29 November 2022 | Source: SAHockey.co.za South Africa and France, the two teams to have tasted FIH Hockey Pro League action previously, locked horns in a battle that could see either side re-enter the top tier of the international game. South Africa had opened their tournament with a 6-2 win against Pakistan while France had somewhat surprisingly lost to Ireland. The match marked cap number 50 for Tevin Kok. The South Africans were enjoying a vociferous home crowd support and sensed the opportunity to get a first win against France in the recent head-to-head. South Africa had two penalty corners in the early exchange, but both were well charged down by the French defense. The South Africans were punished for not taking their chances as a bullet goal from Corentin Sellier gave the visitors the lead. But as seen many times over the past couple of years this South African team is made of sterner stuff. Ryan Julius hit a wonderful diagonal ball through to Tevin Kok who picked it up and finished superbly. 1-1 at the end of the first quarter! Both teams had chances with the speed of the South African attack asking questions of the French defense. France won their first penalty corner with six minutes remaining to half-time. Jethro Eustice kept the ball out on the post although they had to refer to overturn a stroke that was incorrectly awarded. Tempers were starting to rise, and the umpires were themselves being tested as well. Dayaan Cassiem continued to provide danger up front, but his shot was tame. South Africa received a penalty corner on the half-time break after Tevin Kok pulled down a good aerial ball. Jacques van Tonder picked up the rebound but was unable to find the back, however the penalty corner was re-awarded and form the re-award the ball found the back of the net. However, after a referral the goal was correctly disallowed as the ball was off target. 1-1 at the break. The first short corner of the second half went to France after the ball struck the foot off Sam Mvimbi. But uncharacteristically the French were unable to show their typical danger at a set piece. South Africa showed their own character with a great counter, but Keenan Horne was unable to put the finishing touches on the team move. France almost regained the lead with a massive opportunity on the overhead. Tynevez one on one with Estiaan Kriek kept the French out before a ripping pass up the other side saw Tevin Kok hit the outside of the post as South Africa challenged the French defense once more. 15 minutes remained. South Africa took the lead superbly against the French with a tenacious goal. Luke Wynford responded to a superb save and Keenan Horne was on hand to bundle it home and give the hosts the lead for the first time in the game. France almost pulled level but the ball narrowly missed the South African goal. France were desperate to pull level but the South Africans were keeping them at bay and France decided to withdraw their keeper for the final two minutes. South Africa though held the French at bay and as a result secured the victory and a place in the Semi-Final!!!!   FIH Hockey Nations Cup 2022 – Day 2 Results Pool B – Korea 3-1 Japan Pool B – Canada 2-3 Malaysia Pool A – Pakistan 1-3 Ireland Pool A – South Africa 2-1 France FIH Hockey Nations Cup 2022 – Day 3 Fixtures (1 December) 09:00 – Korea vs. Canada 11:00 – France vs. Pakistan 13:00 – Japan vs. Malaysia 15:00 – South Africa vs. Ireland

28 November, 2022 A new era of international hockey began with 8 top teams producing thrilling hockey on the opening day of the inaugural FIH Hockey Men’s Nations Cup South Africa 2022. The Nations Cup features the best teams in the world outside of the ones participating in the FIH Hockey Pro League, and their quality was on full display as the lower ranked teams took victories in 3 of the 4 games, with Japan, Ireland and Korea defeating higher ranked Canada, France and Malaysia respectively. Hosts South Africa however ensured there was no upset in their opener, as they put in a spectacular attacking display, scoring 6 goals past a young Pakistan team. Match 1 – Canada vs Japan 0-3 Japanese coach Akira Takahashi mentioned before the game that his team wouldn’t be afraid to play to their strengths and his team backed up his words with a dominant display in the opening encounter against Canada with a clinical 3-0 win to open their campaign. Japan started the game on the front foot and opened the scoring through Ken Nagayoshi beating Zachary Coombs on the fifth time of asking from a penalty corner midway through the 2nd quarter. Japan added two more goals from penalty corners on either side of the