2025 IIHF World Championship
2025 edition of the IIHF World Championship
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The 2025 IIHF World Championship was co-hosted by Stockholm, Sweden, and Herning, Denmark, from 9 to 25 May 2025. This decision regarding Sweden was made at the 2018 semi-annual International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) congress in Malta, and was officially announced on 24 May 2019, at the IIHF's annual congress during the World Championships in Bratislava, Slovakia.[2] At the same time, it was announced that Denmark would co-host the championship.[3]
| |
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Host countries |  Sweden Denmark |
| Venues | 2 |
| Dates | 9–25 May |
| Opened by | Carl XVI Gustaf Frederik X |
| Teams | 16 |
| Final positions | |
Champions  |  United States (3rd title) |
Runners-up  |  Switzerland |
Third place  | Sweden |
| Fourth place | Denmark |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Games played | 64 |
| Goals scored | 373 (5.83 per game) |
| Attendance | 489,450 (7,648 per game) |
| Scoring leader |  David Pastrňák (15 points) |
| Awards | |
| MVP | Leonardo Genoni[1] |
In the quarterfinals, co-host country Denmark defeated Canada 2–1, in what was widely considered one of the biggest upsets in IIHF World Championship history.[note 1] Denmark subsequently played in their first-ever semifinal, while Canada did not finish in the top four for the first time since 2014. Since the IIHF re-introduced a playoff system in 1992, the United States reached the World Championship final for the first time after having lost 12 consecutive semifinals, and secured their first World Championship medal since winning bronze in 2021.[11] After losing their semifinal and the subsequent bronze medal game, Denmark finished in the top four for the first time in tournament history.
It was the first gold medal for the United States since 1960 and their third overall (also in 1933).[12][13] It was also the team's first top two finish since 1960. Switzerland lost its second consecutive final.
This tournament was also the first time since the 2019 IIHF World Championship that both promoted teams (Hungary and Slovenia) stayed in the top division.
Participants
- Qualified as hosts
- Automatic qualifier after a top 14 placement at the 2024 IIHF World Championship
Austria
Canada
Czechia
Finland
France
Germany
Kazakhstan
Latvia
Norway
Slovakia
Switzerland
United States
- Qualified through winning promotion from the 2024 IIHF World Championship Division I
Seeding
The seedings in the preliminary round are based on the 2024 IIHF World Ranking, at the end of the 2024 IIHF World Championship, using the serpentine system while allowing the organizers, "to allocate a maximum of two teams to separate groups," while ensuring hosts Sweden and Denmark will be in separate groups.[14]
Marketing
Slogan
The slogan of the competition was pulse, and main phrase of it was "Feel the Pulse".[15]
Mascot
The mascot of the event was called Beaty, a character with a heart-shaped face and bright cheeks. Beaty was a lively and agile mascot who bounced around, spreading energy to everyone around it, and always with a high pulse.[16]
Rosters
Each team's roster consisted of at least 15 skaters (forwards and defencemen) and two goaltenders, and at most 22 skaters and three goaltenders. All 16 participating nations, through the confirmation of their respective national associations, had to submit a "Long List" no later than two weeks before the tournament, and a final roster by the Passport Control meeting prior to the start of the tournament.[17]
Match officials
16 referees and linesmen were announced on 7 May 2025.[18]
| Referees | Linesmen |
|---|---|
|
|
Venues
 Sweden |
 Denmark | |
|---|---|---|
| Stockholm | Herning | |
| Avicii Arena Capacity: 12,530 |
Jyske Bank Boxen Capacity: 10,500[19] | |
 |
 |
Preliminary round
The groups were announced on 30 May 2024,[20] with the schedule being revealed on 19 August 2024.[21]
Group A
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Canada |
7 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 34 | 7 | +27 | 19 | Quarterfinals |
| 2 | Sweden (H) |
7 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 28 | 8 | +20 | 18 | |
| 3 |  Finland |
7 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 22 | 10 | +12 | 16 | |
| 4 |  Austria |
