champions Germany in four matches across June 2024.
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The Indian women’s team will enter the FIH Pro League for the second time since the tournament started in 2019. They finished third in their only other appearance in 2021-22. Their promotion was a result of their triumph in the first edition of the FIH Women’s Nations Cup, where they beat hosts Spain 1-0 in a close encounter.
Like the men, the India women’s team will kick-start their FIH Pro League campaign on home turf when they face China in the opening match of the India leg in Bhubaneshwar. Along with China, the women will face Australia, Tokyo Olympics and world champions Netherlands and the United States in eight matches across Bhubaneshwar and Rourkela.
The Indian campaign will then move to Antwerp, Belgium where the women will face defending champions Argentina and hosts Belgium in four matches. The European leg for India will conclude their FIH Pro League campaign in June 2024, where they line-up against hosts Great Britain and Germany.
India men’s schedule for the 2023-24 FIH Pro League
vs Spain – February 10, 2024 at 7:30PM IST
vs Netherlands – February 11, 2024 at 7:30PM IST
vs Australia – February 15, 2024 at 7:30PM IST
vs Ireland – February 16, 2024 at 7:30PM IST
vs Spain – February 19, 2024 at 7:30PM IST
vs Netherlands – February 21, 2024 at 7:30PM IST
vs Australia – February 24, 2024 at 7:30PM IST
vs Ireland – February 25, 2024 at 7:30PM IST
vs Argentina – May 22, 2024 at 6PM IST
vs Belgium – May 24, 2024 at 12:30AM IST
vs Belgium – May 25, 2024 at 7:45PM IST
vs Argentina – May 26, 2024 at 10PM IST
vs Germany – June 1, 2024 at 2:30PM IST
vs Great Britain – June 2, 2024 at 4:45PM IST
vs Germany – June 8, 2024 at 9:45PM IST
vs Great Britain – June 9, 2024 at 7PM IST
India women’s schedule for the 2023-24 FIH Pro League
vs China – February 3, 2024 at 7:30PM IST
vs Netherlands – February 4, 2024 at 7:30PM IST
vs Australia – February 7, 2024 at 7:30PM IST
vs US – February 9, 2024 at 7:30PM IST
vs China – February 12, 2024 at 7:30PM IST
vs Netherlands – February 14, 2024 at 7:30PM IST
vs Australia – February 17, 2024 at 7:30PM IST
vs US – February 18, 2024 at 7:30PM IST
vs Argentina – May 22, 2024 at 3:45PM IST
vs Belgium – May 23, 2024 at 10:15PM IST
vs Belgium – May 25, 2024 at 5:30PM IST
vs Argentina – May 26, 2024 at 3:15PM IST
vs Germany – June 1, 2024 at 9:45PM IST
vs Great Britain – June 2, 2024 at 7PM IST
vs Germany – June 8, 2024 at 2:30PM IST
vs Great Britain – June 9, 2024 at 4:45PM IST