The Superisligaen , known as the Metal Ligaen for sponsorship reasons, is the highest-level ice hockey league in Denmark . The league consists of 9 professional teams.
50-793: Teams from the Superisligaen can participate in the IIHF 's annual Champions Hockey League (CHL), competing for the European Trophy. Participation is based on the strength of the various leagues in Europe (excluding the European/Asian Kontinental Hockey League ). Going into the 2022–23 CHL season , the Superisligaen was ranked the No. 13 league in Europe, allowing them to send their top team to compete in
100-515: A national body dedicated to the sport, or do not regularly participate in the international championships (Chile is still listed as 'affiliate' despite having ice hockey now). They are Algeria , Andorra , Argentina , Armenia , Bahrain , Brazil , Chile , Colombia , Greece , Indonesia , Jamaica , Kenya , Lebanon , Liechtenstein , Macau , Morocco , Nepal , North Macedonia , Oman , Portugal , Puerto Rico , Qatar , Tunisia , and Uzbekistan . The following are countries who will compete in
150-527: A player must have competed in at least one of four IIHF tournaments (the Winter Olympics , IIHF World Championships , IIHF World Junior Championships , or IIHF World U18 Championships ) as well as in a national domestic league "of the highest caliber for that country," with "the combined performances of which were deemed superior to all other players". The Johan Bollue Award was established in 2023, and named for Johan Bollue (1964–2021) who served as
200-949: A worldwide governing body for ice hockey . It is based in Zurich , Switzerland, and has 84 member countries. The IIHF maintains the IIHF World Ranking based on international ice hockey tournaments . Rules of play for IIHF events differ from hockey in North America and the rules of the National Hockey League (NHL). Decisions of the IIHF can be appealed through the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne , Switzerland. The IIHF maintains its own hall of fame for international ice hockey. The IIHF Hall of Fame
250-567: Is an all-star team of hockey players from international tournaments. The team was chosen based on the players' "impact in international ice hockey over a period of at least a decade," with a requirement that they must have performed "at the highest possible level (Olympics, the IIHF World Championship or the Canada Cup/World Cup tournaments)." The selection was named in 2008. All six players were already members of
300-481: Is given occasionally, with only three recipients being named in its existence; in 2012, 2013, and in 2024. The IIHF established male and female player of the year awards in 2023, to be given annually in recognition of the player who "best exemplifies exceptional skill, determination, team success, and sporting character on and off the ice during the preceding season". It is selected by a panel of media and representatives drawn from IIHF member states. To be eligible,
350-566: Is responsible for processing the international players' transfers. It is also the body that presides over ice hockey at the Olympic Games as well as over all levels of the IIHF World Championships . The federation works in collaboration with local committees when organizing its 25 World Championships, at five different categories. The IIHF is also responsible for the organization of European club competitions such as
400-732: Is the governing body of ice hockey in Denmark . It is a member of the National Olympic Committee and Sports Confederation of Denmark (DIF) and the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF). The association was founded on 27 November 1949 and became a member of the International Ice Hockey Federation the same year. The union is responsible for all of Denmark's national ice hockey teams and organizes
450-473: Is the body responsible with arranging the sponsorships , license rights, advertising and merchandising in connection with all IIHF competitions. Another purpose of the federation is to provide aid in the young players' development and in the development of coaches and game officials . On the other hand, all the events of IIHF are organized by the federation along with establishing and maintaining contact with any other sport federations or sport groups. The IIHF
500-400: Is to promote friendly relations among the member national associations and to operate in an organized manner for the good order of the sport. The federation may take the necessary measures in order to conduct itself and its affairs in accordance with its statutes , bylaws and regulations as well as in holding a clear jurisdiction with regards to ice hockey at the international level. The IIHF
550-770: The 2014 Men's Ice Hockey World Championships in Belarus , because of the poor human rights record of the country. Several human rights organisations launched the "Don't play with the dictator!" boycott campaign and there were appeals from the US Congress , the German Parliament , and the European Parliament . The IIHF again received criticism for planning to partly hold the 2021 Men's Ice Hockey World Championships in Belarus. In January 2021,
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#1732802216346600-407: The 2025 Men's Ice Hockey World Championships , divided by tier: The following are countries who will compete in the 2025 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships , divided by tier: The following are countries who are competing in the 2024 Women's Ice Hockey World Championships , divided by tier: Based on the number of registered ice hockey players, including male, female and junior, provided by
