Recent Olympics
Click on the links below for the ice hockey websites of the most recent Olympic Winter Games:Olympic Winter Games, Women's Ice Hockey Tournament
06 - 22 February 2026 Milano, ITAFollowing the Women’s Olympic qualifications which took place in three different locations over the last weekend in Tomokamai (Japan), Gavle (Sweden) and Bremerhaven (Germany). The three host countries were able to qualify for the next 2026 Winter Olympic Games.
Based on the results, the following groups will apply during the competition:
| Group A | Group B |
Canada  |
Russia  |
United States  |
Japan  |
Finland  |
Sweden  |
Czechia  |
Germany  |
Switzerland  |
Italy  |
With respect to Russia’s participation, the IIHF would like to remind that the following two alternatives will apply depending on the situation:
1) In the event that Russia participates in the tournament, the team will take part according to the pre-established ranking;
2) If Russia is not able to participate, France would be qualified for the Olympic Games as the second best placed team – according to the Combined Ranking from the three Final Olympic Qualification Groups played in February, 2025.
In case Russia is not allowed to participate, the groups would then appear as follows:
| Group A | Group B |
| Canada |
Japan |
| United States |
Sweden |
| Finland |
Germany |
| Czechia |
Italy |
| Switzerland |
France*  |
*As France has qualified as the combined best second ranked team from the Final Olympic Qualification, it has been decided to grant them ranking 10th.
The decision whether Russia participates in the 2026 Winter Olympic Games will remain under the International Olympic Committee's jurisdiction.
Groups & Qualification Women
The 2026 Olympic tournament for women will consist of ten teams. The top six teams from the 2024 IIHF Women’s World Rankings automatically qualify, as does Italy, as host. The final three nations will be determined through qualification tournaments in December 2024 and February 2025.
The final qualification round (February 2025) will consist of three tournaments of four teams each. The winner of each group will earn a place in the 2026 Olympics.
The top three nations in each group for the final qualification round will be the top-ranked teams not automatically qualified (i.e., those teams ranked 7-15 in the 2024 IIHF Women's World Ranking). The fourth team from each group will be determined through qualification tournaments in December 2024. Again, three tournaments of four teams each ( i.e., those teams ranked 16 - 28 in the 2024 IIHF Women's World Ranking, excluding Italy which automatically qualifies as a host) be played concurrently, the winner from each advancing to the final qualification round.