7 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 21 | 18 | +3 | 10 | |
| 5 |  Latvia |
7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 17 | 25 | −8 | 9 | Qualified for the 2026 IIHF World Championship |
| 6 |  Slovakia |
7 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 9 | 24 | −15 | 7 | |
| 7 |  Slovenia |
7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 9 | 29 | −20 | 4 | |
| 8 |  France |
7 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 8 | 27 | −19 | 1 | Relegated to the 2026 Division I A |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head number of goals scored; 5) result against closest best-ranked team outside tied teams; 6) result against second-best-ranked team outside tied teams; 7) seeding before tournament
(H) Host
| 9 May 2025 | |||||
| Austria | 1–2 | Finland | |||
| Sweden | 5–0 | Slovakia | |||
| 10 May 2025 | |||||
| Slovenia | 0–4 | Canada | |||
| Sweden | 4–2 | Austria | |||
| France | 1–4 | Latvia | |||
| 11 May 2025 | |||||
| Slovakia | 3–1 | Slovenia | |||
| Latvia | 1–7 | Canada | |||
| Finland | 4–3 (OT) | France | |||
| 12 May 2025 | |||||
| Austria | 3–2 (GWS) | Slovakia | |||
| Finland | 1–2 | Sweden | |||
| 13 May 2025 | |||||
| Slovenia | 2–5 | Latvia | |||
| Canada | 5–0 | France | |||
| 14 May 2025 | |||||
| Slovakia | 2–1 | France | |||
| Latvia | 0–6 | Sweden | |||
| 15 May 2025 | |||||
| Finland | 9–1 | Slovenia | |||
| Canada | 5–1 | Austria | |||
| 16 May 2025 | |||||
| Austria | 5–2 | France | |||
| Sweden | 4–0 | Slovenia | |||
| 17 May 2025 | |||||
| Finland | 2–1 | Latvia | |||
| France | 0–4 | Sweden | |||
| Canada | 7–0 | Slovakia | |||
| 18 May 2025 | |||||
| Slovenia | 2–3 (GWS) | Austria | |||
| Slovakia | 1–5 | Latvia | |||
| 19 May 2025 | |||||
| France | 1–3 | Slovenia | |||
| Canada | 1–2 (GWS) | Finland | |||
| 20 May 2025 | |||||
| Latvia | 1–6 | Austria | |||
| Slovakia | 1–2 | Finland | |||
| Sweden | 3–5 | Canada |
Group B
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Switzerland |
7 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 34 | 9 | +25 | 19 | Quarterfinals |
| 2 | United States |
7 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 34 | 14 | +20 | 17[a] | |
| 3 | Czechia |
7 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 35 | 14 | +21 | 17[a] | |
| 4 | Denmark (H) |
7 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 25 | 24 | +1 | 11 | |
| 5 |  Germany |
7 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 20 | 22 | −2 | 10 | Qualified for the 2026 IIHF World Championship |
| 6 |  Norway |
7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 13 | 24 | −11 | 4 | |
| 7 |  Hungary |
7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 8 | 39 | −31 | 3[b] | |
| 8 |  Kazakhstan |
7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 9 | 32 | −23 | 3[b] | Relegated to the 2026 Division I A |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head number of goals scored; 5) result against closest best-ranked team outside tied teams; 6) result against second-best-ranked team outside tied teams; 7) seeding before tournament
(H) Host
Notes:
| 9 May 2025 | |||||
| Switzerland | 4–5 (OT) | Czechia | |||
| Denmark | 0–5 | United States | |||
| 10 May 2025 | |||||
| Norway | 1–2 | Kazakhstan | |||
| Germany | 6–1 | Hungary | |||
| Denmark | 2–5 | Switzerland | |||
| 11 May 2025 | |||||
| United States | 6–0 | Hungary | |||
| Germany | 4–1 | Kazakhstan | |||
| Norway | 1–2 | Czechia | |||
| 12 May 2025 | |||||
| United States | 0–3 | Switzerland | |||
| Czechia | 7–2 | Denmark | |||
| 13 May 2025 | |||||
| Norway | 2–5 | Germany | |||
| Kazakhstan | 2–4 | Hungary | |||
| 14 May 2025 | |||||
| United States | 6–5 (OT) | Norway | |||
| Kazakhstan | 1–5 | Denmark | |||
| 15 May 2025 | |||||
| Switzerland | 5–1 | Germany | |||
| Czechia | 6–1 | Hungary | |||
| 16 May 2025 | |||||
| Hungary | 2–8 | Denmark | |||
| Switzerland | 3–0 | Norway | |||
| 17 May 2025 | |||||
| United States | 6–3 | Germany | |||
| Czechia | 8–1 | Kazakhstan | |||
| Denmark | 6–3 | Norway | |||
| 18 May 2025 | |||||
| Kazakhstan | 1–6 | United States | |||
| Hungary | 0–10 | Switzerland | |||
| 19 May 2025 | |||||
| Germany | 0–5 | Czechia | |||
| Hungary | 0–1 | Norway | |||
| 20 May 2025 | |||||
| Switzerland | 4–1 | Kazakhstan | |||
| Czechia | 2–5 | United States | |||
| Germany | 1–2 (GWS) | Denmark |
Playoff round
There was a re-seeding after the quarterfinals.
| Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Final | ||||||||
| 22 May | ||||||||||
1A Canada | 1 | |||||||||
| 24 May | ||||||||||
4B Denmark | 2 | |||||||||
2 Switzerland | 7 | |||||||||
| 22 May | ||||||||||
7 Denmark | 0 | |||||||||
1B Switzerland | 6 | |||||||||
| 25 May | ||||||||||
4A Austria | 0 | |||||||||
2 Switzerland | 0 | |||||||||
| 22 May | ||||||||||
4 United States(OT) | 1 | |||||||||
2A Sweden | 5 | |||||||||
| 24 May | ||||||||||
3B Czechia | 2 | |||||||||
3 Sweden | 2 | |||||||||
| 22 May | ||||||||||
4 United States | 6 | Third place | ||||||||
2B United States | 5 | |||||||||
| 25 May | ||||||||||
3A Finland | 2 | |||||||||
3 Sweden | 6 | |||||||||
7 Denmark | 2 | |||||||||
Final
| 25 May 2025 20:20 | Switzerland | 0–1 OT (0–0, 0–0, 0–0, 0–1) | United States | Avicii Arena, Stockholm Attendance: 12,530 |
| Game reference | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leonardo Genoni | Goalies | Jeremy Swayman | Referees: Michael Campbell Mikael Holm Linesmen: Albert Ankerstjerne Onni Hautamäki | ||
| |||||
| 4 min | Penalties | 4 min | |||
| 25 | Shots | 40 | |||
Final standings
Teams finishing fifth in the preliminary round were ranked ninth and tenth, teams finishing sixth were ranked 11th and 12th, and so on.[22]
| Pos | Grp | Team | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Final result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | B | United States |
10 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 46 | 18 | +28 | 25 | Champions |
| 2 | B | Switzerland |
10 | 8 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 47 | 10 | +37 | 26 | Runners-up |
| 3 | A | Sweden (H) |
10 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 41 | 18 | +23 | 24 | Third place |
| 4 | B | Denmark (H) |
10 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 29 | 38 | −9 | 14 | Fourth place |
| 5 | A | Canada |
8 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 35 | 9 | +26 | 19 | Eliminated in Quarterfinals |
| 6 | B | Czechia |
8 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 37 | 19 | +18 | 17 | |
| 7 | A | Finland |
8 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 24 | 15 | +9 | 16 | |
| 8 | A | Austria |
8 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 21 | 24 | −3 | 10 | |
| 9 | B | Germany |
7 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 20 | 22 | −2 | 10 | Eliminated in Preliminary round |
| 10 | A | Latvia |
7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 17 | 25 | −8 | 9 | |
| 11 | A | Slovakia |
7 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 9 | 24 | −15 | 7 | |
| 12 | B | Norway |
7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 13 | 24 | −11 | 4 | |
| 13 | A | Slovenia |
7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 9 | 29 | −20 | 4 | |
| 14 | B | Hungary |
7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 8 | 39 | −31 | 3 | |
| 15 | B | Kazakhstan |
7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 9 | 32 | −23 | 3 | Relegated to the 2026 IIHF World Championship Division I |
| 16 | A | France |
7 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 8 | 27 | −19 | 1 |
Rules for classification: 1) position in the group; 2) number of points; 3) goal difference; 4) goals scored; 5) seeding before tournament.
