On May 13, the 85th Ice Hockey World Championship will begin in two Finnish cities, Helsinki and Tampere. Sixteen national teams will participate in the tournament. The International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) suspended Russian and Belarussian teams from the world championship after, at dawn on February 24, the Rascists, backed by the Belarusians, unleashed a full-scale war against Ukraine. The IIHF replaced the aggressors with France and Austria. The new world champion will be determined on May 29.
Format
Finland will host the World Hockey Championship for the ninth time in history. The Finns last hosted two championships with the Swedes in 2012 and 2013. Six other times they hosted the world championship on their own – in 1965, 1974, 1982, 1991, 1997 and 2003.
In the first phase, the teams are divided into two groups of eight teams. According to the round robin system, teams will determine four quarterfinalists. Teams that will close the eight will leave the elite division. Their place will be taken by the winners of the World Cup Division 1A – Slovenia and Hungary.
Arena
The World Cup will be held at two arenas in Helsinki and Tampere. And it is not the capital’s stadium that is considered the main stadium of the tournament.
Nokia Arena
The final match will take Nokia Arena in Tampere. The arena, which at a hockey match can accommodate 13,455 spectators, was opened in December last year. Thanks to modern technology and LED screens, it looks amazing during the game. Nokia Arena has also received ISO certification, which recommends responsible practices and development in terms of environmental and social protection.
Another stadium of the tournament, Helsinki Ice Hall, got its name only recently. Previously, it was Hartwall Arena. The rights to it belonged to Timchenko and the Rotenberg brothers, oligarchs from Putin’s inner circle. The name Hartwall comes from the biggest sponsor, a drinks producer. Gennady Timchenko’s 22.5% stake in the facility (valued at €10 million) was confiscated by the Finnish Executive Service shortly after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Roman Rotenberg’s share was left untouched because he was under U.S. sanctions, but has not yet been punished by the European Union.
Helsinki Ice Hall
The open-air Helsinki Ice Hall is the home arena of the club Yokerit. The stadium has a capacity of 13,464 spectators during hockey games. Previously, the Helsinki Ice Hall has already hosted the 1997, 2003 and 2012 World Championships. In 1999 and 2017 it hosted the World Figure Skating Championships, and in 2002 – Floorball. In 2007 the Helsinki Ice Hall hosted the final of the Eurovision Song Contest.