Teams to watch at Men's Hockey Asian Champions Trophy 2026

The Men's Hockey Asian Champions Trophy 2026, involving six teams, starts on October 27 in Jalandhar and Mohali, Punjab, India, with the summit clash scheduled for November 5. Group-stage fixtures are set for the Surjit Hockey Stadium while play-offs will take place at the Mohali International Hockey Stadium.

All group matches will be played at the Surjit Hockey Stadium in Jalander, and all play-off matches are scheduled for the Mohali International Hockey Stadium, organisers have announced. Pakistan withdrew from the tournament citing security reasons and Bangladesh has been named as their replacement. The full schedule has been released and organisers list the venues as Olympian Surjit Hockey Stadium in Jalandhar and Olympian Balbir Singh (Senior) International Hockey Stadium in Mohali with the overall dates given as October 27 to November 7.

Last edition’s runners-up China arrive without strong form, having finished sixth at the 2026 Asian Games behind all their Asian Champions Trophy rivals except Bangladesh. The Chinese side struggled for goals at the Asian Games, with Gao Jiesheng the leading attacker on six strikes. Their tournament prospects will depend on whether they can improve their scoring output in Punjab.

Japan will enter the event as the nation with the most appearances in the Asian Champions Trophy without ever winning it, having finished runners-up in 2013 and 2021. At the 2026 Asian Games they placed fifth and were not on the podium, but Koji Yamasaki and Kosei Kawabe contributed nine and eight goals respectively for the Japanese team. Those attacking returns form the core of Japan’s offensive hopes in the Champions Trophy.

South Korea are one of only two participating teams to have won the Asian Champions Trophy previously and were the 2021 champions. They finished fourth at the 2026 Asian Games after losing the bronze-medal match 5-3 to Pakistan. The report notes gaps in attack and defence that could trouble their chances, while also saying changes could help them make a deep run.

Malaysia, who have never won the Asian Champions Trophy, enter the tournament buoyed by a silver medal at the 2026 Asian Games. Abu Kamal Azrai and Faizal Saari have been described as the side’s attacking engine, and Malaysia have made improvements in defence. Their best finish in this competition came in 2023 when they were runners-up, losing 4-2 to India in the final.

India are identified as the top favourites for the title based on current form and recent results, having defeated Malaysia in the final of the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games last month. That win successfully defended their continental title and secured a place in the 2028 LA Olympics. In Japan India scored 58 goals and conceded eight; Indian captain Harmanpreet Singh finished joint-top scorer on 12 goals alongside Pakistan’s Sufyan Khan, while Dilpreet and Abhishek scored nine goals each.

A total of six teams — Bangladesh, China, India, Japan, Malaysia and South Korea — will compete for the Men’s Hockey Asian Champions Trophy 2026. Hosts India enter as two-time defending champions; among the participating sides India (5 times) and South Korea (1) are the only nations to have won the title previously, with Pakistan (3) noted as the only other nation to have lifted the trophy.