Austrian ice hockey league

Bet-at-home ICE Hockey League

Current season	2020/21
sport	ice Hockey
abbreviation	IceHL
Association	Austrian Ice Hockey Association
League foundation	1965
Teams	11
Country countries	Austria 8 teams Hungary 1 team Slovakia 1 team Italy 1 team
Title holder	EC KAC (31)
Record champions	Champion (since re-establishment 2003): EC Red Bull Salzburg (6) Austrian champion (since league formation 1965): EC KAC (23)
TV partner	Sky Austria , pulse 24
Website	ice.hockey
↓ Alps Hockey League

The Bet-at-home ICE Hockey League ( ICE ) is the top division in Austrian ice hockey and has existed in its current form since the 1965/66 season . At the same time as winning the league, the Austrian champions will be played among the Austrian participants . Up until the 2005/06 season it was a purely Austrian league, since the 2006/07 season clubs from surrounding countries have also been taking part. In 2020/21 there will be teams from Hungary , Italy and Slovakia .

In 2003 , Erste Bank became a name sponsor, which is why the league operated under the name Erste Bank Eishockey Liga (EBEL) until 2020 . With the 2005/06 season , the foundation was realized as an independent association. In the following season, the step to the international league took place. From the 2020/21 season , bet-at-home will be the new title sponsor for at least three years. The league was in ICE Hockey League renamed, with ICE next to the English word for ice as abbreviation of I nternational C entral E uropean Hockey League (International Central European Hockey League) is understood.

From the 2005/06 season to the 2008/09 season , Karl Nedwed was President of the EBEL. From September 4, 2009 to December 2013, it was Karl Safron, followed by Peter Mennel , who resigned from office in July 2019. After his resignation, Karl Safron took over the office on an interim basis. In January 2020 Jochen Pildner-Steinburg was elected President, but did not accept the election until July 2020 due to different legal opinions regarding the result.

In 2010 the league was also included in the league association Hockey Europe , which unites the seven strongest European leagues and serves to provide mutual support and better marketing of European ice hockey.

history

The predecessors of today's league were various championships since 1923, the winners of which are still officially recognized as Austrian champions . In the years 1936 and 1939 to 1945 there was no championship. During the Second World War , some clubs took part in the German ice hockey championship, which is why the Wiener EV (1940) and EK Engelmann Wien (1939) can also boast a German championship title in their club history .

founding

• see also ice hockey in Austria

Until the season 1964/65 was Austrian Championship in a single national league played the National League A was called. Among them there were several regional groups under the collective name Nationalliga B. Up to the mentioned season there were a total of eight clubs in the National League A: EC KAC , Innsbrucker Eislaufverein (IEV), Wiener Eissport-Vereinigung (WEVg), Sportverein Ehrwald (SVE), EK Zell am See (EKZ), ATSE Graz and Salzburg Ice Skating Club (SEV).

However, since the individual clubs played in very different economic and sporting classes, the Austrian Ice Hockey Association decided in a meeting on May 15, 1965 to split up the field of participants. The champions should be played in a first class, now known as the Bundesliga , of only four clubs. There should be no relegation for the next four seasons, instead the respective champion of the second division, which was still called National League B, should be promoted and gradually increase the field of participants.

At the same time, the professionalization of the first league was promoted, as the ÖEHV realized that an improvement in the league level within the scope of the possibilities of a semi-professional organization could no longer succeed.

1965 to 1970 - The first seasons

The Bundesliga began in the 1965/66 season with the EC KAC, the IEV, the WEVg and the KEC ( Kitzbühel Ice Hockey Club ). The first champion of the new league was the EC KAC, but the first Bundesliga goal was achieved by Erhart Hermann from Innsbrucker EV. A four-fold round trip was played without playoffs .

In the 1966/67 season, the ATSE Graz joined the field of participants, the following season the VEU Feldkirch. The eighth club was called EK Zell am See and took part in the Bundesliga for the first time in the 1968/69 season. In this season a change of mode was also decided: after the basic round, the winner was played in a championship round. The last three teams played to stay in the Bundesliga, with the last against the champions of the Oberliga in the relegation. This mode was retained in the following season.
During this period, the association conference on June 24, 1967 in Mödling , where the clubs were allowed to hire and deploy 2 foreign players. But there was the restriction that the opponent could also use two or one; if he does not use one, only one non-Austrian was allowed. Another decision was: “There will continue to be 6 clubs, the Bundesliga will only be increased to 8 clubs from 1968/69 - the National League will no longer be divided into A and B and there will also be 8 clubs there. In the future, the Bundesliga clubs are to have a youth team as well as a student team. In future, the youth teams of the clubs concerned will play the prelude to the Bundesliga matches. "

1970 to 1980 - Dominance of the EC KAC

The 1970/71 championship was played for the first time in four rounds with a total of eight teams, with 28 matches for each club. The Grazer AK not only had a football team in the top division, the ice hockey department was able to play with the Oberliga champions in the top division known as the Bundesliga . The league was now divided into a western and an eastern group in order to save costs.
The EC KAC dominated the league in the 1970s and brought the championship title to Klagenfurt eight times . Only ATSE Graz was able to break this dominance with two Graz titles. The other teams made some changes between the Bundesliga and the second-highest division. The mode was changed several times, and the new playoff mode based on the Canadian model was used three times. In the last two seasons, the winner was again determined in a championship round, in which the teams that were best placed after the basic round played one or more rounds back and forth against each other.