(H) Host
Statistics
Scoring leaders
List shows the top skaters sorted by points, then goals.
| Player | GP | G | A | Pts | +/− | PIM | POS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| David Pastrňák | 8 | 6 | 9 | 15 | +7 | 4 | F |
| Elias Lindholm | 10 | 8 | 6 | 14 | +8 | 0 | F |
| Roman Červenka | 8 | 6 | 8 | 14 | +8 | 4 | F |
| Nathan MacKinnon | 8 | 7 | 6 | 13 | +9 | 10 | F |
| Travis Konecny | 8 | 3 | 10 | 13 | +9 | 12 | F |
| Frank Nazar | 10 | 6 | 6 | 12 | +7 | 6 | F |
| Nick Olesen | 10 | 5 | 7 | 12 | −3 | 4 | F |
| Sidney Crosby | 8 | 4 | 8 | 12 | +8 | 6 | F |
| Logan Cooley | 10 | 4 | 8 | 12 | +4 | 10 | F |
| Tyler Moy | 10 | 4 | 8 | 12 | +8 | 0 | F |
GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/− = Plus/Minus; PIM = Penalties in Minutes; POS = Position
Source: IIHF
Goaltending leaders
Only the top five goaltenders, based on save percentage, who have played at least 40% of their team's minutes, are included in this list.
| Player | TOI | GA | GAA | SA | Sv% | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leonardo Genoni | 424:32 | 7 | 0.99 | 150 | 95.33 | 4 |
| Daniel Vladař | 219:52 | 4 | 1.09 | 81 | 95.06 | 1 |
| Jordan Binnington | 239:15 | 5 | 1.25 | 90 | 94.44 | 2 |
| Juuse Saros | 358:50 | 10 | 1.67 | 174 | 94.25 | 0 |
| Samuel Ersson | 259:06 | 5 | 1.16 | 76 | 93.42 | 2 |
TOI = time on ice (minutes:seconds); SA = shots against; GA = goals against; GAA = goals against average; Sv% = save percentage; SO = shutouts
Source: IIHF.com
Awards
The awards were announced on 25 May 2025.[1]
Media All Stars
| Position | Player |
|---|---|
| Goaltender | Leonardo Genoni |
| Defenceman | Zach Werenski |
| Defenceman | Dean Kukan |
| Forward | David Pastrňák |
| Forward | Elias Lindholm |
| Forward | Nick Olesen |
| MVP | Leonardo Genoni |
Individual awards
| Position | Player |
|---|---|
| Goaltender | Leonardo Genoni |
| Defenceman | Zach Werenski |
| Forward | David Pastrňák |
IIHF contributors' awards
The annual IIHF contributors' awards ceremony was on 24 May 2025, prior to the semifinal games of the men's championship.[23]
Award recipients
- Jon Haukeland of Norway received the Paul Loicq Award for outstanding contributions to international ice hockey.[24]
- Leszek Laszkiewicz of Poland received the Torriani Award for a player with an outstanding career from non-top hockey nation.[25]
- The IIHF Milestone Award was given to the 2002/2003 Denmark men's national ice hockey teams, and the 2006 Sweden men's national ice hockey team.[23]
- Jim Aldred of Portugal received the Johan Bollue Award for contributions to growth and development in youth ice hockey.[26]
- Paul Graham of The Sports Network received the IIHF Media Award for outstanding contributions to international hockey through television, print, and radio.[23]
IIHF Hall of Fame induction
The IIHF Hall of Fame induction ceremony took place on 25 May 2025, during the medal presentations of the men's championship.[27]
IIHF Hall of Fame inductees
- Zdeno Chára, Slovakia[28]
- Kai Hietarinta, Finland[29]
- Henrik Lundqvist, Sweden[30]
- Kim Martin Hasson, Sweden[30]
- Frans Nielsen, Denmark[31]
- Vicky Sunohara, Canada[32]
- David Výborný, Czechia[33]
