New pitch. New league.

The FIH Pro League is coming to Mönchengladbach: from April 24-30, Germany’s women’s and men’s national hockey teams will play their matches on the new hockey pitch in the HockeyPark. EWMG, the venue’s owner, has upgraded the pitch for the new international league in good time for the first competition.

Both teams are bronze medal winners from the 2016 Rio Olympic Games and will be competing in the Pro League at Europe’s largest field hockey stadium in Mönchengladbach. “Hockey not only has a tradition here in Mönchengladbach, the sport also has a vibrant presence today in the city”, Dr. Gert Fischer, City Councillor for Education, Culture and Sport, said. “We’re delighted to be organizing further matches in an international hockey league.”

The artificial turf on the main pitch has been upgraded to the same quality standard as that specified for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo and is now ready for the players. EWMG began dismantling the old surface and started excavation work to improve drainage in the subbase in October 2018. The new artificial turf complete with elastic layer was then laid and certified by the International Hockey Federation (FIH).

“Our investments in the pitch have been worthwhile”, Dr. Ulrich Schückhaus, Chairman of the Board of EWMG, said. “The hockey stadium is a flagship for Mönchengladbach. Series such as the Pro League put Mönchengladbach back on the international map and have a positive effect that radiates throughout the city.”

The German Hockey Federation (DHB) campaigned for the city in the Lower Rhine region. Backed by tremendous support from sportland nrw, DHB was able to bring the April matches in the Pro League to Mönchengladbach. “We have optimal conditions here and a great hockey fan community”, DHB President Wolfgang Hillmann, commented.

Hockey’s Pro League is a new international competition for national teams launched in 2019. The League is part of the qualification route to the next Olympic Games and the World Championships. Starting in 2019, Pro League hockey matches will be played in Mönchengladbach on a regular basis.