University of Birmingham stars set for FIH Hockey World Cup
14 current students and alumni from the University of Birmingham will represent their nations at the FIH Hockey World Cup 2026, which gets underway in Belgium on 15 August. Held every four years, the Hockey World Cup brings together the world's best teams and most talented players to compete for global glory.
The University of Birmingham will once again be strongly represented on the international stage, with players selected across England, Scotland, Wales and South Africa squads, highlighting once again the University's long-standing reputation for supporting and developing world-class hockey talent.
England's 20-player women's squad features eight past and present University of Birmingham players – a testament to the strength and depth of the University's women's hockey programme. Congratulations to current undergraduate students Alice Atkinson (pictured at top) and Lottie Bingham (pictured above), alongside alumni Lily Owsley, Hannah French, Anna Toman, Lily Walker, Flora Peel and Holly Hunt on their selections. Together with the rest of their squad, these players will be looking to improve on England's joint-fifth overall placing in 2022.
Alumna Amy Costello will be representing Scotland on the international stage once again, and we are also delighted that former Elite Scholar and Paris 2024 Olympian Hannah Pearce (pictured below) has been selected to represent South Africa at her second consecutive Hockey World Cup. Interestingly, England begin their World Cup campaign against South Africa on Sunday 16 August.
While the University's success in producing elite female hockey players is well established, we are equally proud to be well-represented in the men's competition.
Wales will make their second successive Hockey World Cup appearance after an outstanding qualification campaign in Chile earlier this year. Their squad includes four distinguished University of Birmingham alumni: Rhodri Furlong, Hywel Jones, Jolyon Morgan and Johnny Fleck.
A final congratulations goes to 2014 Sport, Physical Education and Coaching Science graduate Nick Bandurak (pictured below), who has been selected to represent England. Nick earned an international recall during the 2025–26 season after a two-year absence and has gone from strength to strength since returning to the squad.
We wish all of our students and alumni every success at the FIH Hockey World Cup 2026 and look forward to following their performances throughout the tournament!
Fellow fans and supporters can keep track of the tournament live on the Channel 4 Sport Youtube channel.
