Men's EuroHockey Championship

The Men's EuroHockey Championship is an international men's field hockey competition organised by the European Hockey Federation (EHF) for the top eight European national teams. It is the top division of the EuroHockey Championships. The tournament started in 1970. When the tournament is held close to the Summer Olympic games or the Men's FIH Hockey World Cup, the winner of the tournament is awarded a place in those competitions.

Men's EuroHockey Championship
Current season, competition or edition:
Current sports event 2025 Men's EuroHockey Championship
SportField hockey
Founded1970; 54 years ago (1970)
First season1970
No. of teams8
ContinentEHF (Europe)
Most recent
champion(s)
 Netherlands (7th title)
(2023)
Most titles Germany (8 titles)
Level on pyramid1

The tournament has been won by five different national teams: Germany has the most titles with eight, the Netherlands follow with seven, Spain has two wins and England and Belgium have one title each.

The most recent edition, held in Mönchengladbach, Germany, was won by the Netherlands who won their seventh title by defeating England 2–1 in the final.[1]

Format

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Since 2005 the tournament is played in Divisions, normally consisting of 8 teams. The top division, containing the eight best national teams, is called the EuroHockey Championship, below which there is the Men's EuroHockey Championship II, then the Men's EuroHockey Championship III, then the EuroHockey Championship IV.

Qualification

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National teams qualify for a division based on their performance in the previous competition. Each time the competition is held, it is with each division's previous top two teams promoted (assuming there is a higher division), and its previous bottom two teams demoted (assuming there is a lower division).

  1. 1970–1974: No Qualification
  2. 1978–2003 and 2023–present: Qualification tournament
  3. 2005–2021: Via Men's EuroHockey Championship II and Men's EuroHockey Championship III and EuroHockey Championship IV

Summary

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Assuming divisions consisting of the standard 8 teams, the teams are separated into two pools of four teams. In each pool (pool A and B) the teams play one match against each of the other teams in their pool (three in total). The teams then go on to play classification matches based on their relative ranking from these pool matches to determine their final tournament position.

Details

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In each pool, A, and B, all the teams play each other once, with points awarded as follows:

  • 3 points for a win
  • 1 point for a draw
  • 0 points for a loss

Upon completion of these matches, each team in the pool is ranked according to the number of points each has accumulated. If any teams in the pool have the same rank, then these teams are ranked:

  • According to the number of matches they won, or else, if equal
  • According to respective goal difference ('goals for' less 'goals against'), or else
  • According to 'goals for', or else
  • If only two teams are involved, according to the result of the match played between those teams, or else
  • According to the results of a penalty stroke competition between those teams, or else
  • This procedure is repeated using the penalty stroke result until the teams can be ranked

Once the relative ranking of the teams in pools A and B is settled, the semi-finals proceed with two games as follows:

  • Second Pool A v first Pool B
  • First Pool A v Second Pool B

The winners of these matches then play a match against each other for 1st and 2nd places (the final) and the losing teams play a match against each other for 3rd and 4th places (Bronze medal match).

The third and fourth placed teams in each pool are placed in Pool C (the Relegation Pool) in order to determine fifth to eighth places. Each team plays one match against the two teams that they did not previously play. The results from those games and from the game that was previously played against the other team in their original pool are used to rank each team according to the ranking procedure used in Pool A and B.

Dates

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The senior (men's and women's) Nations tournaments are held over seven to eight consecutive days (including rest days) some time during the last two weeks of July and the first four weeks of August every odd numbered year (2009, 2011, etc.).

Results

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Summaries

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Year Host Final Third place match Number of teams
Winner Score Runner-up Third place Score Fourth place
1970
Details
Brussels, Belgium  
West Germany
3–1  
Netherlands
 
Spain
2–1  
France
19
1974
Details
Madrid, Spain  
Spain
1–0  
West Germany
 
Netherlands
4–1  
England
18
1978
Details
Hanover, West Germany  
West Germany
3–2  
Netherlands
 
England
2–0  
Spain
12
1983
Details
Amsterdam, Netherlands  
Netherlands
2–2 (a.e.t.)
(8–6 p.s.)
 
Soviet Union
 
West Germany
3–1  
Spain
12
1987
Details
Moscow, Soviet Union  
Netherlands
1–1 (a.e.t.)
(3–0 p.s.)
 
England
 
West Germany
3–2 (a.e.t.)  
Soviet Union
12
1991
Details
Paris, France  
Germany
3–1  
Netherlands
 
England
1–1 (a.e.t.)
(2–1 p.s.)
 
Soviet Union
12
1995
Details
Dublin, Ireland  
Germany
2–2 (a.e.t.)
(9–8 p.s.)
 
Netherlands
 
England
2–1  
Belgium
12
1999
Details
Padua, Italy  
Germany
3–3 (a.e.t.)
(8–7 p.s.)
 
Netherlands
 
England
7–2  
Belgium
12
2003
Details
Barcelona, Spain  
Germany
1–1 (a.e.t.)
(5–4 p.s.)
 
Spain
 
England
1–1 (a.e.t.)
(6–5 p.s.)
 
