England-Wales World Cup bid could 'transform' hockey
- Published
'We could be playing hockey in front of 62,000 people' - Shipperley
An ambitious plan for England and Wales to host the biggest hockey World Cup yet could help transform the sport, according to Wales captain Rupert Shipperley.
The two nations have submitted a joint bid to host the men's World Cup in 2026 across four venues - with the final matches being played at Tottenham Hotspur's 62,000-seater stadium.
The only previous men's World Cup held in the UK was in London back in 1986.
The International Hockey Federation (FIH) will announce the host, or hosts, in November - with Germany and South Africa among the rival bidders.
"It's a bit nerve-wracking to think we could be playing in front of 62,000 people," Shipperley told BBC Sport Wales at an event at the Tottenham stadium.
"This is the biggest stadium I've ever been to - as player but also as a fan of any sport. So it'd be massive for the sport and a new experience for hockey.
"If you'd had said ten years ago I'd be stood here saying potentially in a couple of years we could be playing on this pitch, I'd have laughed at you. There's a real opportunity to transform the game of hockey on the international stage."
'Unreal support'
The pool matches of the 16-team event will be played at Cardiff Arms Park, Twickenham Stoop in London and Franklin's Gardens in Northampton.
It would be the first time Wales has hosted World Cup fixtures. Its national sides have only been to one World Cup before - the women's event in Malaysia in 1983.
England and Wales players were at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium to launch the bid.
The men's side have qualified for their first World Cup in India in January.
"It's nice to see the recognition we're getting," said goalkeeper Toby Reynolds-Cotterill, whose shoot-out saves were instrumental in Wales' qualification for the 2023 event.
"We've had quite a journey over the last eight years. Now qualifying for the World Cup in January and hopefully going to the next one [in 2026], it's nice to see the recognition of us and a federation.
"Hopefully we can get some very good crowds, especially if we're playing in Cardiff. The support we'd get would be unreal."
England Hockey chief executive Nick Pink said the bid team wanted to go 'bold' with the event.
"It's about putting hockey into new environments," he said.
"It'd be absolutely incredible to have 62,000 people watching here [in Tottenham]. It's about that transformation and pushing the sport into a different realm.
"But the second part is the legacy and the social impact. We always wanted this to be a project that took the sport right across the UK.
"Taking it right into the heart of a major city like Cardiff is just fantastic for us. It's about getting Welsh fans and Welsh communities excited about the sport of hockey. They see it in rugby and other major sports - but they've not seen hockey in that space before.
"That for me is the drive to try to engage new communities, new audiences and sustain our sport for future generations."