half-time through Taiki Takade and a second goal for Ken Nagayoshi, ending Canadian hopes of a comeback, taking all 3 points in the first game of the FIH Hockey Men’s Nations Cup 2022. Japan’s Kaito Tanaka was awarded the player of the match for a dominant display in the middle of the field. Speaking about the importance of winning the first game, Tanaka said: “It is important to win the first game, but the next two matches are just as important, so our focus is going to shift on the next game right away.” Match 2 – France vs Ireland 1-2 France came into the FIH Hockey Men’s Nations Cup South Africa 2022 as one of the prohibitive favorites, but suffered a narrow 2-1 defeat at the hands of continental rivals Ireland, in their campaign opener. Ireland opened the scoring against the run of play midway through the first quarter, catching France out on a quick counter-attack, as John McKee played a perfect pass into the path of Jeremy Duncan, who lifted the ball over the keeper, into the goal. France found a response inside 5 minutes, from a thundering penalty corner goal, scored by Victor Charlet. Ireland had the chance to go into the break with their lead restored but Arthur Thieffry pulled off a spectacular save from a penalty stroke to keep the teams level. The second half saw the game start to open up as the teams took turns to launch attacks. Ireland found the breakthrough in the final minute of the 3rd quarter, through a Shane O’Donoghue penalty corner. France continued to probe through the 4th quarter, even taking their keeper off for the final 5 minutes, but Ireland denied them possession for long periods and deservedly took all 3 points. John McKee who set up the first goal for Ireland was adjudged the player of the match and said: “It was a really good game for us and a massive result in the group. I am looking forward to the next two games and we are not going to get ahead of ourselves.” Match 3 – Malaysia vs Korea 0-1 Korea drew first blood in the battle of the Asian giants, scoring inside 5 minutes, through a Jonghyun Jang penalty corner and that goal was enough to get all 3 points for Korea. It was a game of missed chances as Korea and Malaysia both won penalty strokes in the 2nd quarter, but failed to capitalize, as Jang took too long to take a shot attempt and blew an opportunity to double Korea’s lead, while Rahim, who had the chance to pull Malaysia level, put his penalty stroke attempt wide to the right. The second half saw yet another penalty stroke opportunity missed, as Jang’s second chance of the game was deflected on to the post and out by Hafizuddin Othman to keep Malaysia in the game. As the game went on, Korea became more defensive, and Malaysia couldn’t get anything past Jaehyeon Kim, who had an outstanding performance in the Korean goal. Kim was adjudged the player of the match and said: “Happy with the 3 points, as it’s always good to get a win over Asian rivals Malaysia, because they aren’t an easy team to beat. Looking forward to the upcoming matches in the tournament now.” Match 4 – South Africa vs Pakistan 6-2 Hosts South Africa gave the home crowd a lot to cheer for, as they produced a fluent attacking performance winning 6-2 against Pakistan, who showed plenty of promise, but were let down by the lack of defensive solidity. South Africa were clinical from the set pieces, scoring from two penalty corners and a penalty stroke in the first half. Tyson Dlungwana penalty corner opened the scoring for the hosts, and while Pakistan pulled level through Rooman, South Africa were not bogged down and continued to attack, scoring twice in the second quarter to take a comfortable lead into the interval. The pace of the game remained frantic in the second half as well, with South Africa striking first through a magical deflection by Tevin Kok, with his back to the goal, that snuck in between the keeper’s legs. Skipper Dayaan Cassiem scored South Africa’s 5th goal in the final quarter to seal the win for his team in style. Pakistan pulled a goal back in the final quarter through Arshad Liaqat, but it proved to be little more than a consolation, as South Africa found a 6th goal on the counter to close the game out. Captain Dayaan Cassiem was awarded the player of the match award for his excellent performance in leading the line for South Africa. Samkelo Mvimbi, scorer of South Africa’s third goal,

