Ice hockey
at the Games of the Olympiad
Hockey pictogram
VenuesPalaItalia
Fiera Milano
Dates6–22 February
No. of events2 (1 men and 1 women)
Competitors530

The ice hockey competitions of the 2026 Winter Olympics will be played at two venues located in the Milan cluster. The PalaItalia and Fiera Milano.

The men's tournament will have 12 teams competing, and the women's tournament 10.[1] Russia and Belarus are currently banned from competing in international championships through the IIHF's 2024 program due to their military aggression in Ukraine.[2] The decision on whether to expand the ban has not been made yet and may impact the championship.

Venues

PalaItalia Fiera Milano
PalaItalia Fiera Milano
Milan Milan

Men's tournament

The tournament will feature twelve countries, eight qualifying through the IIHF World Ranking, the host Italy, and three through qualifying tournaments. The format remains the same as the previous three Olympics; three groups of four compete in three games to determine seeding, each play every other team in their group, followed by four rounds of elimination games. Each group winner receives a bye into the second round, along with the highest ranked of the remaining teams. The remaining eight teams play an eliminating qualification game to advance to the quarter-final round. Each quarter-final winner advances to the semi-finals with the winners playing for the gold medal and the losers playing for the bronze.

Qualification

Qualification for the men's tournament at the 2026 Winter Olympics was determined by the IIHF World Ranking following the 2023 Men's Ice Hockey World Championships. The top eight will be joined the hosts and three qualifiers.[1]

Participating nations

The groups were established following the 2023 Men's Ice Hockey World Championships.[3] Qualifiers one, two, and three, are the winners of the final qualification tournaments. Their designation will be determined by their qualification seeding.

Group A Group B Group C

Women's tournament

Ten countries will again compete in the women's tournament, six qualifying through the IIHF World Ranking, the host Italy, and three through qualifying tournaments.

Qualification

Qualification for the women's tournament at the 2026 Winter Olympics will be determined by the IIHF World Ranking following the 2024 Women's Ice Hockey World Championships.[1]

Participating nations

The groups will be established following the 2024 Women's Ice Hockey World Championships. Qualifiers one, two, and three, are the winners of the final qualification tournaments. Their designation will be determined by their qualification seeding.

Group A Group B

Qualification summary / Participating NOC's

Nations Men Women Athletes
 CanadaYesYes48
 Czech RepublicYes25
 FinlandYes25
 GermanyYes25
 ItalyYesYes48
 Russia[lower-alpha 1]Yes25
 SwedenYes25
 SwitzerlandYes25
 United StatesYesYes48
Total: 9 NOCs 9 3 294
  1. 1 2 The participation of Russia is not yet confirmed and depends on if the team is allowed to return to the IIHF Championship program.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Qualification System – XXV Olympic Winter Games" (PDF). Olympics.com. Retrieved 2 December 2023.
  2. ↑ "Russia, Belarus banned from international hockey world championships next season". CBC.ca. 22 March 2023. Retrieved 2 December 2023.
  3. ↑ "2026 Men's Olympic Winter Games & Qualification Tournament Program" (PDF). IIHF.com. Retrieved 2 December 2023.
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