Schedule for 2025 World Championships B-Pool announced

The schedule for the 2025 World Para Ice Hockey Championships B-Pool has dropped, with six national teams slated to compete in 15 games in the span of six days from 6-11 September in Astana, Kazakhstan.

Hosted by the Kazakhstan Para Hockey Federation at Tarlan Arena, participating nations will include Italy, Japan, Sweden, Kazakhstan, France and Finland. 

The competition will follow a round-robin format. The top two finishers will earn themselves a promotion to the A-Pool and spots at the Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games Qualification Tournament in Jessheim, Norway later this year. 

Italy, Japan and Sweden are the only three national teams competing that have been to a Paralympic Winter Games previously. They are also the only three that have A-Pool experience as well.

The schedule

Saturday 6 September 
12:00 — Japan vs. France
15:30 — Finland vs. Italy
19:00 — Sweden vs. Kazakhstan

Sunday 7 September 
12:00 — Sweden vs. Finland
15:30 — France vs. Italy
19:00 — Japan vs. Kazakhstan

Monday 8 September 
12:00 — France vs. Finland
15:30 — Japan vs. Sweden
19:00 — Kazakhstan

Tuesday 9 September 
Day Off

Wednesday 10 September
12:00 — Finland vs. Japan
15:30 — Italy vs. Sweden
19:00 — Kazakhstan vs. France

Thursday 11 September 
12:00 — Sweden vs. France
15:30 — Italy vs. Japan
19:00 — Kazakhstan vs. Finland

The vibrant host city, Astana, is the capital of Kazakhstan and is the country’s second-largest city with over one million residents. It is home to several professional ice hockey teams, including Barys Astana, which forms the core of the Kazakh national squad competing at the 2025 IIHF World Championship.

This will be the 11th edition of B-Pool Worlds and the fourth time it is held in Asia. 

Host nation Norway won last year’s edition in Skien, with Germany claiming silver and Sweden taking bronze. Japan is the only participant team to have won the B-Pool Worlds, back in 2023.