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27th November, 2022 With less than 24 hours to go to the inaugural FIH Hockey Nations Cup, the coaches of all teams have spoken exclusively to FIH.hockey to express their expectations: Cheslyn Gie, Interim Head Coach (RSA) “As always our team’s objective is to make the knockout stages. We have shown in the past couple of years we can compete in the big games against the best nations and we want to do that in front of our home fans. We are a team in a transitional phase as a number of players are not available and our depth will be tested, but we believe the players who are given the opportunity will step up for our country. I am honoured at the opportunity to lead the team at the FIH Hockey Nations Cup.” Patrick Tshutshani, Head Coach (CAN) “The on-field and off-field chemistry will be key in our development steps moving forward. The key steps for us will be how we connect as a team, and how we want to play the game. The Nations Cup brings great competition, and I look forward to how we apply ourselves in pressure moments.” Fred Soyez, Head Coach (FRA) “This is a very important tournament for us with two big objectives: the qualification for the next FIH Hockey Pro League and the preparation for the FIH Hockey Men’s World Cup. The team is very excited to play again in Potchefstroom and ready to start the competition.” Mark Tumilty, Head Coach (IRL) “We are looking forward to the challenge of the inaugural Nations Cup. We expect it to be a very competitive tournament with all teams evenly matched. We will need to be at our best to give us a chance to progress in the tournament.” Arul Anthoni (MAS) “We hope to make defensive improvements after the Azlan Shah Cup, have a better outcome in attacking and play the Final to improve our world ranking.” Akira Takahashi (JPN) “If we win this tournament, we can join the FIH Hockey Pro League next year. So that is our objective. Furthermore, we’re back in the World Cup – which we missed for the last three consecutive editions – so we want to use this tournament also to prepare well for the upcoming World Cup.” Shin Seok Kyo (KOR) “This tournament enables to reach the FIH Hockey Pro League, where you have the highest possible level. Our team is strong. We’re hoping for the top four, and targeting to reach the final. We will play to our best, also to prepare for the World Cup.” Siegfried Aikman (PAK) “We expect to be competitive in every match. We play only western teams – South Africa, Ireland and France – in the group stage and they play a different style of hockey than Asian teams. Our new team didn’t play any match against western teams yet, so that will be our challenge. But all teams are fairly near in the world rankings.” To see the complete FIH Hockey Men’s Nations Cup South Africa 2022 match schedule, please click here. #FIHNationsCup #HockeyEquals #HockeyInvites

18 November 2022 Lausanne, Switzerland: The International Hockey Federation (FIH) is thrilled to announce that it has been awarded the best sports governing body initiative silver award at the Sports Business Awards 2022, in London, UK, today. The recognition comes for the creation of the Watch.Hockey platform, which has massively boosted the viewership opportunities for hockey fans across the world. Hockey’s popularity across all continents presented a unique challenge for fans to enjoy viewing the various national and international events taking place all over the world, across all time zones. Watch.Hockey, co-created by FIH and its partner Nagra, has taken on this challenge by becoming a one-stop destination for hockey events, making it the “digital home of hockey” that has enabled fans around the world to watch a full range of hockey matches, not just international ones, but also local competitions which are key for the engagement and development of the sport around the world. Since its launch, Watch.Hockey has seen an accumulated 1.2 million users from over 148 countries. More than 1,000 matches have been streamed and made available on the platform live and on-demand, from FIH events to local competitions such as Spain’s Final Four, Australia’s BWHA, New Zealand’s Hockey Premier League and more. With new upcoming international and national competitions as well as engaging content that will respond to the ever-growing thirst of fans to watch their favourite sport – such as the upcoming FIH Hockey Nations Cup that will be available live on Watch.Hockey from anywhere in the world – the future of Watch.Hockey looks promising! For more information about FIH and hockey in general, please download the Watch.Hockey app or follow the FIH social media channels – Facebook, Instagram and Twitter – and website. #HockeyEquals #HockeyInvites

