Image source, Get

With their future funding being linked to performance, Great Britain’s women find themselves under pressure with the Tokyo Olympic Games 12 months away.

The fact that they are reigning Olympic champions – and were watched by an estimated nine million television viewers as they won the shoot-out that brought them gold in Rio - means nothing in terms of defending their title because they have to qualify and their results in the past three seasons have been indifferent as the squad has rebuilt following retirements.

Great Britain are trying to not think about Tokyo 2020 but defender Suzy Petty has admitted they are aware of the "scary" consequences not qualifying for next summer's Olympics would have for the sport.

The team can solve that problem by winning the European Championship later this month – otherwise they would have to win a play-off against another team left adrift from their own continental championships.

Image source, Getty Images

The venue for the EuroHockey II Championship, Glasgow National Hockey Centre, has a maximum capacity of 5,000 spectators and was constructed for the 2014 Commonwealth Games.

Other events to have been staged there include the Men’s EuroHockey Championship II 2017, the Men’s World League 1 in 2016 and the Women’s Champions Challenge event in 2014.

The home of hockey in Scotland, the facility has two synthetic hockey pitches and the offices of Scottish Hockey are also housed at the centre, which has a distinctive wing-shaped roof to the main stand.

Scotland play their home matches at this venue and their end-of-season national club finals are also held at Glasgow.

The competition will be the eighth edition of the EuroHockey Championship II, the second level of the three European field hockey championships organized by the European Hockey Federation.

Eight teams will compete across two pools, with the top two from each group qualifying for the semi-final and final to contest for the gold medal. Those who don’t qualify for the latter stages will also feature in fifth to eighth placing matches with the bottom two sides being relegated to the third tier.

The Championships act as a direct qualifier for the 2021 Women's EuroHockey Nations Championship with the winner and runner-up qualifying for the tournament. Scotland and Wales both compete in EuroHockey Championship II, whilst England competes in the top tier – the Championship.

Pool A: Italy, Poland, Turkey, Wales

Pool B: Austria, Czech Republic,Scotland, Ukraine

You can follow live coverage of the Women’s EuroHockey Championship II taking place in Glasgow from 4th-10th August across Connected TVs, BBC Sport website and app plus BBC iPlayer live and as catch-up for 30 days.

Wednesday 7 August

14:30-16:30 – Pool A: Wales v Poland - Connected TVs, BBC Sport website & app plus BBC iPlayer

19:00-21:00 – Pool B: Scotland v Austria - Connected TVs, BBC Sport website & app plus BBC iPlayer

Friday 9 August

14:45-16:45–Semi-final-Connected TVs, BBC Sport website & app plus BBC iPlayer

17:00-19:00 – Semi-final-Connected TVs, BBC Sport website & app plus BBC iPlayer

Saturday 10 August

16:15-18:15 – Final-Connected TVs, BBC Sport website & app plus BBC iPlayer

There are different variations of the game, so hockey is for everyone, regardless of age, ability or gender. There's also a real social side, with a culture of team bonding off the field.

It is very common to have two or more generations of a family in one team and is the country's most gender-equal sport.

After Team GB women won Gold in Rio, 10,000 people picked up a stick at their local hockey club.

Play Hockey, external is a good place to start for those who are new to the game or interested in coming back to it after years away. Simply type in your postcode to locate your nearest club.

In England, external and Wales, external,Back To Hockey is a campaign offering people of all ages either a complete introduction to the game, or a return to hockey if you've had a break from it.

The Scotland, external and Northern Ireland, external hockey associations will also direct you to clubs in your area.