In the 1970s, the league also continued to become more professional. The budgets of the participating teams increased and more legionaries were deployed. In addition, a national school league was organized for the first time in the 1970/71 season to promote young ice hockey players. In 1972 the helmet requirement was introduced, which initially irritated the players who had hardly been equipped with protective clothing until then. The disadvantage of the new regulation was that it initially resulted in significantly more assaults with the stick against the players' heads and necks, but this soon normalized. From 1973 an artificial ice rink was also required for every participant.

A curiosity occurred in the 1972/73 season. The WEV was deducted 16 points in the table because the team had used a legionnaire who was not eligible to play. It was overlooked, however, that the player in question, Paul Kremz , a native of Czechoslovakia , had already played for WEV since 1971 and the whole affair only became apparent through his naturalization.

The legionnaire problem was already on the agenda back then when the ÖEHV decided in 1973 to only allow one legionnaire per team in 1975/76 and 1976/77. The plan was to ban foreign players completely afterwards, as it was hoped that this would improve domestic players. Already at this time, many teams took advantage of the naturalization option, so that within a very short time there was a glut of so-called “Austros”, ie players with dual citizenship. However, the ÖEHV was able to moderate this through some compromises in the statutes. The planned ban on legionnaires never came into force, but some teams had nevertheless waived the obligation of foreign players. Here the ÖEHV stipulated that the other teams were only allowed to use a maximum of one legionnaire against them.

In 1975 it was also decided that the goalkeeper had to be replaced in the event of damage to his equipment, since until then attempts had often been made to buy time by getting the goalkeeper's equipment in order. In 1978, the newly crowned ÖEHV President Hans Dobida negotiated the first TV contract with ORF that enabled the live broadcast of championship games on television.

1980 to 1990 - professionalization of the league

In the 1980s, a problematic development emerged, as the Bundesliga teams all came from regions that were relatively far apart and the ongoing championship operation caused high travel costs. At the same time, attempts were made to improve the performance of the referees, as questionable decisions were made more and more often in view of the constantly increasing level of the league. A monitoring system was introduced in 1982 and a newly formed committee intervened on contentious issues.

The rise of the national team to group B triggered a real boom in audience interest. The success of the national team also increased the number of spectators in the Bundesliga clubs, but occasionally they were farmed too generously, so that several teams only narrowly slipped past bankruptcy. In view of this, the clubs now also showed an increased willingness to work together on issues relating to the youth and the organization of the league. The "Foundation for the Promotion of Austrian Youth Ice Hockey Sport" made additional funds available so that the number of players who moved up gradually increased. Nevertheless, several teams broke away from the field of participants. The bankruptcy of SV Kapfenberg in 1984 made it clear that resources were limited, but WAT Stadlau also had problems in the mid-eighties, after several large investments, to be able to maintain the game operations and finally had to forego participation in the Bundesliga in 1985. In the 1983/84 season even their 48-year-old coach Walter Znehnalik ran as a player at the Stadlauers.

For the championship 1986/87 the use of two legionnaires and three so-called transfer card players (Austro-Canadians) was allowed, but the last two of the Bundesliga and the promoted team could use a third legionnaire.

The 1988/89 championship, which began on September 30, was played with only six clubs and no play-off mode. At the EC KAC, the long-time successful coach Bill Gilligan was replaced by Roger Lamoureux . The WEV changed its coach at the end of October 1988 due to unsuccessfulness (the team was in penultimate place after 6 matches; on the weekend of October 16/17 there was a 0: 5 at EC VSV in Villach); Walter Znehnalik (senior) replaced Gerhard Hausner.
However, the championship was concluded with a championship round with the four top teams (VSV, KAC, Innsbruck, Feldkirch), with Villach as dominators of the basic round on the way to becoming champions for the second time after 1981. For the time being, three rounds from the end with a 4-2 home win on March 5th against the Klagenfurt local rivals of the previous year's champions, things got tight again, because on March 7th, the blue-whites conceded in Feldkirch with a 3: 4 first defeat in more than 14 months, while Innsbruck won 5-3 in Klagenfurt and drew level with the VSV (7 points). The decision was not made until the final round on March 10th, when the direct duel took place in Villach. Innsbruck won 6-2; a championship title that came as a real surprise for the Tyroleans, because a championship celebration had to be organized afterwards.
The KAC, which had slipped to the last place in the championship round with only two points, could defeat Feldkirch 5: 4, had 4 points like the Vorarlbergers, but remained last. (The disappointing WEV has signed ten-time ČSSR-A national team player Pavel Volek as the new coach for the new season, who should start his work on April 10.)

1990 to 2000 - VEU Feldkirch is series champion

In the nineties, which was in addition to the national league play Alpenliga with clubs from Slovenia and Yugoslavia and Italy held. The actual Austrian champion was played in a greatly shortened season after the end of the Alpine League season. This usually happened in a very short basic round and subsequent playoffs. In the 1996/97 season, however, the basic round was completely dispensed with, instead the three best Austrian teams in the Alpine League were set for the playoff, the other three teams played the last participant in a short round of hope.