9 November 2022 Lausanne, Switzerland: The very first edition of the FIH Hockey Nations Cup is almost upon us. The event will begin with the men’s tournament, which will run from 28 November to 4 December in Potchefstroom, South Africa, and will be followed by the women’s tournament which begins on 11 December and runs till 17 December in Valencia, Spain. With highly ranked nations competing, not just for the inaugural title, but also a chance of promotion to the FIH Hockey Pro League, the Nations Cup promises to start off its first season with a bang! Venues The FIH Hockey Men’s Nations Cup will be played in Potchefstroom, South Africa which also hosted the FIH Hockey Women’s Junior World Cup – the first FIH Hockey World Cup played on African soil – and FIH Hockey Pro League matches earlier in the year. The FIH Hockey Women’s Nations Cup will be played in Valencia, Spain in the Estadio Betero, which has hosted men’s FIH Hockey Pro League matches over the past three years, amongst others. Format The FIH Hockey Nations Cups will be contested between 8 teams in each event. The teams have been split into two Pools of 4. Each team will face the other 3 teams in their Pool in the group stage. At the end of the group stage, all 4 teams will be classified from 1-4 with the top two teams from each pool making it to the semi-finals, and the bottom 2 teams then going forward for the 5-8 classification. The teams finishing in the 3rd place in their Pool will play the 4th placed team in the other Pool. The winning team from these contests will play for the 5th position and the losing teams will play for the 7th position. The teams finishing in the first place in their respective Pools will play the second placed teams in the other pool, in the semi-finals. The winners will then go on to play the finals, while the losing semi-finalists will play for the 3rd position. Promotion The winning teams from the FIH Hockey Nations Cup, men’s and women’s, will be promoted to the FIH Hockey Pro League for the 2023-24 season, where they will replace the teams that finish last in the 2022-23 season of the FIH Hockey Pro League. Teams Men’s Tournament Pool A Hosts South Africa are joined by France, Ireland and Pakistan to make up Pool A, that promises to deliver high-octane attacking hockey. South Africa replaced New Zealand in the FIH Hockey Pro League last season, and while they finished in the bottom place, their team took major steps forward and it showed as they made it all the way to the semi-finals of the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games. France was the other team to play in the FIH Hockey Pro League in the previous edition, replacing Australia, and produced great hockey, registering impressive wins against India, Argentina and South Africa through the course of the tournament. South Africa and France will also be in action in the FIH Hockey Odisha Men’s World Cup 2023 Bhubaneswar-Rourkela, so they will be highly motivated to put their best foot forward at the Nations Cup, in build-up to the event. On the flip side, Ireland and Pakistan will have their eyes firmly set on the promotion to the FIH Hockey Pro League 2023-24, by winning the Nations Cup. Both Ireland and Pakistan narrowly missed out on World Cup qualification and will be hungry to use the Nations Cup as the platform to re-launch their ascent in hockey world rankings. Pool B Canada joins the Asian triumvirate of Japan, Korea and Malaysia in Pool B that promises to deliver a variety of tactical battles in every game. Canada have been in a transitional phase as a younger generation aims to burst through and make a name for itself in world hockey. Their performances in the Commonwealth Games were never lacking in passion and intensity, as they finished in the 8th place, with their best performance coming in the 7/8 place classification match against Pakistan which they narrowly lost by a score-line of 3-4. Japan, Korea and Malaysia will head to the Nations Cup right after the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup where they have put in some excellent performances already and currently occupy the top three spots in the league table ahead of Pakistan, Egypt and South Africa. All three teams have also qualified for the World Cup in January 2023 and will aim to continue building momentum through the Nations Cup. Women’s Tournament Pool A Hosts Spain will be joined by Korea, Ireland and Italy in Pool A of the FIH Hockey Women’s Nations Cup. Spain have been on the rise with their young rising stars blending well with the established veterans on the team. They are one of the two teams playing in the Nations Cup after having played in the FIH Hockey Pro League in the previous season, where they had an impressive 5th placed finish, ahead of