The KNHB’s competitors administration revealed Friday afternoon the grouping of the Nationwide Youth and Senior Groups for the 2025-2026 season. This contains the competitions for normal groups (Girls 1 and Males 1) from the Important Division to the Fourth Division, and the Nationwide High Division and Subtop Division O18 and O16. Match schedules will likely be introduced in mid-August.
The preliminary classifications of the Fourth Division commonplace groups are additionally included within the overview. Earlier years have proven that there are nonetheless frequent modifications on this class, subsequently this can be a preliminary classification. The KNHB asks subject hockey gamers to consider that shifts should happen and that journey distances could also be roughly favorable consequently. The league administration strives to maintain the common journey distance for every membership as small as doable, however should contemplate the general image of all groups.
The Nationwide High League and Subtop League will begin, as has been the apply because the 2019-2020 season, with a nationwide pre-competition.
What about these pool divisions?
When registering, associations specified what the staff composition appears like. Based mostly on these numbers and the gamers’ efficiency within the earlier season, every staff obtained a ranking. That ranking worth determines which groups will play within the Nationwide High Class or Subtop Class. How precisely that ranking system works, you’ll be able to learn right here.
Tilburg JO16-1 grew to become nationwide champions final weekend. Photograph: Rob Romer
Then the groups had been positioned within the swimming pools by way of a so-called ‘snake distribution’. Which means: the strongest in pool A, the second strongest in pool B, and so forth. To keep away from groups having to journey extraordinarily far, this snake distribution will not be all the time strictly adopted. Within the High Class, the snake division is nearly fully adhered to, except for excessive journey distances resembling Groningen-Maastricht. Within the Subtop class, the snake distribution is optimized: the ranking is all the time main on this respect, however journey distance additionally performs a job. The poules are nearly equal in power (measured by ranking).
Taking part in calendar
A month in the past, the KNHB additionally introduced the enjoying calendar for the 2025/2026 season. You’ll find the dates of the Tulip huge league right here. The match calendar for the (youngest) youth, seniors and 30+ and 45+ for the Bonds and District Competitions was revealed earlier.