650-579: The Belarusian state flag in Riga with the former flag associated with the Belarusian opposition groups, including at the 2021 IIHF World Championship display of flags. This was by order of Mayor of Riga Mārtiņš Staķis and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Latvia Edgars Rinkēvičs . The IIHF issued a statement protesting the replacement of the flag, and IIHF president René Fasel asked the mayor to remove
700-704: The Champions Hockey League or the Continental Cup . The federation is governed by the legislative body of the IIHF which is the General Congress along with the executive body, which is the Council. The Congress is entitled to make decisions with regard to the game's rules, the statutes and bylaws in the name of the federation. It is also the body that elects the president and the council or otherwise known as board. The president of
750-578: The European U19 Championship , a junior competition for players aged 19 and under. The age limit was later reduced to 18 in 1977. During the 1980s Canada stopped boycotting the World Championships and Olympic Games. The Canadians had boycotted these tournaments between 1970 and 1976 after the IIHF had refused to allow them to roster professional players at the World Championships from NHL teams that had not qualified for
800-637: The National Hockey League to transfer its exhibits to the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto , Canada, as of 29 July 1998. In 2015, the IIHF created the Torriani Award for "players with an outstanding career from non-top hockey nations". The award was named for Bibi Torriani , who played internationally for the Switzerland men's national ice hockey team . The IIHF includes the recipients of
850-719: The Philippines , Poland , Romania , Russia (suspended), Serbia , Singapore , Slovakia , Slovenia , South Africa , South Korea , Spain , Sweden , Switzerland , Taiwan , Thailand , Turkey , Turkmenistan , Ukraine , the United Arab Emirates , and the United States . Full members have a national body dedicated to the sport, and participate annually in the international championships. Only full members have voting rights. In addition, there are 23 associate and 1 affiliate members who either do not have
900-550: The Stanley Cup playoffs . President Sabetzki found a compromise that resulted in the return of Canada to international events beginning in 1977. The pro players whose teams had been eliminated from the playoffs were allowed to compete and in exchange, Canada agreed to participate in the World Championships. They also waived their right to host any World Championships. The creation of the Canada Cup (a competition organized by
950-640: The Americans refusal of East German passports in reaction to the building of the Berlin Wall by East Germany . For the 1965–66 season, the IIHF created the European Cup , a tournament consisting of the top club teams from around Europe. The competition was originated by Günther Sabetzki , based on the Association football European Cup (now UEFA Champions League ). In 1968 the IIHF organized
1000-558: The CHL. The Danish Ice hockey league has become a springboard for foreign players and a place to start their European careers, before traveling to other bigger leagues such as the Swedish Hockey League or DEL . The teams rely mostly on foreign talent, but there are still a lot of skilled professional Danish players. Mostly the older Danish players are full-time professional. Most younger players are semi-professional because of
1050-457: The IIHF Hall of Fame. The Milestone Award was established in 2012, to be given to "the team or teams that make a significant contribution to international hockey or will have a decisive influence on the development of the game". The IIHF wanted an award to recognize great events, great teams or moments that have shaped the game, and sought suggestions from hockey fans to rename it. The award
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#17328022163461100-413: The IIHF excluded Russian and Belarusian national and club teams from IIHF competitions during the 2023–24 season, based on safety considerations. The IIHF awards ceremony is held annually on the second last day of each Ice Hockey World Championship, and its hall of fame induction ceremony on the final day of the championships. Prior to 2024, all awards were presented during one ceremony on the final day of
1150-639: The IIHF is the representative of the federation. He represents the federation's interests in all external matters and he is also responsible that the decisions are made according to the federation's statutes and regulations. The president is assisted by the General Secretary, who is also the highest ranked employee of the IIHF. The International Ice Hockey Federation was founded on 15 May 1908 at 34 Rue de Provence in Paris, France, as Ligue Internationale de Hockey sur Glace (LIHG). The 1920 Olympics were
1200-752: The IIHF name, its flag and its symbols from such sites, or to restore the flag, insisting that the IIHF is an "apolitical sports organization". In response, Staķis said he would remove the IIHF flags. On 28 February 2022, the IIHF suspended the memberships of the Russian and Belarusian ice hockey federations until further notice due to the countries' invasion of Ukraine . Still, non-Russian players in Russian clubs are according to IIHF rules bound by their contracts, and cannot leave their clubs and Russia until their contracts expire or are terminated by their club. If players leave anyway they can be sued and would be blocked from playing for other clubs. On 22 March 2023,
