The Netherlands women took a step closer to securing the FIH Hockey Pro League title without playing a match on Tuesday after their closest rivals, Argentina and Belgium, failed to win their respective matches in regulation time.
Argentina went down 2-1 to Spain in a scorching London, while Belgium’s women drew 1-1 with Australia before claiming a bonus point in the shootout.
Meanwhile, Pakistan’s loss to India in an entertaining encounter confirmed their relegation from the men’s tournament.
In the other matches of the day, Spain’s men also pulled off a victory over Argentina, while Australia’s men beat the Netherlands 2-0, and Germany’s women secured a win over Ireland by the same margin.
(Women’s) Spain 2 – 1 Argentina
Spain came from a goal down to beat Argentina for the first time since January 2020.
After a tightly contested opening quarter, it was Argentina who struck first, as Agostina Alonso produced a superb reverse-stick finish from the edge of the circle in the 15th minute, driving the ball just inside the far post.
Argentina enjoyed the better of the chances in the second quarter, though opportunities were limited. They earned a late penalty corner, but it was well dealt with, ensuring the score remained 1–0 at half-time.
Another closely contested third quarter brought the breakthrough for Spain, with Luciana Molina reacting quickest after a save from Argentinian goalkeeper Cristina Cosentino to poke the ball back through her legs for the equaliser in the 41st minute. Argentina threatened an immediate response, but a superb goal-line stick save kept the scores locked at 1-1 heading into the final period.
There was still plenty of drama to come as Flo Amundson latched onto a beautifully weighted long pass on the 23 and drove into the circle. With Cosentino caught too far off her line, Amundson made the most of the opportunity, firing home a tomahawk to put Spain in front.
Argentina piled on the pressure in the closing stages in search of an equaliser, but the Spanish defence stood firm to seal a memorable victory.
Flo Amundson was named Player of the Match for Spain and said: “I think the team performed really good until the end. As a Spain team, we have a really hard schedule with eight games in 11 days… but I think we’re doing a really great job… I’m really happy that we won.”
(Men’s) Pakistan 3 – 4 India
Pakistan put up a mighty fight but just couldn’t get the better of arch-rivals India, who secured a vital 4-3 victory.
India dominated the early exchanges, but it was Pakistan who struck first. They earned the opening penalty corner of the match in the eighth minute and, although the initial routine broke down, Ahmad Nadeem was perfectly positioned in front of goal to pop the ball up into the back of the net for a 1-0 lead against the run of play. India responded by earning five penalty corners of their own, but goalkeeper Ali Raza produced a string of superb saves to preserve Pakistan’s advantage.
Raza came under relentless pressure as the second quarter wore on, and he was finally beaten in the 22nd minute when Abhishek’s bouncing push from the top of the circle found the bottom right corner to level the scores. Just two minutes later, India completed the turnaround from their eighth penalty corner of the match as the ball rebounded off the first runner, allowing Nilakanta Sharma to blast home from the top of the circle for a 2-1 lead. Were it not for Raza’s outstanding performance in goal, Pakistan could have found themselves trailing by a far greater margin at half-time.
The Pakistanis created several promising chances in the third quarter, but it was India who struck next. In the 40th minute, Sukhjeet Singh rifled a stunning effort into the roof of the net to bring up his 40th international goal and extend India’s lead.
A powerful drag flick from Rajinder Singh off yet another Indian penalty corner appeared to put the result beyond doubt in the 52nd minute, making it 4-1. But Pakistan responded almost immediately, with Abu Mahmood squeezing a penalty-corner effort through the goalkeeper’s legs less than a minute later. Abu Mahmood added another from a penalty corner awarded with just 15 seconds left on the clock, as Pakistan ran out of time in their comeback effort.
India’s Manpreet Singh was named Player of the Match and said: “It was a good game today, but I think we could have done much better because we got really good chances but couldn’t convert them into goals, but we still won. Now we have to look at our next game, which is against England, and definitely we will play much better than this.”
