With the success of the national team also strengthened the hockey sport in Latvia. New ice rinks gradually developed and the Latvian Hockey Higher League became the strongest Baltic league after the dissolution of the EEHL, with a team from Lithuania and Estonia playing each. Two new arenas, the Skonto Arena and the Riga Arena were built to host the 2006 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships in Latvia, with a total of 15 ice rinks available. With the rise of the league and the improved play and training opportunities many Latvian players returned and the ethnic composition of the teams changed again in favor of the Latvians. National and local youth programs were launched so that in 2006 the Latvian Junior National Team was allowed to participate in the U20 World Youth Championship in [British Columbia]. In the same year, the Latvian U18 team was able to win Division I, so that in 2007 it was first class and participated in the U18 World Cup, but there again relegated to Division I. , In Division I U20 World Championship 2008, the Latvian Under-20 team won the tournament in Riga and returned to the A Group. In addition, Kaspars Daugaviņš was a top scorer and Artūrs Kulda was voted best defender of the tournament.