Due to the high financial outlay and the great superiority of the VEU Feldkirch , which at that time also achieved great success in international tournaments, the other clubs were also forced to put in a lot of effort in order to remain competitive. Little by little the smaller teams broke away and switched to the national league, so that from the 1998/99 season onwards, with the EC KAC, the EC VSV, the WEV and the VEU Feldkirch, only four teams played the champions among themselves. The SV Kapfenberg went in 1997 even during the current season bankrupt and could only ten of the planned 18 games of the regular season complete.

2000 to 2010 - The league goes international

The league crash

In the summer of 2000 the inevitable followed: after the budget had already exploded, the VEU Feldkirch reported after the departure of the main sponsor that it could no longer participate in the league. The emergency brake was pulled by the ÖEHV. The teams sat down and decided to start over with reasonable budgets, which should also allow the participation of some of the teams that had migrated to the National League in recent years.

The 2000/01 season finally started with ten teams after some difficulties. In the following season there was a novelty when Uniqa was the first to find a main and name sponsor for the league. This sponsored league operations for three seasons.

Erste Bank Ice Hockey League

In the 2003/04 season , Erste Bank of the oesterreichischen Sparkassen AG took over the sponsorship of the league operations and remains loyal to it until the 2019/2020 season. However, due to further budget increases for the individual teams, several teams were lost over time. The 2003/04 season was played with only seven teams, and after the end of the season the VEU Feldkirch (which had previously played under the name "EHC Feldkirch 2000") announced relegation to the National League. At the same time, EC Red Bull Salzburg, as champions of the national league, made use of the right to be promoted to the Bundesliga and has since played with two teams in the two top leagues. So there were only seven teams for the time being.

The league was played in this form for two seasons. However, difficulties emerged again and again, as the Graz 99ers in particular lost more and more contact with the other teams and so some teams had to drop out again. The EBEL fled to the front and in the 2006/07 season , HK Jesenice, was the first foreign club to join the field. The team played their first league game on September 22nd, 2006 in front of their own audience against HC Innsbruck and only lost 4-5.

Foreign clubs in the EBEL

Slovenia	HK Jesenice	2006–2012
	HDD Olimpija Ljubljana	2007-2017
Hungary	Alba Volán Székesfehérvár	since 2007
Croatia	KHL Medveščak Zagreb	2009–2013, 2017/18
Czech Republic	Orli Znojmo	2011-2020
Italy	HC Bolzano	since 2013
Slovakia	Bratislava Capitals	from 2020

Although Jesenice's participation was a sporting success and the team quickly became very popular among Austrian ice hockey fans, problems again emerged.

The legionnaires problem and the point system

Especially the EC Red Bull Salzburg had invested a lot of money in the game operation after an unsuccessful first season and were able to attract the better Austrian players with high salaries, which caused difficulties for many other clubs, especially those without sufficient youth development. With only five transfer card players allowed, some teams could no longer fill their lines with competitive local players. An advance by the Vienna Capitals finally brought about a completely new regulation in terms of the Bosman decision , which had also brought radical changes in many other European sports leagues.

Since many clubs refused to fully open the league to transfer card players, a special solution was developed that has since been in effect in different forms. Since the 2007/08 season there is no longer a maximum number of legionnaires, instead a points system was introduced in which players were rated with points; each team is entitled to the same maximum number of points.

Expansion to ten clubs

Also in 2007 it was decided to expand the league from eight to ten teams. The Slovenian team HDD Olimpija Ljubljana and Alba Volán Székesfehérvár from Hungary were included. A new mode with a shortened basic round and a subsequent placement or intermediate round before the playoffs was developed, but did not meet with much approval from the fans.

The Legionnaires' regulation was criticized with various arguments, so that the league was forced to change it again: In the 2008/09 season the quota of points was reduced to 60. At the same time, it was decided that foreign players under the age of 22 could no longer count the full four points.

Despite all the measures, the budgets at the clubs continued to rise, so that some teams ran into difficulties again. This culminated in the voluntary relegation of HC Innsbruck in the spring of 2009, as those responsible no longer saw themselves in a position to put together a competitive team with the available resources. However, in order to continue to have an even number of clubs in the league, a little later the EBEL accepted the application for membership made by KHL Medveščak Zagreb from Croatia for the first time in 2007 , so that the team took part in the league as the tenth team from the 2009/10 season .

2010 to 2020 - consolidation

In the 2009/10 season, the league made it into the top seven in Europe for the first time in terms of audience numbers, leaving the Slovakian Slovnaft Extraliga behind. Another important step in the league's development finally took place in May 2010, when the EBEL was accepted as the seventh full member of the international league association Hockey Europe . For the 2011/12 season, Orli Znojmo was the first team from the Czech Republic to be accepted, which means that teams from five nations now took part in the game.

For the 2012/13 season , the Dornbirn EC decided to move up to the top division. The HC Innsbruck followed this path and returned so that after three years of second-class back.

