HOW HOCKEY WORKS AROUND THE WORLD
THROUGH the entire “no pay no play” crisis, Hockey India kept insisting that no other i federation paid its players a match fee, a view endorsed by FIH vice-president Antonio von Ondarza, who said on television that it f was “not a professional sport” and so there was not enough money in hockey. While that might be technically correct, the t fact is that each federation makes up for it in many other ways, not least, a financially strong domestic structure. Pakistan is an exception in that they have a graded payment structure in place. We take a look at how professional the hockey set-up is in some of the top-ranked nations in the sport.
SPAIN: They went from being ranked 10th n the world to the top four within four years, mainly because of a systematic development plan by the Spanish ederation. As coach, Maurits Hendriks was given a free hand and a fixed tenure. The raining infrastructure is comparable with hat for football, even at the club level. The number of astro turfs in the country exceeds 400, while the number of support staff for the team is more than a dozen.
There is a strong national league, with several foreign players and good pay.
THE NETHERLANDS: They have been among the top three hockey nations in the world for more than a decade now, in addition to cornering five Player of the Year awards for men and three for women in the 12 years since their introduction. The number of astroturfs in the country is over 600, and they have over 40 professionally run clubs at all levels, for all age groups. The Netherlands have more top foreign players in their own domestic league than anywhere else, and the national team support staff is usually larger than the actual team itself, with specific jobs for everyone.
AUSTRALIA: The sheer amount of infrastructure available in this nation of fierce sporting culture is staggering.
Hockey Australia have the minutes of their annual meeting up on their website, and there are advertisements inviting community and corporate sponsorships for players — individually and for the team -with no bar on the number of sponsors.
There is also an extremely professional domestic league.
GERMANY: Germany has a very strong club culture, with involvement of national stars in regular training at clubs to attract youngsters. There are 3-a-side, 6-a-side and 9-a-side leagues and tournaments on smaller turfs to save money. Plus, youngsters are made to get used to the artificial surface from a very early age and develop specific skills. There are multiple sponsorships and a strong dose of foreign players in the domestic league.
INDIA: The training methodology is ancient, the software and facilities available are basic and even the team jerseys are not designed for heavy workload. Domestic hockey is very weak, dominated by a few institutions and the national championships are rarely held.
There is no transparency in administration no efforts to popularise the sport and a clear attempt to keep the players isolated.
The official website is still under construction, with all links still leading to the now defunct IHF.