Germany, England, China and USA. Spain also excelled in the FIH Hockey Women’s World Cup Spain & Netherlands 2022, making it to the quarterfinals, and finishing 7th. Ireland and Korea endured disappointing World Cup campaigns by their usual standards, finishing 11th and 13th respectively. The disappointments at the World Cup will provide plenty motivation for Ireland and Korea to try and win the Nations Cup and get promoted into the FIH Hockey Pro League in the next season. Italy has been a team on the rise over the past year with impressive performances on the continental level. The Nations Cup will provide a big opportunity for them to take their game up a level onto the international stage, and their opponents would do well to not underestimate them! Pool B Pool B is an intriguing mixture of teams who are all on an upward trajectory with Chile and South Africa being joined by Asian giants India and Japan. All 4 teams were involved

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3 November 2022 Lausanne, Switzerland: Meeting virtually on the eve of the start of the 48th FIH Congress under the chairmanship of FIH Acting President Seif Ahmed, the Executive Board of the International Hockey Federation (FIH) today selected Belgium and the Netherlands to jointly host the 2026 FIH Hockey Women’s and Men’s World Cups simultaneously. The combined event will take place in July or August 2026 in Amsterdam/Amstelveen, Netherlands and Wavre, Belgium, with female and male teams playing in both venues. The proposed format for the match schedule – with one local team, Belgium or the Netherlands, playing each day in order to make sure to fill the venues every day -, the particularly solid financial foundation of this bid – including the support from the host broadcasters – as well as the athletes’ performance and well-being have been instrumental in the EB’s decision. Commenting on the decision, FIH CEO Thierry Weil said: “On behalf of FIH, I would like to thank wholeheartedly all National Associations that submitted a bid. We received excellent proposals and it was therefore a particularly challenging task to decide. We’re very much looking forward to working with the National Associations of the current Women’s and Men’s World and Olympic Champions, the Netherlands and Belgium respectively, that will undoubtedly put together outstanding World Cups!” On a different note, the EB received a comprehensive report on the FIH Finances. Thanks to additional income and reduced expenses, the final operational profit for 2022 is expected to be higher than the 500k CHF budgeted. The FIH Hockey Pro League operational result is also positive by 129k for season 3 (2021-22) and is expected to amount to at least 150k for season 4 (2022-23). For 2023, the budget has been approved by the EB. The expected FIH financial result is an operational profit of 1m CHF (including 150k profit from the FIH Hockey Pro League) thanks, to a large extent, to the upcoming FIH Hockey Men’s World Cup in India. The positive evolution of the FIH Hockey Pro League in financial terms is confirmed by its financial result figures: it started from -750k in 2018 (season 0) and -3.5m in 2019 (season 1) to -124k in season 2, +129k for season 3 and +150k for season 4. Therefore, after two difficult years (2018 and 2019), the Pro League finances remained stable in 2020 and 2021 – despite the Covid-19 pandemic and the cancellation of 35% of the matches! – to 2022 and 2023, where the forecast is, as mentioned above, positive. Furthermore, the EB decided that the publication of the audited accounts will now be done annually – rather than after their approval by the bi-annual Congress as is currently the case – while still being approved by the Congress. The EB also confirmed that the winners of the FIH Hockey Pro League in season 5 (2023/2024) and season 6 (2024/2025) will directly qualify for the 2026 FIH Men’s and Women’s World Cups. If the winner of season 6 is already qualified in season 5, the runner-up in season 6 will be offered the direct qualification place. Since the President of the African Hockey Federation (AfHF), Seif Ahmed, was chairing today’s meeting in his capacity of FIH Acting President, the Acting President of AfHF, Nii Quaye-Kumah (Ghana) attended this FIH EB meeting. The next meeting of the FIH Executive Board will take place on 28 January 2023. The 48th FIH Congress will take place virtually on 4 and 5 November. #HockeyEquals #HockeyInvites For more information about FIH and hockey in general, please download the Watch.Hockey app or follow the FIH social media channels – Facebook, Instagram and Twitter – and website.