In return, the Slovenian club HK Jesenice dropped out of the field, paying tribute to massive financial problems. The 2011/12 season turned into a disaster for the club and ultimately remained the last. Since in the following year the Croatian team KHL Medveščak Zagreb was accepted into the Continental Hockey League and dropped out of the EBEL game operations, the Italian record champions HC Bozen were accepted into the league in return , which was officially announced on July 8, 2013 .

The field of participants remained unchanged from 2013 to 2017, although financial problems also emerged in the meantime with the second Slovenian participant HDD Olimpija Ljubljana and the team regularly came in last place. In January 2017, Zagreb announced its withdrawal from the KHL and reapplied for the EBEL. In March 2017, the club's participation for the 2017/18 season was confirmed. Again due to financial problems, Zagreb had to withdraw from league operations during the season, while since December 2018 only amateurs have been playing for the club.

For the 2019/20 season , VEU Feldkirch applied to return, but later withdrew the application. So only eleven teams took part in this season. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the season had to be canceled after the first three play-off match days.

From 2020: new name, new sponsor

In October 2019, Erste Bank announced that it would no longer extend the sponsorship contract with the league, which expired at the end of the 2019/20 season, after 17 years. At the same time, the previous free TV partner Servus TV announced its exit after ten years. In April 2020, the league signed a three-year contract with bet-at-home.com as the new title sponsor. Puls 24 became the new free TV partner , the contract with the pay TV partner Sky Austria is still running.

On July 4, 2020, the name and the new logo of the league were published. From now on Austria’s top division is called Bet-at-home ICE Hockey League . Here is ICE not only for the game basis ( ice ), but also for the international participating clubs. ICE is hereby I nternational C entral E uropean.

In the run-up to the 2020/21 season, the Slovakian club Bratislava Capitals, founded in 2015, applied to participate in the league. The team belonged to the second highest Slovak division and won the main round of this league in 2020. At the end of April 2020, the eleven previous clubs agreed to Bratislava’s participation. In contrast, the only Czech club, HC Orli Znojmo , withdrew from the league "at least for one season" for economic reasons as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

Overview of all seasons since 1965/66

The seasons of the Austrian Ice Hockey League since the 1965/66 season are summarized below. The table also contains information on the participating countries, the playoff mode and the number of viewers.

Attendees

EC Graz 99ers EC KAC EC VSV EC Red Bull Salzburg Vienna Capitals EHC Linz Fehérvár AV19 Dornbirn Bulldogs HC Innsbruck HC Bolzano Bratislava Capitals

Map of all ICE Hockey League clubs for the 2020/21 season

team	nation	city	Founded
Dornbirn Bulldogs		Dornbirn , Vorarlberg	1992
EC KAC		Klagenfurt , Carinthia	1909
EC Red Bull Salzburg		Salzburg , Salzburg	1995
EC VSV		Villach , Carinthia	1923
Black Wings Linz		Linz , Upper Austria	1992
Fehérvár AV19		Székesfehérvár	1960
Graz99ers		Graz , Styria	1999
Vienna Capitals		Vienna	2000
HC Innsbruck		Innsbruck , Tyrol	1994
HC Bolzano		Bolzano , South Tyrol	1933
Bratislava Capitals		Bratislava	2015

mode

The mode of delivery changes almost every season, but since the 1989/90 season playoffs of various types have been played out regularly to determine the champion. Before that, a championship round was often held, in which the best-placed teams all competed against each other.

In recent seasons, a mode with a two-part intermediate round after the basic round has been established, in which the six better-placed teams play for the opponent's right to vote for the quarter-finals, the six worse-placed teams for the two remaining play-off places. The choice will be broadcast by TV partner Servus-TV after the intermediate round.

Affiliated Leagues

In the 2012/13 season, the Erste Bank Young Stars League and one year later the Erste Bank Juniors League (U18) were established for the age group of U20 players to improve the level of training for young players. Like the senior league, both youth leagues are operated multinationally, with the management of both leagues being carried out by the EBEL.

The Alps Hockey League , founded in 2016 , which, as the successor to the Inter-National League , unites clubs from Austria , Slovenia and Italy , is also operated by the EBEL and represents the next lower division.

Point rule

A special feature of the EBEL is the so-called point rule. The system introduced in the 2007/08 season was intended as a variant of a salary cap or similar regulations to succeed the legionnaires' restriction and ensure more balance in the league and support for young players. Against the background of the Bosman decision and the vastly different playing strengths of the nations participating in the league, a system was developed in which the players of the clubs are rated according to points, with each club having a certain maximum number of points available.

In the 2007/08 season, each team had a total of 65 points available. Transfer card players scored four points, the local players (based on the respective home country of the participant) were rated by the opposing teams with points between zero and four. From now on, each team was free to choose the composition of their squad for a game within the 65-point rule.

The system has been adapted several times since then. Since the following season, the maximum number of sixty points has now been valid for the reported overall squad and no longer for the respective game, as a game of the 2007/08 final series had to be decided on the green table due to a point overrun by HDD Olimpija Ljubljana, which was only determined afterwards. In addition, it was decided to abandon the purely subjective assessment and to determine the point value of the players based on criteria such as age, position and previous year's statistics, with players up to a certain age automatically counting zero points. In addition, the clubs have a varying number of exchanges available after the limit has been reached.

