Sweden: Siltanews – News Desk
The International Bandy Federation (FIB) has announced the details for the 2025 Senior World Championships in March, with Uppsala and Lidköping as the main venues for a tournament featuring both men’s and women’s competitions.
The growth of bandy worldwide should be reflected in a tournament that will bring together teams from Europe, America and Asia to compete in both divisions, highlighting the dynamism and speed of a sport with deep Nordic roots.
The Men’s Group B tournament will take place from 10-14 March at the Serwent Indoor Arena in Uppsala, a university city an hour north of Stockholm by train. From 24-30 March, the men’s Group A and women’s tournaments will be held at the Sparbanken Lidköping Arena in Lidköping City, just over three hours west of the Swedish capital.
The arena is one of Sweden’s most modern sports facilities and is home to bandy team Villa Lidköping BK. The venue typically holds 4,500 spectators for bandy matches and 12,500 for concerts.
The choice of Sweden to host the event is no accident. While bandy has historical roots dating back to ancient Egypt and more recently to England, where it was organized as a sport in 1891, it was in Sweden that the sport took on its modern form and experienced its greatest development.
Today, Sweden is the world’s epicentre of bandy. From Karlstad, the home of the International Bandy Federation (founded in 1955), its expansion and growth are felt across the world. It currently has 28 National Member Federations on five continents, with notable countries such as Somalia in Africa, India and Japan in Asia, Canada, the United States and Colombia in the Americas, and a strong group of European nations including Germany, Russia and Norway.
The addition of Italy as the 28th member, announced at the FIB Congress in Stockholm in June 2024, underlines the growing interest in the sport in regions where it is still in its infancy.
The 2025 World Cup will be webcast live for fans around the world. In addition, some matches from Lidköping will be broadcast on Swedish television, ensuring widespread coverage of the event.