FIH Hockey Women World Cup 2026 Belgium & Netherlands

The 2026 Women's FIH Hockey World Cup will be the 16th edition of the tournament. It is the quadrennial world championship for women's national field hockey teams, organized by the International Hockey Federation. The tournament will be held from August 14 to August 30, 2026, in Wavre, Belgium, and Amstelveen, the Netherlands.

Belgium and the Netherlands were awarded the hosting rights in November 2022, beating out bids from Australia, South Africa, and Uruguay. This will mark the second time the women's tournament is co-hosted, following the 2022 edition. It will be the first time Belgium hosts the event and the fifth time for the Netherlands.

Following the expansion of the field in 2018, 16 teams will participate in the tournament for the third time. The qualification process comprised the FIH Pro League, continental championships, and World Cup qualifiers. The qualification process to determine the participating teams took place between December 2023 and March 2026.

Tournament Details

Feature	Details
Tournament Name	16th FIH Women Hockey World Cup
Dates	August 15 – August 30, 2026
Host Nations	Belgium and Netherlands
Host Venues	Belfius Hockey Arena (Wavre) and Wagener Stadium (Amstelveen)
Total Teams	16 Nations
Governing Body	International Hockey Federation (FIH)

Hockey World Cup 2026: Format

The FIH Hockey World Cup 2026 will feature a new competition format for both the men's and women's tournaments, with 16 teams participating in each event. The tournament will be played in three stages, with each team playing at least five matches before the knockout rounds. In the first stage, the 16 teams will be divided into four pools (A, B, C, and D), with four teams in each pool. Each team will play one match against the other three teams in its pool. At the end of the group stage, the top two teams from each pool will advance to the second stage, while the remaining teams will be eliminated from title contention.

The second stage will replace the traditional quarter-finals. The eight qualifying teams will be divided into two new groups. Pool E will comprise the top two teams from Pools A and D, while Pool F will consist of the top two teams from Pools B and C. Teams will not replay the match against the opponent that qualified alongside them from their original pool; instead, the result of that match will be carried forward, and each team will play two new matches against the qualifiers from the paired pool. This means that every team in contention for the title will play a total of five matches before the semi-finals.

The top two teams from both Pool E and Pool F will qualify for the semi-finals. The winner of Pool E will face the runner-up of Pool F, while the winner of Pool F will face the runner-up of Pool E. The winners of these two matches will advance to the FIH Hockey World Cup 2026 final to compete for the championship, while the semi-final losers will play for the bronze medal.

FIH Hockey Women’s World Cup 2026 Pools

• Pool A: Netherlands, Australia, Chile, Japan
• Pool B: Argentina, Germany, United States of America, Scotland
• Pool C: Belgium, Spain, New Zealand, Ireland
• Pool D: China, England, India, South Africa

Women's Hockey World Cup Champions

Team	Titles	Runners-up	Third places	Fourth places
Netherlands	9 (1974, 1978, 1983, 1986*, 1990, 2006, 2014*, 2018, 2022*)	4 (1981, 1998*, 2002, 2010)	1 (1976)
Argentina	2 (2002, 2010*)	4 (1974, 1976, 1994, 2022)	3 (1978, 2006, 2014)	1 (1998)
Australia	2 (1994, 1998)	3 (1990*, 2006, 2014)	2 (1983, 2022)	3 (1981, 2002*, 2018)
Germany	2 (1976*, 1981)	2 (1978, 1986)	2 (1974, 1998)	4 (1983, 1994, 2010, 2022)
Canada		1 (1983)	1 (1986)
Ireland		1 (2018)
Belgium			1 (1978)	1 (1976)
United States			1 (1994)	1 (2014)
England			1 (2010)	1 (1990)
Spain			1 (2018)	1 (2006*)
Soviet Union			1 (1981)
South Korea			1 (1990)
China			1 (2002)
India				1 (1974)
New Zealand				1 (1986)

Where can viewers watch the live telecast of Hockey World Cup 2026 matches in India?

The live telecast of all the Hockey World Cup 2026 matches will be available on the Star Sports Network in India.

Where can viewers watch the live streaming of Hockey World Cup 2026 matches in India?

The live streaming of all Hockey World Cup 2026 matches will be available on the JioHotstar app and website in India.