Netherlands
12
2005
Details
Leipzig, Germany  
Spain
4–2  
Netherlands
 
Germany
9–1  
Belgium
8
2007
Details
Manchester, England  
Netherlands
3–2  
Spain
 
Belgium
4–3  
Germany
8
2009
Details
Amstelveen, Netherlands  
England
5–3  
Germany
 
Netherlands
6–1  
Spain
8
2011
Details
Mönchengladbach, Germany  
Germany
4–2  
Netherlands
 
England
2–1  
Belgium
8
2013
Details
Boom, Belgium  
Germany
3–1  
Belgium
 
Netherlands
3–2  
England
8
2015
Details
London, England  
Netherlands
6–1  
Germany
 
Ireland
4–2  
England
8
2017
Details
Amstelveen, Netherlands  
Netherlands
4–2  
Belgium
 
England
4–2  
Germany
8
2019
Details
Antwerp, Belgium  
Belgium
5–0  
Spain
 
Netherlands
4–0  
Germany
8
2021
Details
Amstelveen, Netherlands  
Netherlands
2–2
(4–1 p.s.o.)
 
Germany
 
Belgium
3–2  
England
8
2023
Details
Mönchengladbach, Germany  
Netherlands
2–1  
England
 
Belgium
2–0  
Germany
8
2025
Details
Mönchengladbach, Germany 8
2027
Details
London, England 12

Top four statistics

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Team Champions Runners-up Third-place Fourth-place
  Germany[a] 8 (1970, 1978, 1991, 1995, 1999, 2003, 2011*, 2013) 4 (1974, 2009, 2015, 2021) 3 (1983, 1987, 2005) 4 (2007, 2017, 2019, 2023*)
  Netherlands 7 (1983, 1987, 2007, 2015, 2017*, 2021*, 2023) 7 (1970, 1978, 1991, 1995, 1999, 2005, 2011) 4 (1974, 2009, 2013, 2019) 1 (2003)
  Spain 2 (1974, 2005) 3 (2003, 2007, 2019) 1 (1970) 3 (1978, 1983, 2009)
  England 1 (2009) 2 (1987, 2023) 7 (1978, 1991, 1995, 1999, 2003, 2011, 2017) 4 (1974, 2013, 2015*, 2021)
  Belgium 1 (2019*) 2 (2013*, 2017) 3 (2007, 2021, 2023) 4 (1995, 1999, 2005, 2011)
  Soviet Union 1 (1983) 2 (1987*, 1991)
  Ireland 1 (2015)
  France 1 (1970)
* = host

Team appearances

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Team  
1970
 
1974
 
1978
 
1983
 
1987
 
1991
 
1995
 
1999
 
2003
 
2005
 
2007
 
2009
 
2011
 
2013
 
2015
 
2017
 
2019
 
2021
 
2023
 
2025
 
2027
Total
  Austria 11th 15th 11th 7th 7th 7th Q Q 8
  Belarus Part of the Soviet Union 9th 1
  Belgium 5th 10th 8th 10th 9th 4th 4th 6th 4th 3rd 5th 4th 2nd 5th 2nd 1st 3rd 3rd Q Q 20
  Czech Republic Part of Czechoslovakia 8th 8th 2
  Czechoslovakia 10th 9th 10th Defunct 3
  Denmark 18th 14th 2
  England 6th 4th 3rd 5th 2nd 3rd 3rd 3rd 3rd 6th 5th 1st 3rd 4th 4th 3rd 5th 4th 2nd Q Q 21
  Finland 16th 18th 2
  France 4th 6th 7th 6th 11th 6th 12th 7th 5th 5th 6th 6th 8th 7th 6th 5th Q Q 18
  Germany[a] 1st 2nd 1st 3rd 3rd 1st 1st 1st 1st 3rd 4th 2nd 1st 1st 2nd 4th 4th 2nd 4th Q Q 21
  Gibraltar 12th 1
  Hungary 17th 1
  Ireland 9th 11th 8th 10th 6th 7th 5th 11th 9th 7th 5th 6th 3rd 6th 8th 15
  Italy 13th 12th 9th 12th 12th 10th 6
  Malta 19th 1
  Netherlands 2nd 3rd 2nd 1st 1st 2nd 2nd 2nd 4th 2nd 1st 3rd 2nd 3rd 1st 1st 3rd 1st 1st Q Q 21
  Poland 7th 5th 5th 9th 5th 8th 6th 9th 7th 7th 8th 7th 8th Q Q 15
  Portugal 16th 1
  Russia Part of the Soviet Union 8th 12th 7th 8th 8th 5
  Scotland 15th 7th 11th 7th 8th 10th 8th 8th 7th 9
  Soviet Union 14th 9th 2nd 4th 4th Defunct 5
  Spain 3rd 1st 4th 4th 7th 5th 8th 5th 2nd 1st 2nd 4th 6th 5th 6th 5th 2nd 5th 6th Q Q 21
   Switzerland 8th 17th 11th 11th 10th 11th 6
  Wales 12th 8th 6th 12th 12th 10th 7th 6th 6th 7th 8th 11
  Yugoslavia 13th Defunct 1
Total 19 18 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 12 [2]

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ a b Includes results representing West Germany between 1970 and 1990

References

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  1. ^ "Nederlandse hockeyers weer Europees kampioen na zege op Engeland". rtlnieuws.nl (in Dutch). RTL Nieuws. 27 August 2023. Retrieved 28 September 2023.
  2. ^ "Competitions Archive". p. 19. Retrieved 25 August 2018.

Further reading

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