Punjab to host Hockey Asian Champions Trophy; India to face Pakistan in Jalandhar on Punjab Day

Punjab First News · 28 September 2026, 12:45 PM

Indian players in action during a field hockey match — Indian hockey team in action (file photo) (Rohit Markande / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0))

Punjab will host the men’s Hockey Asian Champions Trophy from October 27 to November 5, 2026, bringing top-level international hockey to the state.

Jalandhar’s Olympian Surjit Singh Hockey Stadium will stage the opening ceremony and all league matches from October 27 to November 2. The tournament then moves to the Olympian Balbir Singh Senior International Hockey Stadium in Mohali, which will host the semi-finals on November 4 and the final on November 5.

Six teams will take part: India, Pakistan, South Korea, Malaysia, China and Japan.

The most anticipated match of the tournament, between India and Pakistan, will be played in Jalandhar on November 1. Announcing the schedule, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said the match falls on Punjab Day, which makes the occasion even more special for the people of the state.