ISLAMABAD: The International Hockey Federation (FIH) on Wednesday confirmed that Oman would replace Pakistan in the forthcoming Hockey Men’s Junior World Cup, set to be held in India from November 28.
The decision came after Pakistan’s withdrawal from the mega event due to security concerns.
The Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) Secretary Rana Mujahid announced that the decision had been formally communicated.
“Under the prevailing circumstances, it is by no means appropriate to travel to India and play,” Mujahid said.
“Pakistan had proposed staging their matches at a neutral venue instead — a suggestion the FIH did not accept,” he added.
Following this, FIH confirmed Oman’s participation in the tournament in a press release.
Oman was included based on its ranking in the Junior Asia Cup 2024, which served as a qualifier for the Junior World Cup.
“For the very first time, the FIH Hockey Junior World Cups 2025, women and men, will involve 24 teams each, enabling greater accessibility to FIH events, which is one of the fundamental principles of the FIH Empowerment and Engagement strategy,” the press release said.
The pool stage matches of the World Cup will run from November 28 to December 2, followed by knockout matches, which will take place from December 4 to December 10.
Teams and Pools
Pool A: Canada, Germany, Ireland, South Africa
Pool B: Chile, India, Oman, Switzerland
Pool C: Argentina, China, Japan, New Zealand
Pool D: Belgium, Egypt, Spain, Namibia
Pool E: Austria, England, Malaysia, Netherlands
Pool F: Australia, Bangladesh, France, Korea
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