BeNe League

The BeNe League (Nederlands: Beneliga) is the highest-level ice hockey league in Belgium and the Netherlands. The league was founded in 2015, following a merger between the Belgian Hockey League and the Dutch Eredivisie and thus became the top tier of the sport in both nations. In terms of league structure, the BeNe League is made up of 11 teams, 6 from the Netherlands and a further 5 Belgium, which are split into 2 groups. The league features a mix of Belgian, Dutch, European and overseas players.
==Overview==
The BeNe League is made up of 16 teams, 10 based in the Netherlands and 6 based in Belgium, these 16 teams are split into two groups, each containing 5 Dutch teams and 3 Belgian teams. Each team plays a total of 22 games over the course of the regular season, they play each team in their division twice, as well as once against every team in the other division. Points are awarded in the following fashion, 3 points for a win, 2 for a win in overtime and 1 for an overtime loss.
At the end of the regular season, the top 4 teams from each division qualify for the playoffs. The playoff quarterfinals are played over two legs, whilst the Semi-Final and Final are both played as a best of three series. The winner of the playoffs is then crowned the league victor. On top this the league also crowns National Champions from each country. The team that advances the furthest through the playoffs from each country is subsequently crowned as National Champion.
One of the Netherlands most successful ice hockey teams, the Tilburg Trappers, announced that they would not be a part of the BeNe League, and would instead join the Oberliga, the 3rd tier of ice hockey in Germany. They do however, operate a developmental team in the BeNe League in the form of Tilburg Trappers II.
==History==
Following the 2009 season of the Belgian Hockey League, HYC Herentals and White Caps Turnhout decided to the join the Eredivisie, whilst the remaining 3 teams dropped down a division and played instead in the Belgian National League. This resulted in the North Sea Cup being played in place of both the Belgian Hockey League and the Eredivisie. Following the culmination of the 2011-12 season, in which White Caps Turnhout dropped out midway through the season, followed by the Leuven Chiefs also stating they would be leaving the competition, it was announced that the Eredivisie would once again take place, and that HYC Herentals would participate. A reformed Belgian Hockey League, featuring both Leuven Chiefs, White Caps Turnhout, and former Belgian National League teams would also take place.
The Geleen Eaters released a statement via their website stating they were unsure if they would be able to compete in the 2014/15 Eredivisie due to lack of funding, which is an issue that also occurred the previous year. On August 26, 2014 Geleen stated that in order to participate in the upcoming season they would have to raise somewhere in the region of €60,000.
This was soon followed by an announcement that the Dodrecht Lions would be dropping down to the Eerst Divisie, and it was subsequently reported in September 2014 that the Eredivisie was in a state of Crisis due to the fact that the league was reduced to five participants. Furthermore, one of those five teams, Eindhoven Kemphanen, declared that they had no interest playing in a five team league, which potentially reduced the Eredivisie down to four teams for the 2014/15 season.
Eindhoven Kemphanen subsequently agreed to play in a 5 team league, which also featured Geleen Eaters, HYC Herentals, Heerenveen Flyers and Tilburg Trappers, and as a result the Eredivisie went ahead.
Following the difficulties both leagues had suffered in the recent years, the hockey federations of both nations worked in partnership, and on 12 June, 2015 it was announced that the Belgian Hockey League and the Eredivisie would merge in to the BeNe League.
On 13 March 2016 it was announced that GIJS Groningen would be joining the BeNe League from the Eerst Divisie bringing the number of teams up to 17. It was subsequently announced on 16, June 2016 that the Dordrecht Lions would not be playing in the BeNe League for the upcoming season, instead dropping down a division to the Eerst Divisie. 
==Teams==
The following teams will participate in the 2019/2020 BeNe League.