(Men’s) Argentina 2 – 3 Spain
Three unanswered goals from Spain saw them come from a goal down to get the better of Argentina in Berlin.
There was plenty of end-to-end action in the opening stages, with Argentina making the first breakthrough from a seventh-minute penalty corner. Tomas Domene’s drag flick took a deflection off the first runner before finding the back of the net to give his side a 1-0 lead.
Spain found the equaliser via a penalty stroke, with Jose Basterra not connecting as well as he would have liked, but putting enough on the ball to beat the keeper in the 22nd minute. They struck again before the end of the second quarter when an unmarked Marc Recasens received the ball in the circle with plenty of time and space to blast it in for the 2-1 lead at half-time.
An excellently taken penalty corner at the start of the second half saw Pepe Cunill extend Spain’s lead even further. And the Spanish continued to dominate play and possession, denying the Argentinians any real opportunities.
Whatever was said during the final break must’ve worked as Argentina pulled one back within 27 seconds of the start of the fourth quarter. This time Nicolas della Torre’s drag took a deflection off the second runner to beat the keeper on the left. Spanish goalkeeper Luis Calzado made some important saves to keep his team in the lead as they held on for a 3-2 victory.
Spain’s Pol Cabre Verdiell was named Player of the Match and said: “It was a really tough match. The start was difficult for us, but we trust each other and we played really good and we won.”
(Men’s) Australia 2 – 0 Netherlands
A disciplined defensive effort from Australia gave them the edge in their 2-0 win over the Netherlands, who led in all the stats except goalscoring.
The Dutch were in the driving seat for most of the first quarter and they had some early opportunities to open the scoring. Australian goalkeeper Ashleigh Thomas made an exceptional reflex save to keep things level, and there were a couple of missed penalty corners before Tim Brand snatched the lead for the Kookaburras in the 14th minute. He scrambled the ball over the line in the complete chaos that followed a penalty corner rebound. It was an even contest overall in the second quarter with chances at both ends of the pitch, but it remained 1-0 to the Australians at half-time.
A heavy tackle in the opening minute of the second half earned Australia a penalty stroke, and Jeremy Hayard stepped up to double Australia’s lead. The Dutch enjoyed a sustained period on the attack midway through the third quarter, but they were nearly caught by a fast break-out. Meijer did well to shut down the shot from close range, conceding a penalty corner that his runners then dealt with. The Netherlands enjoyed a numerical advantage after Ky Willott’s green card was upgraded to yellow for backchat in the 47th minute, and they started to press more aggressively in search of a goal as time ticked away. There was plenty of space to exploit in the final two minutes with both teams having a player serving a suspension, but they simply couldn’t find the net.
Australia’s Ashleigh Thomas was named the player of the match and said: “It was just really tough out there in the heat and we tried to stick together as a team. And I suppose it’s good for me when a few good (saves) come off, but we fought really hard out there and just really pleased with the performance of the team.”
(Women’s) Belgium 1 – 1 Australia (SO: 4-2)
A 1-1 draw was probably a fair result for the tight contest between Belgium and Australia in Wavre, with the home side clinching an extra point in the shootout.
Belgium raced into an early lead when they earned a penalty corner after just 24 seconds and Stephanie Vanden Borre’s flick was deflected into the top right corner of the net off a defender. They won another penalty corner moments later but were unable to make it count.
Australia responded positively, refusing to let the early setback dent their confidence as they piled pressure on the Belgian defence. However, their first penalty-corner opportunity went begging as the shot was pulled wide of goal.
The Hockeyroos’ pressure paid off in the 19th minute, however, as Alice Arnott pounced on a rebound off the goalkeeper following some excellent build-up play and hammered home. The sides went into the break locked at 1-1, with the statistics reflecting an evenly contested opening half as both teams recorded 12 circle entries.
The third quarter remained evenly balanced, with goalkeeper Jocelyn Bartram producing a fine double save to prevent Belgium from regaining the lead.
