One of the most intense rivalries in international sport will be reignited as India and Pakistan prepare to face off in the 2026 FIH Hockey World Cup. The two South Asian nations, who share a complex history, have been drawn into the same group for the men’s tournament, which is scheduled to commence this Saturday.
The 2026 edition of the FIH Hockey World Cup will be co-hosted by Wavre, Belgium, and Amstelveen, The Netherlands, running from August 15 to August 30. Both the men’s and women’s competitions will feature 16 teams, each organized into four distinct pools. Germany enters the men’s tournament as the defending world champions from 2023, while the Netherlands holds the women’s title from 2022.
Tournament organizers have introduced a significant format change for this year, eliminating the traditional quarterfinal stage in favor of a second phase known as “crossover pools.” Following the initial pool stage, teams will be re-grouped into four new pools—E, F, G, and H—based on their first-round performance. This structure ensures that every team plays three additional matches. The top two finishers from Pools E and F will advance directly to the semifinals, while the remaining teams will compete in classification matches to determine final rankings from 5th to 16th place. The tournament concludes with the bronze-medal match and the final.
The men’s Pool D features England, India, Pakistan, and Wales. India and Pakistan are scheduled to meet on August 19 at the Wagener Stadium in Amstelveen. The match is set to begin at 15:00 local time, which corresponds to 6:30pm in India and 6pm in Pakistan. This encounter marks the first time the two teams have met in a World Cup match in 16 years, with their last meeting occurring in the 2010 edition in New Delhi, where India secured a 4-1 victory.
Historically, the two nations have faced each other five times in World Cup competition, with India holding a 3-2 advantage. Their only final meeting took place in 1975 in Kuala Lumpur, where India claimed a 2-1 win. While Pakistan remains the most successful team in World Cup history with four titles (1971, 1978, 1982, and 1994), India has won the tournament once, in 1975, alongside their record of eight Olympic gold medals.
The men’s tournament pools are as follows: Pool A includes Argentina, Japan, the Netherlands, and New Zealand; Pool B consists of Belgium, France, Germany, and Malaysia; Pool C features Australia, Spain, Ireland, and South Africa; and Pool D comprises England, India, Pakistan, and Wales. The women’s tournament pools are: Pool A (Australia, Chile, Japan, Netherlands), Pool B (Argentina, Germany, Scotland, United States), Pool C (Belgium, Spain, Ireland, New Zealand), and Pool D (China, England, India, South Africa).
The tournament schedule begins with group stage fixtures, including India versus Wales and England versus Pakistan on the opening days. Following the crossover phase, the classification matches for 9th through 16th place will take place, alongside the 5th/6th and 7th/8th place playoffs. The semifinals are scheduled to determine the finalists, with the bronze medal and championship matches serving as the tournament’s conclusion on August 30.
The crossover pools are defined as follows: Pool E includes the 1st and 2nd place finishers from Pools A and D; Pool F includes the 1st and 2nd place finishers from Pools B and C; Pool G features the 3rd and 4th place finishers from Pools A and D; and Pool H consists of the 3rd and 4th place finishers from Pools B and C.
The final days of the tournament will see intense competition to decide the podium. The bronze-medal match is scheduled for 14:00, followed by the final at 16:30, where the winner of Semifinal 1 will face the winner of Semifinal 2 to decide the 2026 world champion.
However, they hold the record for most Olympic gold medals (8).
13:00 – India vs Wales (Pool D) 14:30 – Germany vs Malaysia (Pool B) 19:00 – England vs Pakistan (Pool D) 21:00 – Belgium vs France (Pool B)
11:30 – Australia vs Ireland (Pool C) 14:30 – Spain vs South Africa (Pool C) 16:00 – Netherlands vs New Zealand (Pool A) 19:00 – Argentina vs Japan (Pool A)
Al Jazeera tells you everything you need to know before India vs Pakistan
12:30 – Pakistan vs Wales (Pool D) 14:00 – France vs Malaysia (Pool B) 15:00 – India vs England (Pool D) 20:30 – Germany vs Belgium (Pool B)
09:30 – New Zealand vs Japan (Pool A) 14:00 – Spain vs Australia (Pool C) 17:00 – Ireland vs South Africa (Pool C) 18:00 – Argentina vs Netherlands (Pool A)
12:30 – England vs Wales (Pool D) 15:00 – Pakistan vs India (Pool D) 17:00 – France vs Germany (Pool B) 20:30 – Belgium vs Malaysia (Pool B)
11:00 – Australia vs South Africa (Pool C) 12:30 – New Zealand vs Argentina (Pool A) 17:00 – Ireland vs Spain (Pool C) 18:00 – Netherlands vs Japan (Pool A)
11:00 – 3rd Pool B vs 4th Pool C (Pool H) 14:00 – 3rd Pool C vs 4th Pool B (Pool H) 17:00 – 1st Pool C vs 2nd Pool B (Pool F) 20:30 – 1st Pool B vs 2nd Pool C (Pool F)
10:00 – 3rd Pool A vs 4th Pool D (Pool G) 13:00 – 3rd Pool D vs 4th Pool A (Pool G) 16:00 – 1st Pool A vs 2nd Pool D (Pool E) 19:00 – 1st Pool D vs 2nd Pool A (Pool E)
11:30 – 4th Pool B vs 4th Pool C (Pool H) 14:30 – 3rd Pool B vs 3rd Pool C (Pool H) 17:30 – 1st Pool B vs 1st Pool C (Pool F) 20:30 – 2nd Pool B vs 2nd Pool C (Pool F)
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