Lee Valley will host the FIH Champions Trophy ©Getty Images

England has been confirmed as the new host of this year’s International Hockey Federation (FIH) men’s Champions Trophy after a contract with Argentina was cancelled.

The event will take place at the Lee Valley Hockey and Tennis Centre – on the London 2012 Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park – between June 10 and 17.

It will precede the women’s edition of the tournament which will also be played at Lee Valley between June 18 and 26.

The tournament pits together the “best of the best” of hockey with the hosts – playing as Great Britain - joining Olympic champions Germany and World Cup and Hockey World League winners Australia in taking part.

South Korea, winners of Champions Challenge I, will also compete along with Belgium and India, who received invites from the FIH.

The original contract for the tournament with the Confederación Argentina de Hockey (CAH) was ripped up as the CAH could not meet obligations in regards to television rights, sponsorship and the hosting of events, the FIH said. 

Discussions between the FIH and CAH are still ongoing.

The event will be another major hockey tournament held in London, following the London 2012 Olympics
The event will be another major hockey tournament held in London, following the London 2012 Olympics ©Getty Images

FIH CEO Kelly Fairweather said: “Following the hugely successful 2012 Olympic Games and more recently the Unibet EuroHockey Championships held in this venue we know that England Hockey and all of their partners will truly embrace the FIH Hockey Revolution’s vision of creating innovative and exciting events for our fans.

“This is key to our aim of making hockey a global game that inspires the next generation.

“This is the first FIH event to be held here as part of a three event series in addition to the 2017 men’s Hockey World League semi-final and the women’s Hockey World Cup in 2018.

“We are reaching out to sports fans and asking them to join us, particularly this year as we get the Rio Olympic festivities underway right here in the legacy venue in London’s Olympic Park.”

The opening day of play will see Britain play Australia, with Germany playing India and South Korea meeting Belgium.

Each country will play each other in a round robin with the top two at the end contesting the final.

England Hockey Chief Executive Sally Munday said: "The opportunity to host this prestigious event was one not to be missed, particularly given the excitement building around the Olympics in Rio.

"Hosting major events is crucial in raising the profile of hockey in the UK and inspiring people to take up our game.

"It's a great opportunity for the public to support our national team, watch world-class hockey and have a great day out on Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park."