PSB rejects PHF allegations over ‘Pro League Tour’

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) has rejected allegations by the Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) regarding the national team’s participation in the FIH Pro League Season-7 (Phase-2) in Hobart, Australia, calling them “contrary to facts, misleading and against documented record.”

According to an official statement, authentic documentary evidence confirms that PSB fulfilled all its financial responsibilities in a timely and complete manner for the tour, while administrative and operational irregularities surfaced at the federation level.

The national hockey team was originally scheduled to depart for Australia on 2 February 2026, but visa delays and incorrect information from the PHF forced a rescheduling. Following PSB intervention with the Australian High Commission, the team departed on 5 February and arrived in Hobart on 7 February.

The Board covered the original airfare of Rs 27.1 million, as well as an additional Rs 9.7 million resulting from visa-related delays.

The statement further revealed that for the Australia tour, the PHF shared a list of 21 players and officials along with their passports at 6:24 pm on January 26, 2026, while details of five additional players and officials were provided on January 27. Subsequently, on January 28, PSB issued a cheque for hotel payment, which, according to the Board, could not have been processed earlier due to the delayed submission of required documents.

On PHF’s request, an advance payment of 49,280 Australian dollars was issued for accommodation at DoubleTree by Hilton (4-Star), covering 12 double rooms and two single rooms.

However, the federation allegedly failed to confirm the hotel booking prior to departure. In addition, an advance of US$1,610 per player was released as daily allowance, along with approximately US$3,000 for miscellaneous expenses.

The PHF had sought a total budget of Rs 350 million for the Pro League campaign. The Ministry of Inter-Provincial Coordination (IPC) provided Rs 250 million, after which PSB formally informed the federation on August 27, 2025, about the availability of funds and directed it to submit a detailed financial plan.

The remaining amount, as per Clause 9.5 of the PHF Constitution, was to be arranged by the federation itself. However, the federation neither arranged the balance funds nor submitted the required detailed plan.

The record also indicates that the federation repeatedly submitted documentation late for various tournaments. For instance, for the Argentina tour, a request to commence a training camp from November 24, 2025, was submitted on November 23, while the request for a No Objection Certificate (NOC) was filed on November 26, even though the team was scheduled to depart on December 3, 2025.

Due to previous financial irregularities, the PSB in its 31st and 34th meetings decided not to release direct funds to the federation until complete accounts of earlier grants were submitted. The record shows that previous funds were utilized on employee salaries, travel expenses of the president and secretary, daily allowances and fuel charges.

The PSB also dismissed the impression regarding the Standing Committee’s recommendations, clarifying that there was no directive requiring the Board to manage all arrangements for the Pro League or any other international event.

Under the established governance framework of national sports, PSB provides financial assistance, oversight and policy support, while event management, team logistics, bookings, visa processing and operational matters remain the primary responsibility of the respective national federation.

“If all arrangements are to be handled by PSB, the very purpose of the federation’s administrative existence and responsibility becomes redundant,” the statement said.

The Board further pointed out that for the upcoming World Cup Qualifying event in Egypt, the PHF has yet to submit the required list of players and NOC documentation.