1250-529: The IIHF withdrew the 2021 World Championship from Minsk due to safety and security issues during the political unrest, besides the COVID-19 pandemic and decided to solely hold the tournament in Riga , Latvia . On 23 May 2021, civilian Ryanair Flight 4978 , which was enroute from Athens to Vilnius, was forced to land in Minsk and a passenger of that flight was detained. In protest, Latvian officials replaced
1300-523: The Metal Cup. In 2017, the Metal Cup format was changed. Because of Hvidovre Fighters joining the league, the format would now only consist of teams from the Metal Ligaen and, instead of a playout format, the top 4 teams after 20 regular season games would be invited to a final four tournament. The Danish Ice Hockey Union officially recognizes the league as the Superisligaen. Through the years,
1350-620: The NHL in Canada every four years) was also part of the new agreement between the IIHF and North American professional hockey. The IIHF continued to grow in numbers during the 1980s and 1990s, both due to political events and the continued growth of hockey worldwide. The dissolution of the Soviet Union saw its membership transferred to Russia , and the addition of four ex- Soviet republics ; Azerbaijan , Belarus , Kazakhstan , and Ukraine to
1400-437: The Torriani Award in the list of Hall of Fame inductees. The Paul Loicq Award was established in 1998. It is presented annually to honor a person who has made "outstanding contributions to the IIHF and international ice hockey". Named after Paul Loicq , who was president of the IIHF from 1922 until 1947, it is the highest personal recognition given by the world governing body of ice hockey. The IIHF Centennial All-Star Team
1450-643: The boycott, and were joined by Norway , West Germany , Italy , and Switzerland . The 1962 World Championship , hosted by the American cities of Colorado Springs and Denver , was boycotted by the Soviet Union and Czechoslovakia , which led to a further boycott by the other Eastern Bloc countries. At issue was the boycott of the 1957 championships in Moscow by Canada and the United States, and
1500-517: The celebrations, the 2008 World Championship was held in Canada for the first time (the tournament was co-hosted by the cities of Halifax and Quebec City ). The number of members grew in the 21st century: Chile (2000), Bosnia and Herzegovina (2001), Liechtenstein (2001), North Macedonia (2001), the United Arab Emirates (2001), Macau (2005), Malaysia (2006), Moldova (2008; presumably expelled from IIHF membership in 2023), Georgia (2009), Kuwait (2009; had originally joined in 1985, but
1550-558: The championships. Prior to the establishment of the IIHF Hall of Fame, the IIHF displayed a collection of historical artifacts from World Championships and the Olympic Games in temporary exhibits. From 1992 to 1997, the IIHF loaned its exhibits to the International Hockey Hall of Fame in Kingston, Ontario , Canada. The first step taken by the IIHF to create its own hall of fame was a proposal made in 1996, which
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1600-505: The federation. In addition, the memberships of Estonia , Latvia , and Lithuania - all of which had initially joined the IIHF in the 1930s but were expelled following their annexation by the Soviet Union - were renewed. The breakup of Yugoslavia also resulted in an increase in membership. Croatia and Slovenia joined as new members, while the membership of the old Yugoslavia was transferred to FR Yugoslavia (which later became known as Serbia and Montenegro and still later dissolved into
1650-576: The first to integrate hockey into their program. The 1928 Winter Olympics , which also served as the World and European Championship for the year, saw a record 11 countries participate. The Hungarian Revolution of 1956 which had caused Hungary to be occupied by the Soviet Army , led to a boycott of the 1957 World Championships , which were being staged in Moscow . Canada and the United States led
1700-700: The headquarters in Zurich. As of 28 September 2024, the IIHF has 84 members. The federation has 60 full members, including two suspended members: Australia , Austria , Azerbaijan , Belarus (suspended), Belgium , Bosnia and Herzegovina , Bulgaria , Canada , China , Croatia , Czech Republic , Denmark , Estonia , Finland , France , Georgia , Germany , Great Britain , Hong Kong , Hungary , Iceland , India , Iran , Ireland , Israel , Italy , Japan , Kazakhstan , Kuwait , Kyrgyzstan , Latvia , Lithuania , Luxembourg , Malaysia , Mexico , Mongolia , Netherlands , New Zealand , North Korea , Norway ,
1750-537: The independent republics of Serbia and Montenegro ). When Czechoslovakia broke up , its membership rights were transferred to the Czech Republic , and Slovakia was admitted as a new member. The influx of new members resulted in the IIHF increasing the size of the Group A tournament. It expanded from 8 teams to 12 in 1992 and from 12 to 16 in 1998. The IIHF celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2008. As part of
1800-431: The league, reducing the number of active teams from 10 to 8. Teams from the second-tier league were offered the empty spots, but no team were able to accept the offer, citing financial issues as their main concern. On 9 January 2015 TV2 Sport debuted as a new sports channel on Danish TV. Same day, HockeyNight also aired for the first time, with a match between Odense Bulldogs and Rungsted . Since 2015 TV2 Sport has been
1850-453: The naming rights of the league has been leased to a series of sponsors, resulting in numerous name changes. List of notable players who have played in the Danish ice hockey league. International Ice Hockey Federation The International Ice Hockey Federation ( IIHF ; French : Fédération internationale de hockey sur glace ; German : Internationale Eishockey-Föderation ) is
