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When and where is it played?
The World Hockey Championship will start the ceremony on Friday at eight o’clock in the evening, that is, exactly 20 minutes before the throw-in of the Czech Republic-Finland matches in Prague and Slovakia-USA in Ostrava.
“The first part of the opening ceremony consists of a clip accompanied by the voice of world-respected commentator Gord Miller, and discusses how hockey has evolved over the decades of its existence. However, one thing remains unchanged for this winter sport throughout the entire period – the passion and love of the players and fans, which underlines the claim of the Heart of the game championship,” says the president of the Prague organizing committee, Petr Bříza.
The Czech team will play their matches in the O2 Arena in Prague’s Libni, while the Slovaks and Poles will be “at home” in Ostrava’s Ostravar Arena. The elimination part of the tournament will be hosted exclusively by the capital city.
When are the Czechs playing at the 2024 Ice Hockey World Cup?
| Date | Time | Who |
|---|---|---|
| Friday 10.5. | 20:20 | CZECH REPUBLIC–Finland |
| Saturday 11. 5. | 20:20 | Norway–CZECH REPUBLIC |
| Monday 5/13 | 20:20 | Switzerland–CZECH REPUBLIC |
| Wednesday 5/15 | 4:20 p.m | CZECH REPUBLIC–Denmark |
| Friday 5/17 | 20:20 | CZECH REPUBLIC–Austria |
| Saturday 5/18 | 20:20 | CZECH REPUBLIC–Great Britain |
| Tuesday 21. 5. | 4:20 p.m | Canada–CZECH REPUBLIC |
The complete program of the tournament and the composition of the basic groups can be found below in the article.
The entrance to the stadium always opens one hour before kick-off. See the complete match schedule in a separate article.
Tickets
Tickets for the matches of the Czech national team are sold out. Dealers offer them at significantly higher prices than those set by the organizers. Additionally, tickets from resellers may be fake or invalid.
However, it is still possible to buy tickets for attractive matches from the official seller, TicketPortal.
Organizers are luring fans to world hockey stars. Canadian forward Connor Bedard, Swiss Nico Hischier or Finnish Mikael Granlund will perform in Prague. In Ostrava, people can watch the American Brady Tkachuk or the Swede Erik Karlsson.
Fanzones and beer
The fan zone at the O2 arena with a capacity of 7,000 seats is intended for fans of all participating countries, who can watch the broadcasts of individual matches here. The same also applies to the Ostrava fan zone at the Ostravar Arena with a capacity of 5,000 seats.
The opening hours of the fan zone will be from 2 p.m. until the end of the evening match, in the case of three-match days even from 11 a.m. It will be open from 12 noon for the semi-finals on Saturday 25 May and from 1 pm for the finals on Sunday 26 May. Entry is free for all.
Photo: Michal Šula, Seznam Zpravy
As for beer, pilsner is sold outside in the fan zones for 110 crowns. However, it is only possible to pay in cash. Due to long-term contracts, Staropramen in Prague and Ostravar in Ostrava are available inside the stadiums.
Transport
Organizers have a simple message for fans: Use public transport if possible. Among other things, because the already mentioned fan zones grew up at both stadiums instead of parking lots. In addition, buses cannot enter the area around the arenas.
“We know it’s tempting, but please don’t try to drive to the game at all costs. In the best case scenario, it could happen that you miss the opening bulls, get stuck in a queue or find a place to park. Then you would be deprived of the hockey experience,” says director of the transport department Lenka Jiroutová on behalf of the organizers.
In Prague, drivers can park in one of the parking lots and then take the metro to the B Českomoravská station. Some metro and tram lines will be reinforced during the championship and will run more frequently.
You can take the tram to the Arena Libeň jih stop (daytime – 7, 8; nighttime – 92) or to the Gong Theater station (daytime – 12, 31; nighttime – 94). You can take a bus to the Českomoravská station, which during the championship is moved to K Moravině street (daytime – 151, 152; nighttime – 375), or Nádraží Libeň (daytime – 136, 177, 182, 183, 195; nighttime – 913). It is possible to walk from the Praha-Libeň or Praha-Vysočany railway stations.
In Ostrava, parking will only be possible in Závodní street opposite the hockey stadium. Other parking lots will be Lipový dvůr in Ruská Street and the parking lot in Dolní Vítkovice, where buses will also be directed.
Above all, it is possible to buy a discounted weekly ticket for 250 crowns and go by public transport. Sports fans will arrive at the Sport Aréna stop in Závodní fanůšci street by lines 11, 12, 19, X. Tram lines 2 and 7 stop in Ruská street. An alternative is line 3 to the nearby stop Ředitelství Vítkovice. The nearest railway station is Ostrava-Vítkovice, which is connected to the aforementioned booster tram line X.
