This spring, it is planned that the Ice Hockey World Cup will be played in Belarus and Latvia.

However, many have demanded that Belarus get rid of its host, due to the unrest in the country since the presidential election last summer.

Among other things, the chairman of the Swedish Ice Hockey Association, Anders Larsson, already told SVT in November that at present it would not be possible to send a national team to Belarus.

"Must go to Belarus"

But it is still unclear whether the World Cup will be played in Belarus or not.

- We have to go to Belarus and discuss some things soon.

The IIHF's board has spoken several times about the championship and we are also using an external partner to find out what the situation really is in Belarus.

Of course, there is a lot left to sort out, such as how the corona situation is in the country and we must also take them into account the political and social aspects, said IIHF chairman René Fasel at a video conference on Tuesday, quoted by several media.

Been in contact with other countries

A final decision promises he will come this month.

- We will have a meeting at the end of January.

It is the deadline for the decision, he says, and explains that the IIHF has already been in contact with other countries to possibly take over Belarus' hosting.

- It will not be easy to quickly find a new host country because the pandemic is still ongoing.

There are also financial challenges.

We have had discussions with other countries and some have even contacted us.