Current Teams 	Current Teams	Current Teams 	Current Teams	Current Teams	Current Teams	Current Teams
Team 	City 	Arena 	Capacity 	Founded 	 	
Antwerp Phantoms 	Deurne 	IJsbaan Ruggerveld 	500 	1972 	 	
IHC Leuven 	Leuven 	IJsbaan Leuven 	800 	1993 	 	
UNIS Flyers 	Heerenveen 	Thialf 	3,500 	1967 	 	
Hijs Hokij 	The Hague 	De Uithof 	2,610 	1933 	 	
Herentals HYC 	Herentals 	BLOSO IJsbaan 	1,200 	1971 	 	
Bulldogs Liège 	Liège 	Patinoire de Liège 	1,250 	1997 	 	
Laco Eaters 	Geleen 	Glanerbrook IJshal 	1,200 	1968 	 	
Mechelen Golden Sharks	Mechelen 	Ice Skating Center Mechelen	1,000 	2016 	 	
Nijmegen Devils 	Nijmegen 	Triavium 	1,450 	2007 	 	
Tilburg Trappers Jeugd	Tilburg 	Stappegoor IJssportcentrum 	2,500 	2009 	 	
Hotwings Panters 	Zoetermeer 	Silverdome 	3,500 	2010 	 	
===Former Teams===
Former Teams 	Former Teams 	Former Teams 	Former Teams	Former Teams	Former Teams	Former Teams 	Former Teams
Team 	City 	Arena 	Capacity 	Founded 	Joined BeNe 	Left BeNe 	
Amsterdam Tigers 	Amsterdam 	Jaap Edenhal 	1,300 	1963 	2015–16 	2019–20 	
Dordrecht Lions 	Dordrecht 	Sportboulevard Dordrecht 	1,500 	1977 	2015–16 	2016–17 	
Eindhoven Kemphanen 	Eindhoven 	IJssportcentrum Eindhoven	1,700 	1981 	2015–16 	2017–18 	
GIJS Groningen 	Groningen 	Sportcentrum Kardinge 	800 	1969 	2016–17 	2017–18 	
IJCU Dragons Utrecht 	Utrecht 	De Vechtsebanen 	4,000 	2008 	2015–16 	Before 2015–161	
Olympia Heist op den Berg 	Heist-op-den-Berg	Die Swaene 	N/A 	1959 	2015–16 	2016–17 	
Red Eagles 's-Hertogenbosch	's-Hertogenbosch 	Sportiom 's-Hertogenbosch	7,220 	1965 	2015–16 	2017–18 	
Turnhout Tigers 	Turnhout 	Kempisch IJsstadion 	1,200 	1981 	2015–16 	2016–17 	
* 1 Utrecht withdrew their application in June 2015.
==Players==
The BeNe League relies heavily on Belgian and Dutch native players, and as a result the majority of players on the Belgian and Dutch national teams ply their trade in the BeNe League. Of the 18 players that featured for Belgium in the 2016 IIHF World Championship, 17 played in the BeNe League, whilst 13 of the 21-man Dutch team also played in the league.
Overseas players (termed imports) are allowed in the league however, with each team being able to sign 2 imports. An import is defined as any player who is not eligible to play for either the Belgian or Dutch national teams. During the 2015–16 season, players representing 10 further countries played in the league, with nations such as Canada, Czech Republic, Finland and USA represented. Of the 12 North American players that played in the 2015-16 season, 8 had previously played in either the CIS or NCAA Division III
, with one (Trevor Hunt) having prior experience in the ECHL. In terms of prior European experience, players in the BeNe league have previously featured in the Czech Extraliga, the Elite Ice Hockey League and the Slovak Extraliga.
==Champions==
Season 	BeNe League Champion 	Belgian Champion 	Dutch Champion
2015-16	REPLAY HYC Herentals 	REPLAY HYC Herentals	UNIS Flyers Heerenveen
2016-17	UNIS Flyers Heerenveen 	REPLAY HYC Herentals	UNIS Flyers Heerenveen
2017-18	Hijs Hokij 	REPLAY HYC Herentals	Hijs Hokij
2018-19	HYC Herentals 	HYC Herentals 	Nijmegen Devils
2019-20	No champion due to COVID-19 pandemic 	 	
2020-21	Season cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic	 	
2021-22	Heerenveen Flyers 	Bulldogs de Liege 	HYS The Hague
2022-23	Bulldogs de Liege 	Bulldogs de Liege 	HYS The Hague
2023-24	Bulldogs de Liege 	Bulldogs de Liege 	Heerenveen Flyers
==See also==
* Belgian Hockey League 
* Eredivisie
* North Sea Cup
==References==
==External links==
* BeNe League
* Royal Belgian Ice Hockey Federation
* Dutch Ice Hockey Board
Category:Ice hockey leagues