England women and Ireland will kick off the 2023 EuroHockey Championships in Mönchengladbach next summer after the men’s and women’s pools and schedule were released.
The 2023 Championships run from from Aug 18-27 and will feature 40 games between 16 teams over 10 days, with the winners guaranteed a slot at the Paris Olympics.
Pool A showcases 11-time winners Netherlands who begin their title defence against Spain, while Belgium and Italy complete the group.
The men’s competition gets under way on Aug 19 with reigning champions the Netherlands coming up against France in Pool B, a year out from the Paris 2024 Olympics.
The opening Sunday sees the last group make their debut in the tournament with Spain facing off against Austria, while their Pool A rivals will be Belgium and England who meet in their opening tie of the competition.
The four group line-ups were determined by the FIH World Rankings as they stood in September 2022.
Each team will play three round-robin group games with the top two in each section advancing to the semi-final stages while the third and fourth place sides will contest Pool C to determine who finishes in fifth to eighth place.
The top six finishers overall in both the men’s and women’s competition will qualify for the 2025 edition of the EuroHockey Championships.
The EuroHockey Championship winners will also earn a place at the 2024 Olympic Games. Tickets for next summer’s main event will go on sale next week.
EuroHockey 2023 fixtures and match schedule