The home side upped the intensity in the final period but still couldn’t break the deadlock, with their best opportunity hitting the post. The Australians then had a chance to win it right at the death, but the ball was kept out with seconds remaining, taking the match to a shootout.
Hélène Brasseur, who was playing in her 100th match for Belgium, was named Player of the Match and said: “It’s a really special moment. It’s really an honour to be on the pitch with these girls every time again… so I’m really happy and this is a bonus.”
(Women’s) Germany 2 – 0 Ireland
Germany dominated play but they were made to work deep into the final quarter for a vital 2-0 win over Ireland that lifts them slightly above the relegation battle.
It was one-way traffic in the first half as Germany launched wave upon wave of attack. Ayeisha McFerran was incredibly sharp in Ireland’s goal, pulling off save after save, and Hannah McLoughlin assisted with a cool clearance under tremendous pressure from a penalty corner rebound. The Germans kept pressing high, and Ireland struggled with their 16-yard exits. Germany racked up six penalty corners without reward by half-time as the score remained 0-0.
A high-paced third quarter from both teams, coupled with uncompromising commitment on any 50/50 contests, saw a high turnover rate throughout. Ireland started holding some possession, but it was mostly deep in their own territory and under huge pressure. They denied the Germans any real opportunities while earning a couple of penalty corners of their own. Ireland then enjoyed a period in the ascendancy at the start of the fourth quarter but came away empty-handed. Germany finally broke the deadlock in the 51st minute, Lynn Krings slapping in hard from a variation back to the injector. Ireland had a couple of penalty corners, and they sacrificed their goalkeeper with three minutes remaining to chase a result. This backfired when Germany took a quick free hit in midfield and threw an overhead to Sara Strauss behind the defence. She had the easiest of jogs to carry the ball into an empty goal to complete the scoring.
The player of the match was awarded to Jette Fleschütz of Germany, who said: “Really happy, I think the three points are really important to us… On Wednesday we play again and that’s where we have to focus and keep fighting.”
Current Hero Top Scorers:
Women – Yibbi Jansen (NED) (11 goals)
Men – Tomas Domene (ARG) (17 goals)
To see the current standings in the FIH Hockey Pro League, click here.
FIH Hockey Pro League – 23 June 2026
Lee Valley Hockey and Tennis Centre, London (UK)
Women
Result: Match 55 (W)
Spain 2 – 1 Argentina
Player of the match: Flo Amundson (ARG)
Umpires: Junko Wagatsuma (JPN), Magali Sergeant (BEL), Sarah Wilson (SCO-video)
Men
Result: Match 55 (M)
Pakistan 3 – 4 India
Player of the match: Manpreet Singh (IND)
Umpires: Coen van Bunge (NED), Hong-Zhen Lim (SGP), Sophie Bockelmann (GER-video)
Ernst Reuter Sportfeld, Berlin (GER)
Men
Result: Match 56 (M)
Argentina 2 – 3 Spain
Player of the match: Pol Cabre Verdiell (ESP)
Umpires: Jonathan von Hoesslin (RSA), Timothy Sheahan (AUS), Laurine Delforge (BEL-video)
Women
Result: Match 57 (W)
Germany 2 – 0 Ireland
Player of the match: Jette Fleschütz (GER)
Umpires: Yoon Seon Kim (KOR), Steven Bakker (NED), Laurine Delforge (BEL-video)
Belfius Hockey Area, Wavre (BEL)
Men
Result: Match 57 (M)
Australia 2 – 0 Netherlands
Player of the match: Ashleigh Thomas (AUS)
Umpires: Darren Hubach (RSA), Raphael Adrien (GER), Rachel Williams (ENG-video)
Women
Result: Match 56 (W)
Belgium 1 – 1 Australia (SO: 4-2)
Player of the match: Hélène Brasseur (BEL)
Umpires: Cookie Tan (SGP), Hannah Harrison (ENG), Gareth Greenfield (NZL-video)