NCAA Headed To Ireland For Women's Hockey Series

Four NCAA women's hockey teams - Quinnipiac, Boston University, Harvard, and Minnesota-Duluth - will head to Belfast, Ireland net season to compete in the Friendship Four Series. The teams will compete in the event in January, 2026.

The tournament will for the first time feature four teams. The tournament is the first and only NCAA hockey tournament that takes place outside North America.

"We are looking forward as a program to the educational experience and team building opportunities for student-athletes this incredible tournament will provide," said Minnesota-Duluth head coach Laura Schuler in a team news release. "We are proud to be a part of the first four-team women's tournament, and really excited to reconnect in person with all our European Bulldog alumni."

"This is an amazing opportunity this is for our program," echoed Laura Bellamy, Harvard's women's hockey coach. "We are so fortunate to have this chance to play in this tournament and give our team this once in a lifetime experience. It will be an honor to represent Harvard on the world stage in this historic event next season."

The 2025 tournament will mark the 10th season NCAA hockey teams will travel to Belfast for the event. According to Sarah Fraser, Deputy Director of Athletics at Quinnipiac University, it's been exciting to watch the event grow in that span.

"As we approach a decade of the Friendship Four, it's been fantastic to see how the tournament has gone from strength to strength. Undoubtedly, the significance and impact of the games reaches far beyond the ice, offering student-athletes a rounded cultural experience in Belfast. Looking ahead to the next two tournaments, I feel particularly proud that 2026 will see the first four-team women's tournament take place at The SSE Arena, Belfast, providing a great opportunity to showcase the up-and-coming talent within the female game."

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