India captain Harmanpeet Singh (Image credit: Hockey India)
The much-awaited 2026 FIH Men’s Hockey World Cup is set to begin in the Netherlands and Belgium. The 15-day tournament will be held at the Wagener Hockey Stadium in Amstelveen and the newly built Belfius Hockey Arena in Wavre. The 16-team tournament will feature a new format this year. The Harmanpreet Singh-led side will begin its campaign against Wales on August 15 before taking on England and Pakistan. The men’s Hockey World Cup will get underway on Saturday, August 15. The tournament will conclude with the final on August 30. A total of 16 teams have been divided into four pools, with four teams in each group. Pool Teams Pool A Netherlands, Argentina, New Zealand, Japan Pool B Belgium, Germany, France, Malaysia Pool C Australia, Spain, Ireland, South Africa Pool D India, England, Pakistan, Wales India will open their campaign against Wales on August 15. They will then face England on August 17 before playing Pakistan on August 19.Hockey World Cup 2026: India’s matches Date Match Time (IST) August 15 India vs Wales 4:30 PM August 17 India vs England 6:30 PM August 19 Pakistan vs India 6:30 PM August 15 Germany vs Malaysia — 6:00 PM (IST) India vs Wales — 4:30 PM (IST) England vs Pakistan — 10:30 PM (IST) August 16 Belgium vs France — 12:30 AM (IST) Australia vs Ireland — 3:00 PM (IST) Spain vs South Africa — 6:00 PM (IST) Netherlands vs New Zealand — 7:30 PM (IST) Argentina vs Japan — 10:30 PM (IST) August 17 Pakistan vs Wales — 4:00 PM (IST) France vs Malaysia — 5:30 PM (IST) India vs England — 6:30 PM (IST) August 18 Germany vs Belgium — 12:00 AM (IST) New Zealand vs Japan — 1:00 PM (IST) Spain vs Australia — 5:30 PM (IST) Ireland vs South Africa — 8:30 PM (IST) Argentina vs Netherlands — 9:30 PM (IST) August 19 England vs Wales — 4:00 PM (IST) Pakistan vs India — 6:30 PM (IST) France vs Germany — 8:30 PM (IST) August 20 Belgium vs Malaysia — 12:00 AM (IST) Australia vs South Africa — 2:30 PM (IST) New Zealand vs Argentina — 4:00 PM (IST) Ireland vs Spain — 8:30 PM (IST) Netherlands vs Japan — 9:30 PM (IST) Second group stage The second stage will begin on August 21. August 21 3rd Pool B vs 4th Pool C — 2:30 PM (IST) 3rd Pool C vs 4th Pool B — 5:30 PM (IST) 1st Pool C vs 2nd Pool B — 8:30 PM (IST) August 22 1st Pool B vs 2nd Pool C — 12:00 AM (IST) 3rd Pool A vs 4th Pool D — 1:30 PM (IST) Join conversation Share your thoughts in the comments Be respectful · TOI community guidelines 3rd Pool D vs 4th Pool A — 4:30 PM (IST) 1st Pool A vs 2nd Pool D — 7:30 PM (IST) 1st Pool D vs 2nd Pool A — 10:30 PM (IST) August 23 4th Pool B vs 4th Pool C — 3:00 PM (IST) 3rd Pool B vs 3rd Pool C — 6:00 PM (IST) 1st Pool B vs 1st Pool C — 9:00 PM (IST) August 24 2nd Pool B vs 2nd Pool C — 12:00 AM (IST) 4th Pool A vs 4th Pool D — 1:00 PM (IST) 3rd Pool A vs 3rd Pool D — 4:00 PM (IST) 2nd Pool A vs 2nd Pool D — 6:15 PM (IST) 1st Pool A vs 1st Pool D — 9:30 PM (IST) The classification and knockout matches will take place from August 28. August 28 13th/14th Place — 1:00 PM (IST) 15th/16th Place — 2:30 PM (IST) 11th/12th Place — 4:00 PM (IST) 9th/10th Place — 5:30 PM (IST) 5th/6th Place — 6:30 PM (IST) 7th/8th Place — 8:30 PM (IST) Semi-final 1 — 9:30 PM (IST) August 29 Semi-final 2 — 12:00 AM (IST) August 30 Bronze Medal Match — 5:30 PM (IST) Final — 8:00 PM (IST) Get the latest Sports News and Live updates.
India have been placed in Pool D alongside England, Pakistan and Wales. The teams finishing in the top two positions in each opening-round pool will move into Pools E and F. The remaining teams will enter the classification pools. Download the TOI app.
The traditional quarterfinal stage has been replaced by a second group stage, meaning every team will play at least five matches before the knockout rounds.