Both cities are located in the northern part of Sweden and are around 110 kilometres apart. 

They can be reached within one hour by a new railway line or by car along the Baltic Sea.

The proposed tournament dates are April 18 to 28 with the teams, groups and schedule due to be confirmed next year.

The event will be hosted by the Swedish Ice Hockey Association in co-operation with its branches in the provinces of Angermanland and Vasterbotten, the host cities and the two local clubs of MODO Ornskoldsvik and Bjorkloven Umea.

Ornskoldsvik is a classic hockey location and even though MODO suffered relegation to HockeyAllsvenskan - Sweden's second tier - in 2016, the club remains well-respected as a producer of talent.

Peter Forsberg is among the famous hockey players who came from the city of 29,000 inhabitants.

Others include Markus Naslund, Anders Hedberg, Victor Hedman, and twins Daniel and Henrik Sedin. 

MODO’s home, the Fjallraven Center, offers a capacity for 7,350 spectators.

Umea was the secondary host to Skelleftea when Sweden staged the 2000 IIHF World Junior Championship.

About 600km north of Stockholm and 400km away from the Arctic Circle, Umea is the biggest city in northern Sweden with almost 85,000 inhabitants within the city and more than 120,000 in the municipality.

Local club Bjorkloven Umea has featured in Svenska hockeyligan, Sweden's highest division, but has had difficulties in recent years.

They were the subject of bankruptcy in April 2010 before managing to get it allayed a month later.

Bjorkloven Umea have been in the HockeyAllsvenskan since 2013.

The club plays in the 5,450-capacity T3 Center.

Sweden has previously hosted the Under-18 World Championship on one occasion with Angelholm and Halmstad doing so in 2006.

Since the under-18 category was given its own global event in 1999, Sweden has won five silver medals - the most recent of which came in 2016 - and three bronze medals.

Next year’s edition is due to be held in Russian cities Chelyabinsk and Magnitogorsk from April 19 to 28.

Group A in Magnitogorsk will include defending champions the United States, Sweden, Canada, Switzerland and Belarus.

In Group B in Chelyabinsk, hosts Russia will entertain Finland, the Czech Republic, Switzerland and France.

Both venues will host two quarter-final games, while Chelyabinsk will host the semi-finals and medal games.

The IIHF has so far kept the 2018 Under-18 World Championship in Russia, despite pressure on winter sports not to use the country as a host nation.

This followed the publication of the McLaren Report, which alleged widespread doping offences at events including the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympic Games.