Sweden did not defend their two-time championship after losing to Finland in the finals 4–5 in overtime, after having led the game 4–0 at one stage in the match.[1] Together with a loss against the Finns in a group game, these were the first ever defeats for Sweden on home turf.[2] The Czech Republic for the first time won their group without losing a point. Unlike in the previous championship, however, Czechs did not make it past the semifinals and finished in third place after defeating Latvia.[3]
Latvia knocked out Switzerland in the quarterfinals. This marked Latvia's first appearance in the semifinals of a world championship. It was the first time since the 2012 tournament that a team other than the Czech Republic, Finland, Sweden and Switzerland had reached the semifinals. It was the second time in history that Switzerland had not played for medals, the first time being at the first championship in 1996.[4][5][6]
The tournament was criticised by sports journalists and players for poor promotion and consequently low attendance.[7][8]
The bids were considered very closely matched and thus the evaluation report was considered a draw, although 9/12 people who are involved in different aspects of the IFF gave Singapore the edge.[13]
Originally, the hosts were going to be announced in November 2020 but was postponed in order to learn more details about each bid.[13]Sweden was given the hosting rights on 23 February 2021 after beating Singapore in a bidding process that the IFF called very close.[14][15]
The qualifiers were held in January, February and May 2024.[16]Slovenia will make their debut at a senior IFF tournament.[17][18]Singapore was the only nation to not qualify having played at the 2022 edition.
The draw took place on 5 March 2024 at the Turning Torso in Malmö, Sweden.[22][23] The placeholder name the Asian and Oceanian teams would inherit was based of their world ranking, rather than their position in the Asian Championship.[24]
After the group ballot, 16 teams were divided into four groups. In the group stage each team played each other once, while the second stage of the event included play-offs and placement matches.
The two best teams of group A and B went directly to the quarter-finals. Teams placed third and fourth in group A and B and the teams placed first and second in group C and D went into the first play-off round (played before the quarter-finals).
The first tickets sales for the competition started in November 2022 with tickets for select days being made available for purchase.[28] All tickets were put on sale on 27 March 2024.[29]
Preparation
The logo was revealed on 13 February 2023, with the slogan The floor is yours.[30] Älgvis (a homophone for Elvis), an elk with antlers made of floorball blades, was unveiled as the mascot for the competition on 24 November 2024; he will also serve as the future mascot of the Swedish Floorball Federation.[31]
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