(Sports Correspondent: Imran Sohail)
Gongshu, China to Host Women’s Asia Cup 2025, Winner to Qualify for FIH Hockey World Cup 2026
GONGSHU, CHINA: The Women’s Asia Cup 2025, Asia’s premier women’s hockey tournament, will kick off in Gongshu on 5 September, running through 14 September. The champions will secure a direct spot at the FIH Hockey World Cup Belgium & Netherlands 2026.
Tournament Format
Eight teams will compete, divided into Pool A and Pool B. The top two teams from each pool will advance to the Super 4s stage, where rankings from one to four will decide the semi-final line-up. The remaining teams will play classification matches for world ranking points.
Pools:
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Pool A: China, Chinese Taipei, Korea, Malaysia
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Pool B: India, Japan, Thailand, Singapore
Opening Day Schedule – 5 September
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Pool B: Japan vs Singapore | India vs Thailand
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Pool A: Korea vs Chinese Taipei | China vs Malaysia
The initial pool stage runs from 5-8 September, followed by the secondary pool stage, classification matches, and medal games from 10-14 September.
World Cup Qualification
The Asia Cup winner earns a spot at the FIH Hockey World Cup 2026. Already qualified for the World Cup are Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, Argentina, USA, and Spain. Other continental championships in Africa, Oceania, and Asia will fill additional slots, with the remaining teams entering via the FIH Hockey World Cup Qualifiers 2026.
Teams in the 2026 qualifiers so far include Uruguay, Chile, Canada, Ireland, England, France, Italy, Wales, Scotland, Austria, and Switzerland, with four more spots from the Asia Cup and one from the Oceania Cup still up for grabs.
