The top division of the IIHF women’s World Championship is traditionally held in early April. According to a document circulating from the IIHF, the governing body is looking to change the timing for their top annual tournament.
According to sources, pressure from the PWHL is at the core of the move. The belief is, the current timing, which sees the tournament run each April, is too disruptive to the PWHL schedule. Without a change, it could alter how international women’s hockey tournaments are played.
As the document, sent to DubHockey states, “Upon request the IIHF is exploring the proposal to change the dates and wants to consider all options.” The IIHF received the proposal, and have outlined various scenarios to consider. Any change to the current timing would require amendments to the IIHF’s current bylaws.
Four Scheduling Options Presented
Within the proposal circulating are four options for the World Championship timing. One, is maintaining the current time period running the tournament in early to mid-April. Among the benefits presented for this timeline are the availability of NCAA players, longer preparation time, and facility availability. The main negative listed for maintaining the current timing is the disruption to the PWHL schedule. The next option saw a potential to push back the World Championships to begin in late April or early May. It’s timing that more closely mimics men’s hockey. This timeline held perhaps the most downfalls as outlined by the IIHF. Those issues including schedule disruptions, significant gaps between the completion of seasons overseas and the tournament, and conflicts with men’s IIHF tournaments.
Are January and November the Preferred Dates?
The other proposed dates are in November and January. November is the only option provided that explicitly states it would minimize the impact to the PWHL schedule. Conversely, this timing would provide unique challenges to NCAA players leaving school and their teams midseason. Also, it would force European leagues to change their schedules.
It’s another step in the continued push to center the women’s hockey world around the PWHL, with less consideration for developing nations. A secondary concern regarding the November date, is that national programs would slash funding to their women’s national teams. Currently, European national teams play in the Euro Women’s Hockey Tour, and other Four Nations events throughout the year receiving support from their national federations. If the international season was over in November however, there would be little reason to continue those events. Funding may become restricted to Fall preparation, leaving international players without support the remainder of the year. It could compound issues European nations are facing in the PWHL era, and threaten to decrease parity in international women’s hockey.
The January option, according to the document, would reduce disruptions based on utilizing the existing holiday breaks. There is concern that NCAA players would find this timing challenging. Similarly, the document states that “typically prioritized” men’s leagues may not relinquish their venues for the Women’s World Championship. As stated in the document, this change would likely result in shifting existing timelines for the U-18 World Championships. Potentially, the U-18 tournament could flip with the senior tournament. Another significant issue with a December tournament is that it wouldn’t allow for a World Championship in Olympic years.
The Proposal Follows Recent Synchronization
One threat is national federations choosing to “reduce or discontinue WW team funding after the event in November.” It’s a considerable issue that comes with he shifting the World Championship to November. There is fear this move, or one to January to accommodate the PWHL, could negatively impacts developing nations. During the 2024 World Championships, the IIHF stated they will begin synchronizing the Division 1B, Division 1A, and top division tournaments. The move was to allow top national team members from outside the top division to participate in World Championship events. Currently, PWHL players like France’s Chloe Aurard, and Austria’s Anna Meixner and Theresa Schafzahl would be most impacted.
The issue for non-synchronized IIHF women’s World Championship events is that these players would no longer be released to play for their nations. Their value in the PWHL could be reduced if teams knew they would lose these players for weeks at a time. While the circulating document only references the top division of the World Championships, the IIHF may need to look at the bigger picture. Can they keep the tournament’s synchronized at an alternative timing? The impact would rest completely on existing European and Asian leagues. These leagues would need to drastically re-shape their season schedules. It could also risk stalling their national development if top players are unavailable.