The system itself has not remained without criticism over the years and often had the opposite effect, as teams signed off local players just before the end of the transfer period to make room for additional legionaries. This subsequently led to a lawsuit that the ice hockey player Christoph Harand brought against the league, and which went through several instances without, however, leading to changes.

Although alternative regulations have been discussed repeatedly over the years, the point rule has proven itself despite all the weaknesses in league operations and represents a working solution against the background of available alternatives that would also bring their weaknesses. The former sports director of the Austrian Ice Hockey Association found a conflict of interests with the national ice hockey team. It is worked too selfishly in different directions, in contrast to Scandinavian countries. Above all, he criticized the fact that there are hardly any local players in key positions such as center and goalkeeper, and it is an illusion to wait for them to get better without match practice. OEHV President Mittendorfer also sees it similarly and favors regulation based on the number.

Venues

The largest venues are in Bolzano and Vienna , each with a capacity of just over 7,000 spectators. HC Innsbruck has the nominally smallest ice rink, but in earlier seasons it has often relocated to the neighboring Olympic hall for playoff games .

team	arena	city	opening	capacity
Dornbirn EC	Dornbirn exhibition stadium	Dornbirn	1999	4,270
EC KAC	Ice sports center Klagenfurt	Klagenfurt	1959	5,088
EC Red Bull Salzburg	Ice arena Salzburg	Salzburg	1960	3,200
EC VSV	Villach town hall	Villach	1969	4,500
EHC Linz	Linz ice rink	Linz	1986	4,865
Fehérvár Alba Volán 19	Székesfehérvár ice rink	Székesfehérvár	1991	3,500
EC Graz 99ers	Ice rink Graz-Liebenau	Graz	1963	4,050
Vienna Capitals	Erste Bank Arena	Vienna	1995	7,022
HC Innsbruck	Tyrolean hydropower arena	innsbruck	2005	3,058
Orli Znojmo	Nevoga Arena	Znojmo	1970	5,500
HC Bolzano	Ice wave	Bolzano	1994	7,220

gallery

• 

  Messestadion, Dornbirn

• 

  City Hall, Klagenfurt

• 

  Volksgarten-Arena, Salzburg

• 

  City hall, Villach

• 

  No worries ice arena, Linz

• 

  Merkur Arena, Graz

• 

  Erste Bank Arena, Vienna

• 

  Olympic Hall, Innsbruck

• 

  Nevoga Arena, Znojmo

Winter classics and special games

The amphitheater in Pula, the venue for two outdoor games

Over the years, individual games for Winter Classics or similar events have been relocated to other venues. The record setting was the Carinthian ice hockey derby on January 9, 2010 in the Wörthersee Stadium in front of 30,500 spectators. This game held the European record for an ice hockey game for a short time. The games of the Croatian club KHL Medveščak Zagreb in the amphitheater in Pula were also noteworthy .

season	date	encounter	Result	Venue	city	spectator
2009/10	January 9, 2010	EC KAC - EC VSV	1: 3	Wörthersee Stadium	Klagenfurt , Austria	30,500
2009/10	January 29, 2010	KHL Medveščak Zagreb - EC VSV	2: 3 n.p.	Salata open air arena	Zagreb , Croatia	4,600
2009/10	January 31, 2010	KHL Medveščak Zagreb - Vienna Capitals	4: 3 n.p.	Salata open air arena	Zagreb , Croatia	4,600
2010/11	January 21, 2011	KHL Medveščak Zagreb - EC KAC	3: 4 n.p.	Arena Zagreb	Zagreb , Croatia	15,200
2010/11	January 23, 2011	KHL Medveščak Zagreb - Vienna Capitals	2: 6	Arena Zagreb	Zagreb , Croatia	15,200
2010/11	January 25, 2011	KHL Medveščak Zagreb - HDD Olimpija Ljubljana	4: 3	Arena Zagreb	Zagreb , Croatia	15,700
2010/11	January 28, 2011	KHL Medveščak Zagreb - EC VSV	7: 2	Arena Zagreb	Zagreb , Croatia	15,200
2011/12	3rd February 2012	KHL Medveščak Zagreb - HDD Ljubljana	3: 1	Salata open air arena	Zagreb , Croatia	4,500
2011/12	5th February 2012	KHL Medveščak Zagreb - EC KAC	3-0	Salata open air arena	Zagreb , Croatia	4,500
2012/13	September 14, 2012	KHL Medveščak Zagreb - HDD Olimpija Ljubljana	2: 3	Pula amphitheater	Pula , Croatia	7,022
2012/13	September 16, 2012	KHL Medveščak Zagreb - Vienna Capitals	4: 1	Pula amphitheater	Pula , Croatia	7.130
2012/13	January 4, 2013	HDD Olimpija Ljubljana - EC VSV	5: 4 a.d.	Bežigrad Stadium	Ljubljana , Slovenia	9,000
2012/13	January 6, 2013	HDD Olimpija Ljubljana - KHL Medveščak Zagreb	8: 4	Bežigrad Stadium	Ljubljana , Slovenia	10,000
2012/13	January 8, 2013	HDD Olimpija Ljubljana - EC KAC	2: 4	Bežigrad Stadium	Ljubljana , Slovenia	7,800
2014/15	January 3, 2015	EC KAC - EC VSV	1: 4	Wörthersee Stadium	Klagenfurt , Austria	29,700
2016/17	December 28, 2016	SAPA Fehérvár AV19 - EC Red Bull Salzburg	2: 8	Budapest City Park	Budapest , Hungary	4,253
2016/17	December 30, 2016	SAPA Fehérvár AV19 - EC KAC	5: 2	Budapest City Park	Budapest , Hungary	4,242

Trophies and awards

The previously unnamed league championship trophy was renamed the Karl Nedwed Trophy in his honor in December 2014 after the death of long-time president Karl Nedwed, who played a key role in the development of the league .

