The United Arab Emirates national ice hockey team () is the national men's

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

team of the

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a Federal monarchy, federal elective monarchy made up of Emirates of the United Arab E ...

. It is operated under the

UAE Ice Sports Federation The UAE Winter Sports Federation (WSFUAE) administers ice hockey activities in United Arab Emirates. It recruits and trains nationals for sporting programs. References External linksUAE Winter Sports Federation
{{IIHF member associations Ice ...

and a member of the

International Ice Hockey Federation The International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF; ; ) is a worldwide governing body for ice hockey. It is based in Zurich, Switzerland, and has 84 member countries. The IIHF maintains the IIHF World Ranking based on international ice hockey to ...

(IIHF). As of 26 May 2019, the UAE is currently ranked 48th in the

IIHF World Ranking The IIHF World Ranking is a ranking of the performance of the national ice hockey teams of member countries of the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF). It is based on a formula giving points for each team's placings at IIHF-sanctioned tour ...

and competes in Division III Group A tournament of the

World Championships A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game ...

History

In June 2008, the UAE took part in the inaugural

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Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi is the capital city of the United Arab Emirates. The city is the seat of the Abu Dhabi Central Capital District, the capital city of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, and the UAE's List of cities in the United Arab Emirates, second-most popu ...

, also involving the national teams of

Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...

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, and

Kuwait Kuwait, officially the State of Kuwait, is a country in West Asia and the geopolitical region known as the Middle East. It is situated in the northern edge of the Arabian Peninsula at the head of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Kuwait ...

. They went on to finish first in the standings and won the gold medal after defeating Kuwait, 4–1. They won the gold in the 2009 IIHF Challenge Cup of Asia also in Abu Dhabi. In 2010, the UAE became the first from an

Arab nation The Arab world ( '), formally the Arab homeland ( '), also known as the Arab nation ( '), the Arabsphere, or the Arab states, comprises a large group of countries, mainly located in West Asia and North Africa. While the majority of people in ...

to play in the

IIHF World Championship The International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF; ; ) is a worldwide governing body for ice hockey. It is based in Zurich, Switzerland, and has 84 member countries. The IIHF maintains the IIHF World Ranking based on international ice hockey tour ...

when they participated in

Division III In sport, the Third Division, also called Division 3, Division Three, or Division III, is often the third-highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Association football *Belgian Third ...

. Although the UAE was not ranked in the world rankings until they played against

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, and

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, and finished last in Group A with a record of four losses. Their new head coach was Teemu Taruvuori of Finland. In May 2010, the UAE participated in the Kuwaiti organized GCC Gulf Championship, finishing first after winning all three of their games.

Withdrawal from 2011 and 2016 IIHF tournaments

The UAE decided to withdraw from the 2011 Division III tournament in

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South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

because they refused to compete against

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

, who was also in the tournament. They also withdrew from the 2016 Division III tournament, with no reason cited.

Tournament record

World Championships

Asian Winter Games

Arab Cup/GCC Gulf Championship

Challenge Cup of Asia

All-time record against other nations

''Last match update: 27 April 2024''

References

External links

*
IIHF profileNational Teams of Ice Hockey
{{Men's national ice hockey teams Ice hockey in the United Arab Emirates National ice hockey teams in the Arab world National ice hockey teams in Asia

Ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

Men's national ice hockey teams