European University Hockey League

European University Hockey League
Current season or competition:
2013–14 EUHL season
EUHL logo
CountriesSlovakia Slovakia (5 teams)
Czech Republic Czech Republic (3 teams)
Austria Austria (1 team)
Poland Poland (1 team)
Region(s)Central Europe
League PresidentSlovakia Jaroslav Straka
LeagueVice-PresidentSlovakia Ľubomír Sekeráš
Founded2013
First season2014–15
No. of teams10
Recent ChampionsUK Praha (1st title)
Most successful clubUK Praha (3 titles)
HeadquartersTrenčín, Slovakia
Websitehttp://www.euhl.eu

The European University Hockey League (EUHL) is the first European university league in ice hockey, founded in 2013. It is managed by the European University Hockey Association (EUHA). The idea for a university hockey league in Europe came from Jaroslav Straka, with support from Lubomir Sekeras, Frantisek Sadecky, and Peter Spankovic. The initial idea was for a pan-European expansion through the creation of four divisions to save money and time: Eastern (Slovakia, Czech Republic, Austria, Poland, Hungary), Western (Germany I, France, Belgium, The Netherlands), North (Sweden, Finland, Norway, Denmark) and South (Germany II, Austria II, Switzerland, Slovenia). Presently the EUHL consists of 10 teams from 4 countries, but next year[when?] there will be more teams included. The new applicants come from Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Austria, Sweden, Finland, Norway, Germany, United Kingdom, France, and Hungary, accompanied by American universities and associations from the USA.

Trophy

The winner of the league is awarded the Sekeráš Championship Trophy, named after former Slovak NHL player Ľubomír Sekeráš, who is the co-founder of the league.[1]

Divisions

Four divisions are planned – Northern, Eastern, Southern and Western. The Northern division will contain teams from universities in Sweden, Finland, Norway, and Denmark; the Eastern division teams from Slovakia, Czech Republic, Austria, Poland, and Hungary; the Southern division teams from Germany, Switzerland, Slovenia, and Austria, and the Western division teams from France, Germany, Belgium, and the Netherlands.[2]

For the first season in 2013–14, only six teams were involved, forming only one division.

Teams

At the beginning of the first season only five teams were confirmed – three from Slovakia and two from the Czech Republic – even though more universities were interested in joining the league. However, on 13 November 2013 a new participant, VŠEMvs Managers from Bratislava joined the league, thus increasing the number of participants to six.[3]

In the second season the following teams participated:

Institution Location Founded Affiliation Team name Joined Arena Capacity Titles Website
Charles University in Prague Czech Republic Prague 1347 Public UK Praha 2013 Zimní stadion Slaný 3,200[4] 1
City University of Seattle (VŠM) Slovakia Trenčín 1999 Private CityU Gladiators Trenčín Zimný štadión Pavla Demitru 6,150 0 [1]
Czech Technical University Czech Republic Prague 2001 Public Technika Praha 0
Pan-European University Slovakia Bratislava 2004 Private Paneuropa Kings Zimný štadión Vladimíra Dzurillu 3,500 0 [2]
Slovak University of Technology Slovakia Bratislava 1937 Public Slávia STU 0 [3]
University of International and Public Relations Prague in Bratislava Slovakia Bratislava Private Diplomats Pressburg 2014 [4] [5]
University of West Bohemia Czech Republic Plzeň 1991 Public Akademici Plzeň
Matej Bel University Slovakia Banská Bystrica 1992 Public UMB Banská Bystrica
The Podhale State College of Applied Sciences in Nowy Targ[5] Poland

Nowy Targ

PPWSZ – Podhale Nowy Targ 2015
Wyższa Szkoła Biznesu - National-Louis University[6] Poland

Krynica-Zdrój

1928 Public Academy KTH 1928 Krynica-Zdrój 2016
University of Graz Austria Graz 1585 Public UHT Dukes Graz 2015 Eisstadion Liebenau 4,050 [6]
University of Prešov Slovakia Prešov Public UNIPO Warriors 2016

References

  1. ^ "Euha Trophy - Euhl". Archived from the original on 2014-04-24. Retrieved 2014-04-23.
  2. ^ "Universities". EUHL. Retrieved November 6, 2013.
  3. ^ "New University Team". 13 November 2013.
  4. ^ "Zimné štadióny".
  5. ^ "Home". ppwsz.edu.pl.
  6. ^ "Wyższa Szkoła Biznesu – National Louis University". wsb-nlu.edu.pl.