Karachi, July 24: The Pakistan hockey team’s participation in the 2025-26 FIH Pro League lies in jeopardy because of financial crunch, derailing the three-time Olympic champions’ much-anticipated comeback at the international stage.
The Pakistan men’s hockey team, which has won the World Cup four times, has been invited to compete in the FIH Pro League 2025-26 after New Zealand, who had earned direct qualification by winning the 2024-25 Nations Cup, decided not to participate in the upcoming season.
The International Hockey Federation (FIH), the game’s governing body, formally extended the invitation to Pakistan on Wednesday and had given them a deadline till August 12 to inform their confirmation.
Pakistan, which has failed to qualify for the last three Olympics and also World Cup, has been given an opportunity by the FIH to compete against top tier teams in the competition that will be held from December, 2025 till June, 2026.
But the problem is that the cash-strapped Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) doesn’t have funds to send the team for the Pro League.
The PHF have now requested the Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) to release 700 million rupees (around USD 2.5 million) for the entire campaign.
The state run PSB, at its recent annual meeting, made it clear that it doesn’t have the funds to ensure Pakistan’s participation in the Pro League.
The PSB, in fact, has already directed the PHF to submit detailed accounts of the funds allocated to them since last year and have flatly refused to release more funds to the national federation to pay daily and travel allowances of players and officials, who went to the recent FIH Nations Cup.
Pakistan lost in the final of the FIH Nations Cup to New Zealand, who automatically qualified for the Pro League. But New Zealand have informed the FIH that they wouldn’t be sending their team, as a result of which second-best Pakistan have got a chance to compete against the top tier teams.
“But whether this will be possible has to be seen as the PSB will send a summary to the Prime Minister for allocation of special funds to allow the PHF to send the team to the Pro League,” an official in the PSB said. (PTI)