Since foreign teams can win the league championship title, but not that of the Austrian champions , there is also a national championship cup (from the ÖEHV ). In the two victories of a foreign team ( HC Bozen in the 2013/14 season and the 2017/18 season ), the national championship cup was awarded to the runner-up (both times EC Red Bull Salzburg ).

Player Awards

Most valuable player

• see main article Ron Kennedy Trophy

Since the 2008/09 season, the most valuable player in the EBEL season has been chosen by sports journalists and awarded his own trophy at the end of the season. Since the 2009/10 season, the trophy has been named the Ron Kennedy Trophy in memory of the ice hockey player and coach Ron Kennedy who died of cancer .

EBEL YoungStar

• * see main article EBEL-YoungStar

The best young player of the season is awarded the EBEL YoungStar every year . Every month the TV experts Gary Venner, Claus Dalpiaz and Sascha Tomanek nominate several young players, after which the fans choose their YoungStar via online voting. From the monthly winners, the annual winners will be chosen again at the end of the season.

All-star game

Between 2006 and 2008 there was the American-style KELLY'S All-Star Game , in which the best Austrian players in the league competed against the best legionnaires. In addition, so-called skills competitions were held. However, since the audience interest did not meet expectations, the all-star game was soon suspended again, although the selection of the all-star players continues.

EBEL in the media

watch TV

After the pay-TV broadcaster Sky had held the rights to the television broadcasts of the EBEL games for ten years, these were given to The Sportsman Media Group for the 2010/11 season . As a partner of the company, Servus TV broadcasts a Sunday game as part of the “Servus Hockey Night”. In the play-offs , one game per game day and, in the event of play-offs , these will be broadcast in a conference call via the TV station. In addition, the Internet portal laola1.tv broadcast a game live on the Internet every Friday. In 2016 the contract with Servus TV was extended. In addition, Sky was won as a partner again and is broadcasting 50 games.

In Hungary, the television channel DIGI Sport will broadcast selected matches from Fehérvár AV19 live. In Italy Video33.it shows HC Bozen games.

radio

Radio Carinthia, which can also be received via the internet via live stream, broadcasts almost all games of the Carinthian ice hockey clubs KAC and VSV as part of the “Carinthian ice hockey magazine”. The first ice hockey magazine appeared on Radio Vienna in the early 1980s during the WEV and EC Stadlau. Today, Radio Wien mainly reports live from the home games of the Vienna Capitals, the same applies to the home games of the Graz 99ers, which are broadcast by the private radio Antenne Steiermark. Other state studios have also taken up the idea and sporadically broadcast live league games.

Overview since the EBEL was founded

	team	2003/04		2004/05		2005/06		2006/07		2007/08		2008/09		2009/10		2010/11		2011/12		2012/13		2013/14		2014/15		2015/16		2016/17		2017/18		2018/19		2019/20
	EC KAC	1	M.	2	F.	5	-	7th	-	2	VF	1	M.	7th	VF	1	F.	4th	F.	5	M.	7th	-	8th	HF	8th	VF	3	F.	4th	VF	3	M.	4th	- 1
	EHC Linz	2	HF	6th	-	6th	-	3	HF	3	HF	5	HF	4th	F.	5	VF	1	M.	6th	HF	2	HF	2	HF	5	HF	4th	VF	3	HF	7th	VF	7th	- 1
	EC VSV	3	F.	4th	HF	2	M.	2	F.	5	VF	4th	VF	5	VF	4th	HF	7th	-	4th	VF	6th	HF	3	VF	7th	HF	10	-	11	-	10	-	6th	- 1
	Graz99ers	4th	HF	5	-	7th	-	8th	-	9	-	7th	VF	1	VF	6th	VF	9	-	3	VF	9	-	9	-	11	-	7th	VF	8th	-	2	HF	5	- 1
	Vienna Capitals	5	-	1	M.	4th	HF	4th	HF	1	HF	2	HF	3	HF	3	HF	8th	VF	1	F.	1	VF	4th	F.	3	VF	1	M.	1	HF	1	F.	3	- 1
	VEU Feldkirch	6th	-
	HC Innsbruck	7th	-	3	HF	3	HF	6th	-	8th	VF	8th	VF							12	-	11	-	11	-	9	-	5	VF	5	VF	9	-	10	- 1
	EC Red Bull Salzburg			7th	-	1	F.	1	M.	4th	M.	3	F.	2	M.	2	M.	3	VF	8th	HF	3	F.	1	M.	1	M.	2	HF	2	F.	5	HF	2	- 1
	HK Jesenice							5	-	6th	VF	6th	VF	9	-	10	-	11	-
	HDD Olimpija Ljubljana									7th	F.	10	-	10	-	7th	VF	5	HF	10	-	12	-	12	-	12	-	11	-
	Fehérvár AV19									10	-	9	-	6th	VF	9	-	6th	VF	9	-	10	VF	6th	VF	10	-	12	-	10	-	4th	VF	9	- 1
	KHL Medveščak Zagreb													8th	HF	8th	VF	2	HF	2	VF									6th	VF
	Orli Znojmo																	10	VF	7th	VF	5	VF	5	VF	2	F.	8th	VF	12	-	8th	VF	8th	- 1
	Dornbirn Bulldogs																			11	-	8th	VF	10	-	6th	VF	9	-	7th	VF	11	-	11	- 1
	HC Bolzano																					4th	M.	7th	VF	4th	VF	6th	HF	9	M.	6th	VF	1	- 1

