29th May 2018: The European Hockey Federation has confirmed today the allocation of places in the top men’s (EHL) and women’s club competitions (EHCC) for the 2018/19 season.
Following the conclusion of this year’s EuroHockey club events, the EHF has released the final ranking positions which determine how many places each country get in the men’s Euro Hockey League and the women’s EuroHockey Club Cup.
EHL:
Click here for the Men’s rankings and here for EHL ranking points
On the men’s side, Scotland and Belarus were the big winners in the Euro Hockey League’s final ranking positions following the conclusion of the 2017/18 European club competitions.
Grange’s victory in the EuroHockey Club Champions Trophy last week, a result that was enough to lift Scotland up one place in the rankings list into eighth space.
It means that Scotland will get two spaces in the EHL next season with Ireland – who dropped from sixth place to ninth – seeing their quota reduced to one place.
Belarus were the other side to prosper with HC Minsk’s third place finish at the Trophy event, combined with Stroitel Brest’s fifth place, being enough to lift their country above Wales into 12th on the ranking list.
This brings with it one EHL spot in ROUND1 next October in Barcelona. It will be the fourth season that Belarus has had a representative in the EHL, the last being in the 2013/14 campaign.
Of the other movers, France moved up to an all-time high of fifth place, overtaking England in the rankings with Russia also moved up a place into seventh.
As such, the breakdown of EHL spots now sees the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium and Spain have three places, France, England, Russia and Scotland with two and Ireland, Poland, Austria and Belarus with one.
EHCC:
Click here for the Women’s rankings and here for EHCC ranking points
The women’s top six for the EuroHockey Club Cup has the same line-up of nations, meaning next year’s competition will have a similar make-up.
The Netherlands and Germany will continue to have two entries while Spain, England, Belarus and Ireland will all have one place.
Spain did move from fourth to third courtesy of Club de Campo’s performances in Surbiton last week, moving them above England in the ratings.
The only other moves on the list were the introduction of the Czech Republic and France into the list. They were promoted to the Trophy from their performances in 2017 but Slavia Prague and Lille’s seventh and eighth positions in Dublin in May 2018 means they will not be able to add further points in 2019.
Belgium, Scotland and Italy dropped to 10th, 11th and 12th place respectively due to having no representatives this season in either the Cup or the Trophy.
Braxgata (BEL) and Edinburgh University (SCO), however, did well in Challenge I this year to give their nations a chance of bouncing back next year.
What happens next?
The EHF will be in contact with the Member Associations directly in relation to entries and offers to host (EHCC).
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