26 October 2022 Lausanne, Switzerland: The International Hockey Federation (FIH) is delighted to announce the launch of “FIH Hockey Manager”, a game developed by its partner Gold Town Games (GTG) that is available for downloading on Google Play and the Apple App Store, for free! The FIH Hockey Manager game provides hockey fans with various features that allows for them to become the manager of their own hockey team: Personalizing the team’s tactics and winning games against live opponents online Scouting & trading players Building, developing and customizing the team hockey stadium, academy and training facilities Advancing to the top of the global hockey league and competing for tournament prizes Joining a social league with friends to challenge others The FIH Hockey Manager game will provide an opportunity for hockey fans who can take their knowledge of the sport off the field and sharpen their tactical and analytical thinking around the sport in a competitive and exciting format that is easily accessible to all. It’s the first time in its history that FIH launches a mobile game. FIH CEO Thierry Weil expressed his excitement about the launch of the game and said: “The launch of the FIH Hockey Manager game marks another milestone in the expansion of our digital offer for fans. I invite all hockey fans to enjoy playing this exciting game, which is a first of its kind from FIH. I also hope that many other gamers will become new hockey fans, thanks to this opportunity. I’d like to extend our sincerest thanks to our partner Gold Town Games for having developed such a fun, engaging and brilliant game!” Gold Town Games Head of Publishing Thomas Jonasson looks forward to the global reveal: “We have had a great time collaborating with FIH in bringing this product to the market. Without the FIH expert input on the finer nuances of the sport, we would be nowhere close to where the product is at today, in terms of realism and feel. We hope the game will bring lots of fun to hockey fans.” In 2021, FIH signed a 5-year partnership with GTG, a Swedish, publicly listed, mobile game developer and publisher that makes competitive, intuitive and social sport manager games applications. The company currently has three sport manager games available apart from ”FIH Hockey Manager”: one for ice hockey, one for football and an American football title as well. #HockeyEquals #HockeyInvites For more information about FIH and hockey in general, please download the Watch.Hockey app or follow the FIH social media channels – Facebook, Instagram and Twitter – and website.

17 October 2022 The International Hockey Federation has revealed the match schedules of both upcoming FIH Indoor Hockey World Cups, Men’s and Women’s. In the 6th edition of the FIH Indoor Hockey World Cup, 12 men’s and 12 women’s national indoor hockey teams will go head-to-head to be crowned indoor hockey world champions between 5-11 February in Pretoria, South Africa. The FIH Women’s Indoor World Cup will begin with Pool A action as hosts South Africa face off against Austria. USA, who have qualified for their second straight appearance at the Indoor World Cup will then take on Australia, who are the only team other than Netherlands, to play in all 6 editions of the Women’s Indoor World cup. Netherlands, who have five consecutive top-2 finishes and are the defending silver medalists, will begin their campaign in the 3rd game of the day, taking on debutants New Zealand. The opening match on day 1 of the FIH Men’s Indoor World Cup will see Australia face off against host nation South Africa in Pool B action. Netherlands and Namibia play in the 4th men’s game of the day to begin the competition in Pool A. Defending champions Austria then play against New Zealand in the 5th men’s match of the opening day, in the quest to retain their title. All 12 teams in each event will play one pool match each day, from the 5th to 9th February. The top-4 teams in each pool will then proceed to the quarter-finals, while the 5th and 6th placed teams will face off in the 9-12 positional play-off games. The full match schedule and the list of officials for the FIH Indoor Hockey World Cup 2023 can be found here. In the Women’s Indoor World Cup, the 12 participating teams have been placed in 2 pools of 6 teams each. Pool A: Netherlands, Austria, Australia, United States, South Africa, New Zealand Pool B: Ukraine, Czech Republic, Namibia, Kazakhstan, Belgium, Canada In the Men’s Indoor World Cup, the 12 participating teams have been placed in 2 pools of 6 teams each. Pool A: Austria, Netherlands, Belgium, Kazakhstan, Namibia, New Zealand Pool B: Iran, Czech Republic, Australia, South Africa, United States, Argentina Argentina men and New Zealand women have qualified for the respective Indoor Hockey World Cups for the first time. Austria are the current Men’s Indoor Hockey World Champions, having defeated Germany in the finals of the 2018 edition. Germany are the current Women’s Indoor Hockey World Champions, getting the better of Netherlands in the finals of the 2018 edition. #FIHProLeague #HockeyEquals #HockeyInvites For more information about FIH and hockey in general, please download the Watch.Hockey app or follow the FIH social media channels – Facebook, Instagram and Twitter – and website.

