2022-23 Hockey World Cups' bidding delayed as nations await govermental guarantees

The bidding process for the hosting rights of 2022-23 Hockey World Cups has been delayed as the respective countries have requested more time for governmental guarantees.

The Belgium national team won the 2018 Men's Hockey World Cup in Bhubaneswar.

The FIH has further delayed the decision on naming hosts for the 2022-23 World Cups – both men and women – to its Executive Board meeting, to be held in November this year. The decision was taken, the FIH said, following requests from several bidders seeking more time to get governmental guarantees.

The FIH has given countries the option of two windows for hosting the tournaments – July 1-17, 2022 and January 13-29, 2023 – with Germany and India being the only two bidders open to hosting either men or women. But while Germany would prefer the first window, India has opted for the second. Malaysia and Spain have bid for the men’s World Cup in the first window and Australia and New Zealand have expressed interest in the women’s tournament in 2023.

While government guarantees are essential for hosting big-ticket events, interestingly, the issue of government clearances for all participating teams has been an issue in India for some time with the country losing out on a couple of events as a result.

Netherlands has successfully defended the women's World Cup title by beating Ireland at London in August 2018, while Belgium beat the Netherlands' men's team to win its first World Cup title at Bhubaneswar in December later in the year.