¹Championship canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic

Eternal table since 1965

The following table shows the balance of all main rounds of the Bundesliga seasons since the 1965/66 season. All preliminary round results are included, excluding the championship, placement or qualification rounds. The only club that competed in all seasons is the EC KAC.

It should also be noted that the goals of the 1976/77 season could not be determined. This data is therefore not included in the table below.

Status: after the basic round of the 2018/19 season
Abbreviations: SP = games, S = wins, N = defeats, U = draws, SNV = wins in overtime or overtime, NNV = defeats in overtime or overtime, T = goals scored, GT = Goals conceded, TD = goal difference, PKT% = percentage of the total possible points scored

team	First season	Last season	Playing times	SP	S.	U	N	SNV	NNV	PKT	Victory%	T	GT	TD	Championship title	status
EC KAC	1965/66	2018/19	54	1672	897	86	513	95	81	2243	59.33	7014	5162	+1 852	24	active
EC VSV	1977/78	2018/19	42	1416	682	83	503	74	74	1738	53.39	5377	4532	+845	6th	active
EHC Linz	2000/01	2018/19	19th	876	425	0	281	93	77	1210	59.13	2955	2436	+519	2	active
Vienna Capitals	2001/02	2018/19	18th	840	411	0	261	81	87	1181	58.57	2840	2359	+481	2	active
EC Red Bull Salzburg	2004/05	2018/19	15th	718	356	0	225	74	63	1027	59.89	2645	2090	+555	6th	active
Graz99ers	2000/01	2018/19	19th	876	320	0	389	82	85	970	45.89	2541	2796	−255	0	active
VEU Feldkirch	1967/68	2003/04	35	858	390	77	371	12	8th	889	46.85	3535	3503	+32	9	Alps Hockey League
EV Innsbruck	1965/66	1992/93	28	696	359	81	256	0	0	799	51.58	3086	2554	+532	1	no longer exists
HC Innsbruck	2000/01	2018/19	16	728	243	0	342	77	66	774	43.96	2185	2557	−372	0	active
Vienna Ice Skating Club	1965/66	1999/00	32	734	306	92	332	1	3	709	41.83	2919	3017	−98	0	Vienna League
Fehérvár AV19	2007/08	2018/19	12	566	179	0	264	61	62	603	42.40	1591	1884	−293	0	active
Orli Znojmo	2011/12	2018/19	8th	368	152	0	148	28	40	479	48.91	1161	1146	+15	0	active
HC Bolzano	2013/14	2018/19	6th	284	125	0	107	21st	31	408	51.41	832	792	+40	2	active
Dornbirn Bulldogs	2012/13	2018/19	7th	328	112	0	148	29	39	396	42.99	966	1073	−107	0	active
Kapfenberger SV	1973/74	2001/02	18th	456	162	41	237	9	7th	390	37.50	1650	1963	−313	0	Styrian elite league
HDD Olimpija Ljubljana	2007/08	2016/17	10	478	117	0	277	44	40	371	33.68	1193	1720	−527	0	Alps Hockey League
ATSE Graz	1966/67	1979/80	14th	328	164	35	129	0	0	363	50.00	1170	1025	+145	2	Styrian elite league
KHL Medveščak Zagreb	2009/10	2018/19	6th	280	101	0	122	25th	32	307	45.00	828	960	−132	0	no longer exists
HK Jesenice	2006/07	2011/12	6th	294	92	0	138	27	37	275	40.48	864	1030	−166	0	no longer exists
EHC Lustenau	1982/83	2002/03	12	354	94	19th	221	11	9	238	29.66	1353	1815	−462	0	Alps Hockey League
HC Salzburg	1972/73	1981/82	10	276	90	31	155	0	0	211	32.61	1047	1291	−244	0	no longer exists
EC Graz	1989/90	1997/98	9	184	86	26th	72	0	0	198	46.74	794	732	+62	0	no longer exists
WAT Stadlau	1971/72	1984/85	10	276	76	36	164	0	0	188	27.54	989	1426	−437	0	only judo
EK Zell am See	1968/69	2001/02	9	212	53	11	136	6th	6th	135	27.83	648	1095	−447	0	Alps Hockey League
EC Kitzbühel	1965/66	1972/73	8th	148	46	12	90	0	0	104	31.08	510	741	−231	0	Alps Hockey League
EV Zeltweg	1994/95	2000/01	3	82	14th	4th	58	2	4th	40	19.51	237	497	−260	0	Styrian elite league
EC Salzburg	1986/87	1987/88	2	48	12	9	27	0	0	33	25.00	156	267	−111	0	no longer exists
EC Ehrwald	1994/95	1994/95	1	18th	8th	0	10	0	0	16	44.44	62	68	−6	0	Tyrolean regional league
DEK Schellander	2000/01	2000/01	1	36	5	0	27	0	4th	14th	13.89	86	199	−113	0	no longer exists
Graz AK	1970/71	1970/71	1	28	3	1	24	0	0	7th	10.71	92	203	−111	0	only football, tennis, basketball, diving
Graz SV	1983/84	1984/85	2	52	2	2	48	0	0	6th	3.85	149	412	−263	0	no longer exists
EC Innsbruck Pradl	1969/70	1969/70	1	14th	2	0	12	0	0	4th	14.29	43	143	−100	0	no longer exists

