Pakistan have withdrawn from the Men’s Asian Hockey Champions Trophy in India, and Bangladesh have accepted an invitation from the Asian Hockey Federation (AHF) to take their place in the six-team tournament, which runs from October 27 to November 5, 2026. The AHF announced the revised schedule on Friday, October 9, confirming that the event will go ahead in Punjab without Pakistan after the Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) decided the team would not travel under the existing arrangements.
Why Pakistan pulled out of the tournament
The PHF had formally approached the continental body last month, asking for the entire tournament to be relocated or, at the least, for Pakistan’s matches to be staged at a neutral venue. The federation cited the sensitive bilateral situation between Pakistan and India and concerns about the safety and dignity of its players and officials. Hockey India and the AHF turned the request down, insisting the tournament would stay at its designated venues in Jalandhar and Mohali.
After that refusal, the PHF informed the AHF that Pakistan would not travel to India under the existing arrangements. PHF president Mohyuddin Ahmed Wani had earlier said the tour depended on government clearance and that the federation would follow the government’s instructions, and Indian reports said that clearance had not been given. Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann had previously indicated Pakistan was expected to take part, pointing to India’s policy of allowing neighbouring countries to compete in multi-nation sporting events on its soil.
Revised schedule and the six teams
Bangladesh, who had been named as one of two reserve teams alongside Oman, were invited to fill the vacant slot and accepted. The revised six-team line-up is India, Japan, China, Malaysia, South Korea and Bangladesh. All league-stage matches will be played at the Olympian Surjit Singh Hockey Stadium in Jalandhar from October 27 to November 2, with the opening ceremony also at that venue. The semi-finals will be held in Mohali on November 4, and the final is scheduled for November 5 at the Olympian Balbir Singh Senior International Hockey Stadium.
Defending champions India, who won the title in Chennai in 2023 and in Hulunbuir, China, in 2024, will open their campaign against Bangladesh on October 27. The league fixture between India and Pakistan that had been scheduled for November 1 in Jalandhar has been scrapped following Pakistan’s withdrawal.
What the withdrawal means for Pakistan hockey
The Asian Champions Trophy, first held in 2011, has regularly featured the traditional India-Pakistan rivalry, and the two sides last met in the semi-finals of the 2026 Asian Games in Japan, where India won 4-3 before going on to retain the gold medal. Pakistan’s absence removes that fixture from the calendar and costs the team competitive matches against Asia’s leading sides only weeks after the Asian Games.
This is also not the first time a Pakistan hockey team has missed an event in India in the current climate. Pakistan also withdrew from the Junior World Cup held in India last year, citing similar concerns, and were replaced there by Oman. For readers following the wider picture around Pakistan teams and events across the border, our Pakistan sports news section tracks how these decisions are reshaping the calendar, including the cricket squad news that saw Abbas Afridi to captain Pakistan in the Hong Kong Sixes later this month.
Context beyond the pitch
Sporting contact between the two countries has increasingly been pushed toward neutral venues or multi-team formats, as the Sri Lanka and Pakistan cricket talks over the India match earlier showed in cricket. Hockey has now followed a similar path, with the PHF preferring to stay out of an India-hosted event rather than travel without the neutral-venue arrangement it had requested. The broader diplomatic and security backdrop is covered in our Pakistan national news coverage.
What happens next
The tournament will proceed as planned, and Bangladesh now have less than three weeks to prepare for an opening match against the defending champions and top-ranked hosts. For Pakistan, attention turns to how the PHF fills the competitive gap left by missing a major continental event, and whether future Asian hockey fixtures involving India can be arranged at neutral venues acceptable to both sides. PakMirror will follow the tournament build-up and any official PHF statement on the team’s next assignment.
