Vantaa, Finland will host both the men’s and women’s EuroHockey Indoor Club Challenge II events this weekend, a pair of three-team tournaments with one promotion ticket on offer.
On the men’s side, it features Oslo SK from Norway, Sweden’s Valhalla and Finland’s Vantaa while the women’s competition has Vantaa, Hungary’s AHC and Welsh side Cardiff & Met.
Here’s more about each of the teams.
Men’s EuroHockey Indoor Club Challenge II
Oslo SK (NOR)
Oslo Sportsklubb (OSK) is one of Norway’s most successful indoor hockey clubs having won the Indoor National Championship 10 times.
Theteam features experienced players including Shehryar Hussain, Kamran Ashraf, and Talha Sheikh, who bring strong leadership and valuable tournament experience. Several players have international exposure and have previously competed in European club competitions.
OSK also recently had four players represent Norway at the EuroHockey Indoor Championship II in January, reflecting the quality and momentum within the club.
“I’m genuinely excited about this tournament in Helsinki. Competing at this level is always special, and I’m sure the event will bring great intensity, passion, and respect between teams. We’re ready to give everything on the field, support each other, and enjoy the challenge. I’m proud to lead this group, and I can’t wait to get started,” said captain Shehryar Hussain
OSK holds a unique place in Norwegian hockey history as the country’s first field hockey club and a pioneer of the sport. This year, they will celebrate our 50th anniversary, marking five decades of dedication to hockey.
For over 20 years, OSK hosted the Oslo Cup, Scandinavia’s largest field hockey tournament, supporting the sport’s growth in the region, and the club competed in both indoor and outdoor Euros in the 1990s.
Valhalla LHK (SWE)
Valhalla are back in European indoor action after a 21-year wait following their heyday when they played twice in the Cup in 2003 and 2004 in between three appearances in the Trophy (2000, 2002 and 2005).
The Swedish come into the competition off the back of a strong run in their domestic competition, winning seven of nine fixtures to date and scoring 60 goals, putting them in good shape for March’s playoffs.
Anders Magnusson has been their go-to for goals this term with strong support from Jakob Juul, Vilmer Karlsson and Sebastian Åsell.
Vantaa (FIN)
Finland plays host to Challenge II for the second successive year with Vantaa (pictured above) this time the home club, taking over from Porvoo who did the honours last year. It will be the club’s debut indoors having lined out last year in outdoor Euro competition.
Nonetheless, their squad has a smattering of experience with players lining out for ABC and Klippari in recent years while Attila Farkas played in Challenge I with Hungary’s Soroksari in 2017.
They retained the Finnish national title recently with a dramatic shoot-out win over Klippari HC; Eemeli Moilanan gave them an early lead before Klippari equalised in the final quarter, leading to a shoot-out where Elmeri Rihtilä scored the winning effort.Van
Women’s EuroHockey Indoor Club Challenge II
AHC (HUN)
AHC defended the Hungarian title early in February following a dramatic end to the season in which three sides all had a chance of winning the title.
In the end, a Sarah Józan hat trick saw AHC defeat SZLG in the last game of the group phase to jump from third place up to first. She ended up as the competition’s top scorer with 10 goals while Judit Vereczkey was named the best goalkeeper, marking them as ones to watch this week.
It is a return to Europe after a three-year wait for the club – formerly known also as Agyse – and eight of the panel have prior experience of competition at this level.
Cardiff & Met (WAL)
Cardiff and Met Hockey club come into the tournament off the back of two consecutive Welsh indoor Hockey Championships. The full squad of 33 players boasts a mix of internationally experienced players, youth athletes and student athletes.
However, very few of the squad have much indoor hockey experience. Coach, Luke Hawker said: “We are extremely excited to make our debut on the European indoor stages.”
Vantaa (FIN)
Like their men, they are also making their debut in this competition having won the Finnish title in 2025. They reached their national final again recently where they came unstuck against Porvoo in a 4-2 final scoreline. Johanna Yoshimura was among the goals in that one – she has previously played in European action for ABC while goalkeeper Jonna Oksa was with Porvoo for their 2019 and 2020 Club Challenge II campaigns.
