India to host 2020 junior men's Hockey World Cup

India will host next year's Junior Men's World Cup. The International Hockey Federation (FIH) announced this at Lausanne in Switzerland yesterday.

This is the second time that India will be hosting the prestigious tournament, having staged it in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh in 2016, where the hosts lifted the coveted trophy.

FIH said that the competition will be played towards the end of 2021 and the exact venue and dates for the tournament will be announced at a later stage.

In all, 16 teams will compete for the title in the Junior Men's World Cup, out of which six will be from Europe,



four from Asia, including hosts India, two from Africa, two from Oceania and two from Pan America.

Out of these, the six European teams, who have already qualified for the event in India, are Germany, England, Netherlands, Spain, Belgium and France, as they secured their berths through the European Continental Championships which were held last year.

Reigning champions India had defeated Belgium 2-1 in the final match of the 2016 edition at the Major Dhyan Chand Stadium in Lucknow, which saw them lift their second-ever FIH Junior Men's World Cup.