See also

• List of records in the Austrian Ice Hockey League
• List of records in the Erste Bank Ice Hockey League
• Austrian champion (ice hockey)

Footnotes

1. ↑ https://www.derstandard.at/story/2000117020096/eishockey-liga-hat-einen-neuen-sponsor-find
2. ↑ hockeyfans.at: New EBEL Presidium
3. ↑ Peter Mennel new EBEL President , report on kurier.at from December 11, 2013
4. ↑ https://www.erstebankliga.at/news/?id/10657/86831
5. ^ "Ice hockey: two foreigners per club" in "Kärntner Tageszeitung" No. 141 of June 25, 1967, page 7, bottom
6. ^ "Ice hockey now in four rounds" . In: Arbeiter-Zeitung . Vienna May 24, 1970, p. 10 ( berufer-zeitung.at - the open online archive - digitized).
7. ↑ below: «“ I look terrible ”» . In: Arbeiter-Zeitung . Vienna November 12, 1983, p. 20 ( berufer-zeitung.at - the open online archive - digitized version).
8. ↑ «The sons' mood swings:" Papa, play! "» In: Arbeiter-Zeitung . Vienna November 22, 1983, p. 12 ( berufer-zeitung.at - the open online archive - digitized).
9. ↑ bottom left: "Ice hockey: agreement for legionaries" . In: Arbeiter-Zeitung . Vienna February 3, 1986, p. 15 ( berufer-zeitung.at - the open online archive - digitized).
10. ^ «Ice hockey even without the knockout system" groggy "» . In: Arbeiter-Zeitung . Vienna September 29, 1988, p. 29 ( Arbeiter-zeitung.at - the open online archive - digitized).
11. ↑ bottom right: «WEV-Coach Znehnalik:“ I have it as difficult as Hausner ”» . In: Arbeiter-Zeitung . Vienna October 20, 1988, p. 24 ( berufer-zeitung.at - the open online archive - digitized).
12. ↑ Column 2, below: "KAC 4: 2 from Villach dethroned" . In: Arbeiter-Zeitung . Vienna March 6, 1989, p. 21 ( arbeiter-zeitung.at - the open online archive - digitized).
13. ^ Columns 1 and 2, middle: «First Friday about title. Volek new WEV trainer » . In: Arbeiter-Zeitung . Vienna March 8, 1989, p. 21 ( arbeiter-zeitung.at - the open online archive - digitized).
14. ↑ bottom left: "Innsbruckers celebrated Villach's finest hour" . In: Arbeiter-Zeitung . Vienna March 13, 1989, p. 25 ( berufer-zeitung.at - the open online archive - digitized).
15. ↑ It's fixed - Jesenice is in the EBEL , report on hockeyfans.at from June 1, 2006
16. ↑ hcorli.cz, Bližší informace k prodeji permanentek
17. ↑ Jesenice am Abgrund , report on derstandard.at of January 21, 2012
18. ↑ erstebankliga.at: 12 teams - 5 countries - HC Bozen included ( Memento from July 12, 2013 in the Internet Archive )
19. ↑ Ljubljana has one million debts , report on hockeyfans.at dated June 10, 2013
20. ↑ Ice Hockey League loses Erste Bank as a sponsor after 17 years , report on the Standard website of October 20, 2019
21. ↑ After this season the Erste Bank ice hockey league is history , report on hockey-news.info from October 20, 2019
22. ↑ Ice Hockey League has found a new sponsor with bet-at-home. In: derstandard.de. April 21, 2020, accessed May 7, 2020 . 
23. ↑ PULS 24 secures broadcast rights for the ice hockey league live on Austrian free TV from the 2020/21 season. In: infosat.de. May 4, 2020, accessed May 7, 2020 . 
24. ↑ Ice Hockey Forum sets further important ground. In: erstebankliga.at. March 12, 2020, accessed May 7, 2020 . 
25. ↑ Bratislava Capitals included in EBEL. In: skysportaustria.at. April 24, 2020, accessed May 7, 2020 . 
26. ