The 16th edition of the Hockey India Junior Men’s National Championship has officially begun, featuring 30 teams competing in three divisions starting Tuesday. The competition, which runs until August 8, will see promotion and relegation add extra intensity to each match. Teams in Division A will vie for the championship title, while those in Divisions B and C will aim for advancement to higher divisions.

Division A includes 12 teams organized into four pools of three. Pool A consists of Hockey Haryana, Hockey Madhya Pradesh, and the Hockey Unit of Tamil Nadu. Pool B comprises the Hockey Association of Odisha, Manipur Hockey, and Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu Hockey.

Pool C features Hockey Punjab, Hockey Jharkhand, and Delhi Hockey, while Pool D contains Uttar Pradesh Hockey, Hockey Karnataka, and Hockey Bengal. Following the league stage, the top two teams from each pool will progress to the quarterfinals scheduled for August 5. Semifinals are set for August 6, with the third-place playoff taking place on August 8. The two lowest-ranked teams in Division A will be demoted to Division B.

Division B consists of 10 teams split into two pools of five. Pool A includes Hockey Maharashtra, Hockey Uttarakhand, Hockey Jammu & Kashmir, Hockey Himachal, and Kerala Hockey. Pool B is made up of Hockey Andhra Pradesh, Hockey Chandigarh, Hockey Arunachal, Bihar (BSSA), and Chhattisgarh Hockey.