Punjab will host Asian Champions Trophy for the first time Chief Minister

S.A.S. Nagar/Chandigarh, 14 September:- Punjab is going to create history by hosting the Hockey Asian Champions Trophy 2026 for the first time. Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann today released the logo of the tournament in the presence of officials of the Asian Hockey Federation. The tournament will be held from 27 October to 5 November. League matches will be held in Jalandhar and semi-finals and final will be held in Mohali.
The Chief Minister said that a budget of Rs 25.40 crore has been approved by the Punjab Government for the tournament, out of which Rs 22.96 crore is being spent on upgradation of both main stadiums. Rs 14 crore is being spent for Olympian Surjit Hockey Stadium Jalandhar and Rs 8.96 crore for Olympian Balbir Singh (Senior) International Hockey Stadium Mohali.
Six major hockey teams of Asia - India, Pakistan, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia and China will participate in the tournament, while Oman and Bangladesh will be reserve teams. The much-awaited match between India and Pakistan will be held on 1 November on the occasion of Punjab Day at 7 pm in Jalandhar.
The Chief Minister said that entry for spectators for all matches will be completely free. He appealed to schools, colleges, sports academies, young players, sports organizations, former players and non-resident Indians to come in large numbers to watch the matches.
He said that Punjab has given more than 50 Olympic medal winners and 10 national captains to Indian hockey. Great players like Balbir Singh Senior, Udham Singh and Ajit Pal Singh have strengthened Punjab's hockey heritage at the world level. In Paris 2024 Olympics, 10 players from Punjab represented India, while Harmanpreet Singh led the team.
Mann said that in the current financial year Punjab's sports budget is Rs 1,743 crore. The government is developing 3,148 rural sports grounds and 6,000 modern gymnasiums. From 2022 till now, more than 40,000 players have been given cash prizes of Rs 135 crore.
He said that in 2030 India is to host the Hockey World Cup and Punjab will strengthen its claim to host its matches. He said that Asian Champions Trophy will become an opportunity to give new energy to hockey in Punjab. On this occasion, Punjab Hockey President Nitin Kohli and other officials were also present.