Latvia and Finland Emerge as Sole Candidates to Host 2030 World Hockey Championship
Latvia and Finland have become the only two candidates vying to host the 2030 IIHF World Championship Elite Division. Viesturs Koziols, a member of the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) Council, confirmed on April 15, 2026, that no other nations are currently being considered for the tournament.
The decision to pursue a joint bid stems from the increasing economic and organizational complexities of hosting a global championship. According to Koziols, organizing two groups within a single country presents a significantly higher risk, making a partnership between the two nations the most viable and advantageous path forward. He highlighted the strong relationship and shared values between the two countries, as well as a mutual vision for the development of hockey.
While noting that hockey in Finland operates at a higher financial level than in Latvia, Koziols emphasized that both nations share a common bond and a strategic interest in co-hosting as the requirements for organizing the event continue to rise each year.
This potential 2030 event follows a busy roadmap for the IIHF. The men’s World Championship is scheduled to take place in late May 2026 in the Swiss cities of Zurich and Fribourg. Looking further ahead, the 2027 tournament will be hosted in Düsseldorf and Mannheim, Germany, while the 2028 championships will head to Paris and Lyon, France. The 2029 event is slated for Bratislava and Košice, Slovakia.
For Latvia, the bid represents an opportunity to build on a proven track record of successful organization. Latvia previously hosted the elite division in 2006 and 2021 and most recently partnered with Finland for the 2023 championships. That 2023 tournament served as a historic milestone for the nation, as the Latvian national team captured its first-ever World Championship medal, taking home the bronze.
