At today's Annual General Assembly, the CHL has reduced the number of participants to 32 and introduced qualification on sporting merits only. Also, the CHL and Infront Sports & Media have announced a six-year extension of their partnership.
Press Release
BERLIN – The 33 shareholders (26 clubs, 6 leagues and the IIHF) took groundbreaking decisions at the third General Assembly Meeting of the Champions Hockey League, held in Berlin, Germany, on Tuesday.
New format: 32 teams, qualification on sporting merits only
First of all, the shareholders voted for a new playing format, starting with the 2017–18 season. These are the cornerstones of the new format:
- 32 teams in total,
- 24 teams from founding leagues (SWE, FIN, CZE, SUI, GER, AUT),
- 8 teams from challenge leagues,
- A maximum of 5 teams per country,
- Teams can only qualify based on sporting merits,
- No founding club shall be automatically granted playing rights,
- The CHL Champion of the previous season is automatically qualified for the next CHL season. However, this will not grant one extra spot for the league of the CHL winner.
Consequently, teams must reach one of the following criteria in order to become a CHL contestant:
- CHL Champion,
- National / League Champion,
- Regular season winner,
- Regular season runner-up,
- Playoff finalist,
- Higher-ranked remaining semi-finalist, based on regular-season finish.
More information about the new playing format can be found here.
“Qualification on sporting merits only and the reduction of teams in total and per country are the keys to success. Only the best of the best in European club ice hockey shall compete in the Champions Hockey League – no one shall earn its right to play by payment anymore. Crystal-clear qualification criteria – as outlined by the CHL – will determine the right to play, not money. This is our future,” says Martin Baumann, CEO of the Champions Hockey League.
CHL and Infront Sports & Media: Partnership extended until 2023
Further, the CHL shareholders agreed at the General Assembly meeting to extend the partnership with Infront Sports & Media, the exclusive media and marketing partner for the Champions Hockey League. The new agreement covers a period of six years from 2017–18 onwards and includes media rights sales, marketing of the event and commercial packages, overall venue management, digital strategy and management of the TV production.
“Signing a six-year extension is a very strong message for fans and media – it not only shows that our media and marketing partner Infront Sports & Media believes in our product, it also shows that all shareholders and partners are extremely committed and will continue to work hard on improvements. The new Infront contract, together with the new competitive format, gives us stability and a long-term perspective to develop club ice hockey in Europe,” Baumann explained.
Bruno Marty, Executive Director Winter Sports of Infront, said, “This extension is in line with our original nine year plan and development strategy for the CHL. Acquiring strong partners and convinced investors that inject real passion into the sport and momentum into future growth is fundamental. We fully believe in the high potential of the CHL, especially due to its appealing commercial opportunities as the only Pan-European ice hockey platform in the market to support the European sales activities of major sponsor partners. Furthermore, with the new changes to the entry qualification criteria and competition format, we expect a massive increase in the appeal of the platform.”
Board election: Tripcke and Fasel newly elected
The General Assembly also elected two new board members, while seven current members were re-elected. The two new board members are:
- Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL) GM Gernot Tripcke, representing the German clubs on the CHL Board
- IIHF president Rene Fasel, representing the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) on the CHL Board
The Champions Hockey League Board for the 2016–17 season:
Representing the clubs:
Anders Ternbom, SWE – Chairman
Petr Briza, CZE
Timo Everi, FIN
Gernot Tripcke, GER (new)
Peter Zahner, SUI
Rupert Zamorsky, AUT
Representing the leagues:
Christian Feichtinger, AUT
Jörgen Lindgren, SWE
Representing the IIHF:
Rene Fasel, SUI (new)
The newly elected Tripcke succeeds Peter John Lee, General Manager of DEL club Eisbaren Berlin. Tripcke was already a member of the CHL Board in 2014–15, representing the leagues during that time.
The newly elected Fasel succeeds Kalervo Kummola, vice-president of the IIHF.
The Champions Hockey League would like to thank Peter John Lee and Kalervo Kummola for their excellent cooperation and commitment in the past years.
Pleasant financial statement from 2015–16
Champions Hockey League CEO Martin Baumann also reported the financial statement to the shareholders. The financial year of the league (starting in March 2015 and ending in February 2016) closed with a moderate net profit, slightly over budget.
“This year’s profit is very pleasant and reflects our very efficient cost management. Of course, the current franc-euro situation plays for us and this was not the case the year before,” said Baumann.