The hockey World Cup has begun, with the Dutch women beating Chile 2-0 in the Wagener Stadium in Amstelveen.
Sixteen men’s and 16 women’s teams are competing for the two world titles over the next fortnight. The Netherlands is co-hosting with Belgium, where matches are at the new Belfius Hockey Arena in Wavre, south-east of Brussels.
Both Dutch teams play all five of their group matches at the Wagener Stadium.
The Dutch women
The women’s team is the clear favourite. It holds the world, Olympic and European titles and tops the world rankings by a wide margin.
The tournament is the last of Xan de Waard’s career. The 30-year-old midfielder, twice named the world’s best player, announced in the spring that she would retire afterwards.
De Waard has won all three World Cups she has played in, in 2014, 2018 and 2022. According to NOS, no hockey player, male or female, has won four.
“I think we are always the favourites, so we are now as well,” she told the broadcaster.
The Dutch men
The men are Olympic champions but have not won a world title since 1998. They are ranked second in the world behind Belgium.
Their first match is against New Zealand on Sunday at 4pm, and they play Argentina two days later. Prime minister Rob Jetten is due to attend the tournament as a spectator. His partner, Nicolás Keenan, plays for Argentina and for Klein Zwitserland in The Hague.
Where to watch
NOS is showing all the Dutch matches live on NPO 1, on its website and in its app. Tickets are still on sale through the tournament website, including day tickets covering every match at one venue.
The women’s final is at the Wagener Stadium on August 29 and the men’s final is in Wavre the next day.
