FIH Pro League 2025-26: Pakistan Team Invited To Play In Tournament After New Zealand Back Out

The Pakistan men's hockey team have been invited by to compete in the FIH Pro League 2025-26 after New Zealand decided to pull out for the upcoming season. New Zealand had earned the rights to participate at the event after winning the 2024-25 Nations Cup.

The International Hockey Federation (FIH), hockey's apex governing body, have officially sent the invite to Pakistan on Wednesday. The Pakistan Hockey Association (PHA) have been set a deadline till August 12 to accept the invite.

If the Men In Green do accept the invitation, it will mark their debut in the FIH Pro League, which has been one of the premier hockey competition on the hockey calendar.

Pakistan are one of the most notable teams in international hockey. They are three-time Olympic champions and four-time Hockey World Cup champs. Pakistan finished runners-up at the FIH Nations Cup 2024-25, losing heavily (6-2) to New Zealand in the final.

Pakistan, who ranked 15th in the FIH Men's Rankings (at the time of writing the article), could feature alongside arch-rival India if the former opt to play in the 2025-26 season. The two rivals could play two games as per the tournament format.

The Indian team have joined the Pro League during the 2020-21 season and finished eight in the 2024-25 season after narrowly avoiding relegation to the Nations Cup.

What Is FIH Hockey Pro League

The Pro League was launched in 2019 by FIH and featured nine of the best national sides across men's and women's categories.

The format sees each team playing a total of 16 games. The team with the highest points will be called champion whereas the bottom-placed side will be relegated and will play Nations Cup. The Nations Cup winner replaces the relegated team and earning promotion.

The upcoming season will be key as the winner of the tournament will earn direct entry to the LA 2028 Olympics.

The Netherlands are the most dominant side in the tournament's history with men's side winning three titles and women's team clinching five titles.