1900-435: The place to watch icehockey and other sports. On 18 June 2016, it was made clear that the foreign player limit of 8 was against EU law and was therefore removed. The 2016–17 season was the first time, since 2009, that a Danish ice hockey team could have an unlimited number of foreign players. The salary cap was created in order to regulate the league, and was 6 million DKK for the 2016–17 season . On June 3, 2017, Metal Ligaen
1950-408: The quarterfinals. The 8 other teams will by draw be divided into 4 groups each one of them with a letter from A to D. 4 teams will advance on from first round to the quarterfinals. In the quarterfinals the last seasons champs will play the winner of group A, second-place winner of group B and so on. Games in the quarterfinals and semifinals consists of two games. The winner of the tournament will receive
2000-425: The regular season make the playoffs. First place gets to pick who they want to play in the quarterfinals. second place picks next and so on. The Metal Ligaen playoffs consists of 3 rounds: quarterfinals, semifinals, and the finals. The winner will raise The Prince Henrik's Cup. As of the 2017/18 Metal Ligaen expansion, the Metal Ligaen regular season was extended from 45 games to a historic 50 games. The playoff format
2050-672: The respective countries' federations. This list includes 71 out of 84 IIHF member countries with more than 100 registered players as of October 2022. The IIHF World Ranking is a tool to reflect the long-term quality of the countries' national team program. The IIHF World Ranking is released following each IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship and the Olympic Ice Hockey Tournament. [REDACTED] Media related to International Ice Hockey Federation at Wikimedia Commons Danish Ice Hockey Union Danmarks Ishockey Union ('The Danish Ice Hockey Union') or DIU
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2100-592: The sports development director for the Royal Belgian Ice Hockey Federation , and was an organizer at Youth Olympic Games , and a mentor coach at IIHF development camps. The award is given to an individual or a group who have made significant contributions to growth and development in youth ice hockey . The IIHF Media Award was established in 2024, given to an individual who made outstanding contributions to international hockey through television, print, and radio. The inaugural honoree
2150-530: The tight economy in Danish hockey, and most of the money is spent on more talented foreign players. In the past, the league has consisted of as many as 10 teams. Despite the introduction of a salary cap as well as a limit to the number of import players allowed, several teams have struggled financially in recent years. As a result, the Herlev Hornets and the Rungsted Cobras have withdrawn from
2200-593: Was Al Michaels , whose call of "Do you believe in Miracles?" described the Miracle on Ice victory by the United States men's national team in ice hockey at the 1980 Winter Olympics . Since 2017, the IIHF has sanctioned the IIHF Development Cup for developing men's and women's national teams that do not qualify to compete in the IIHF World Championships . The IIHF employs twenty staff members at
2250-486: Was also changed, where previously the top 8 teams made the playoffs. Now the top 6 teams advanced directly to the Quarterfinals and teams ranking from 7 to 10 play for the last two wildcard spots. The Metal Cup is a tournament held every year. It consists of 12 teams, where all Metal Ligaen teams are represented. Two teams from the 1.division are also represented. The top 4 teams the year before will go straight to
2300-435: Was expanded once again, to an historic number of 11 teams. Hvidovre Fighters , who had previously left the league in 2013 because of bankruptcy, got their submitted papers approved, making them the 11th team of the 2017/18 season. The league consists of 9 teams. The latest expansion was in 2014, when Gentofte Stars joined the league after being relegated in 1999. The league format has changed many times. The current structure
2350-417: Was expelled in 1992), Morocco (2010), Kyrgyzstan (2011), Jamaica (2012), Qatar (2012), Oman (2014), Turkmenistan (2015), Indonesia (2016), Nepal (2016), the Philippines (2016), Algeria (2019), Colombia (2019), Iran (2019), Lebanon (2019), Uzbekistan (2019), Tunisia (2021), Puerto Rico (2022), Bahrain (2024), Kenya (2024). The IIHF received international criticism for holding
2400-551: Was founded in 1997, and has been located within the Hockey Hall of Fame since 1998. Previously, the IIHF also managed the development of inline hockey ; however, in June 2019, the IIHF announced that they would no longer govern inline hockey or organize the Inline Hockey World Championships . The main functions of the IIHF are to govern, develop and organize hockey throughout the world. Another duty
2450-572: Was implemented in the 2011–12 season. Often it is changed depending on how many teams are represented in the league. There has never been more than 10 teams in the Danish ice hockey league, making it a fairly small league compared to other leagues in Europe. The Danish hockey league is structured so that the teams meet 5 times, making the seasons after 2014 45 games long. The season typically starts in September and ends in February. The top 8 teams of
2500-537: Was later ratified at the 1997 IIHF summer congress to host the museum in Zürich . The approval came exactly 89 years from the foundation of the IIHF, with the purpose of honoring former international ice hockey players, builders (administrators) and officials. The annual induction ceremony takes place on the medal presentation day of the Ice Hockey World Championships. The IIHF agreed with
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