Austrian Ice Hockey Association reports positive development
The annual General Assembly was held in Graz last weekend. The Executive Committee, Managing Director Alexander Helwig, Sports Director Roger Bader and Women’s General Manager Martin Kogler presented members with detailed reports on the past season.
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The agenda included confirmation of a quorum; approval of the minutes of the 80th General Assembly; decisions on the final admission and exclusion of association members; presentation of the ÖEHV’s 2025 annual financial statements; the report by auditor Paul Amon (Crowe SOT GmbH) for the 2025 financial year; discharge of the Executive Committee; reports from the Executive Committee, the Managing Director, the Men’s Sports Director and the Women’s General Manager; decisions on motions submitted by ÖEHV members; and any other business.
At the General Assembly, KEHV President Michael Herzog-Löschnig was co-opted onto the ÖEHV Executive Committee as the new representative of the regional associations. Michael Herzog-Löschnig was elected unanimously by the other regional associations.
Positive development—both sporting and financial
The success of Austria’s men’s and women’s national teams has given Austrian ice hockey a noticeable boost in recent years. Media visibility has increased significantly, reflected in stronger television coverage and greater public awareness of the sport. At the same time, demand for tickets to home games is rising, impressively demonstrating the fans’ growing interest. This positive development is also making ice hockey increasingly attractive to businesses. Its greater advertising value and the interest shown by fans, the media and partners are currently leading to new collaborations and partnerships, which will be announced in the coming weeks. The lasting impact at grassroots level is particularly important. The national teams’ success creates role models and enthusiasm which, combined with the ÖEHV’s recruitment and youth programmes, are helping to attract more and more children and young people to ice hockey. This trend is also reflected in the steadily increasing number of registered players.
The ÖEHV is also on a solid financial footing. As planned, the 2025 financial year ended with a balanced result. In addition, international audit firm Crowe reviewed the annual financial statements and issued the ÖEHV with an unqualified audit opinion, while confirming an excellent equity ratio. Revenue is expected to develop positively again in 2026. The main drivers are existing and new sponsorship partnerships as well as the men’s national team’s home games, which make an important contribution from both a sporting and financial perspective. Transparency and professional association management are a high priority for the ÖEHV. The 2025 annual financial statements will therefore be published on the ÖEHV website shortly and made publicly available to anyone interested.
Implementing AKES and further increasing the number of Austrian players in the top leagues
AKES is being implemented according to plan. The final calculations for the 2023/24, 2024/25 and 2025/26 seasons have been or are currently being sent to the respective clubs. At the same time, the ÖEHV is distributing the promised start-up funding totalling €150,000 (3 × €50,000) to the clubs. Forward-looking and responsible cash-flow management by the association is essential in this process. AKES is and will remain a central part of the cooperation agreement with the win2day ICE Hockey League and the Alps Hockey League. There are also plans to gradually extend the system to other leagues and the women’s game. AKES’s primary purpose is to support clubs that invest consistently and sustainably in the training and development of young players. The intended incentive is to strengthen targeted youth development and promote the long-term growth of Austrian ice hockey.
The current agreement with the win2day ICE Hockey League runs until the end of the 2026/27 season. The ÖEHV is engaged in ongoing negotiations with the league. It is also in close and continuous dialogue with the other national associations represented in the ICE league, which agree on the path forward together.
A key objective of the ÖEHV, as well as many clubs and sponsors, is to further reduce the number of import players to 8+3.
In his report on the 2025/26 season, Sports Director Roger Bader also stressed that the reduction in import players already achieved has made a significant contribution to the national team’s success in recent years.
The Austrian Ice Hockey Association is looking forward to an eventful 2026/27 season, with highlights including the 2026 Women’s World Championship in Denmark and the 2027 Men’s World Championship in Germany.
