Hockey Canada announces schedule for 2021 IIHF Women’s World Championship in Calgary

CALGARY — Hockey Canada and the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) unveiled the full 31-game tournament schedule for the 2021 IIHF Women’s World Championship.

The tournament will run from Aug. 20-31 with all games will be played at WinSport Arena at Canada Olympic Park in Calgary.

The countdown is on! ⏳

The schedule is out for #WomensWorlds, and it'll be ???????????????????? when the puck drops Aug. 20 in Calgary.

SCHEDULE ➡️ https://t.co/8LpbUQ1q4k@IIHFHockey | @WinSportCanada

— Hockey Canada (@HockeyCanada) July 26, 2021

The tournament, taking place in Calgary as the new host city that was announced in June, marks the eighth time Canada has hosted the event. Halifax and Truro, N.S., were originally scheduled to host the tournament this spring but it was cancelled due to COVID-19 concerns from local governments.

Folks are asking if fans will be allowed at the #WomensWorlds in Calgary.

As of today, the IIHF says, "The work on the health and safety protocols with the various authorities is going on and information about potentially having spectators will be known at a later stage." #yyc

— Sandra Prusina (@sprusina) July 26, 2021

“The excitement has been building ever since Calgary was announced as the new host of the IIHF Women’s World Championship, and this is another reason the excitement continues to build for hockey fans,” said Dean McIntosh, vice-president of events and properties with Hockey Canada in a statement.

“A tremendous amount of work has gone into hosting this international tournament with the collaborative efforts of the Public Health Agency of Canada, Alberta Health and Alberta Health Services. This tournament would also not be possible without the support of the Province of Alberta, Hockey Alberta, the City of Calgary, Tourism Calgary and WinSport, and we are grateful to be able to showcase the best women’s hockey players in the world as they compete for a gold medal.”

READ MORE: ‘Opportunity to compete for a gold medal’: Calgary tapped to host women’s hockey worlds

The 10-team tournament features Canada in Group A with Finland, Russia, Switzerland and the United States, while Group B is comprised of the Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Hungary and Japan.

Canada, who finished in third place during the 2019 tournament, will face Finland to open their play on Aug. 20 at 4 p.m. MT.