5 October 2022 Lausanne, Switzerland: The FIH Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup 2023 Bhubaneswar-Rourkela bursts into action in exactly 100 days at the joint venues of Kalinga Stadium, Bhubaneswar and the brand-new Birsa Munda Hockey Stadium in Rourkela. The 16 teams in the hunt for the gold medal know their pools and the opponents that stand between them and the ultimate glory. The organizing team has pulled out all the stops to ensure the best possible experience for the players and the fans. The officials are primed and ready to ensure a smooth-running and fairly contested tournament. The fans are ready to cheer for the biggest hockey stars, and witness the highest quality of hockey action that will set their pulses racing! Both Bhubaneswar and Rourkela are located in the state of Odisha in India which has hosted various international hockey events in recent years including the FIH Hockey Men’s Junior World Cup in 2021 and the FIH Hockey Men’s World Cup in 2018. This will be the second consecutive men’s world cup being hosted in the State of Odisha, India. The opening day of action in the World Cup will see matches being played in both Bhubaneswar and Rourkela, as 2016 Olympic Gold medalists Argentina take on reigning African Champions South Africa in the opening encounter, followed by more Pool A action between World No. 1 Australia and the rapidly improving France, at the Kalinga Hockey Stadium in Bhubaneswar. The action will then shift to Birsa Munda Hockey Stadium in Rourkela, where England will take on Wales in the first game to be played at the brand-new stadium. The final game of the opening day will pit hosts India against Spain in a contest that has proven to be full of goals, in recent times. While sharing his anticipation for the upcoming World Cup, FIH CEO Thierry Weil said: “It really is exciting that the FIH Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup 2023 Bhubaneswar-Rourkela is only 100 days away! We’re looking forward to outstanding matches in the iconic Kalinga Stadium of Bhubaneswar and the brand-new Birsa Munda Stadium in Rourkela, which will be a fantastic legacy for hockey, not only for India but for the world. On behalf of FIH, I’d like to renew our thanks to Hockey India for putting together what will for sure be a memorable event, our best wishes to all teams and our invitation to fans to come to the stadium in numbers or watch the matches on TV or on Watch.Hockey. Don’t miss the show!” Hockey India President Dilip Tirkey said: “Hosting the FIH Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup 2023 Bhubaneswar-Rourkela is a huge honor for us and we cannot wait to welcome the world’s top hockey players to India. All the preparations for the tournament are on track and we are very excited to organize the biggest hockey tournament. I would like to invite all the hockey fans to Bhubaneswar and Rourkela to witness the high-octane action between the world’s best sides.” Sports Minister, Odisha, Tusharkanti Behera, shared: “With just 100 days to go, Hockey craze is at an all time high in the state. The excitement is building up, especially in Rourkela where a Hockey World Cup will be hosted for the first time.  At both Bhubaneswar and Rourkela, preparations, in all aspects, are going on in full swing. Odisha eagerly awaits to welcome the teams and along with FIH & Hockey India is confident of putting up a spectacular World Cup.” Hockey has already shown itself to be hugely popular with the local fans in Odisha, and once again the 2023 World Cup will add an international flavor to the mix, with fans traveling from all over the world to cheer for the teams, adding to the great enthusiasm brought forward by the local fans, who have been present in large numbers at the previous events including the Men’s World Cup, Junior Men’s World Cup and the FIH Hockey Pro League. Watch/listen to what players have to say with 100 days to go to the World Cup! Match schedule The full match schedule for the World Cup can be found here. Tickets The ticket sales for the FIH Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup 2023 Bhubaneswar-Rourkela will start shortly. However, all fans are encouraged to pre-register their interest by filling the following form: https://fih.formstack.com/forms/world_cup_tickets_pre_registration Pools Pool A: Australia, Argentina, France, South Africa Pool B: Belgium, Germany, Korea, Japan Pool C: Netherlands, New Zealand, Malaysia, Chile Pool D: India, England, Spain, Wales #HWC2023 #HockeyInvites #HockeyEquals For more information about FIH and hockey in general, please download the Watch.Hockey app or follow the FIH social media channels – Facebook, Instagram and Twitter – and website.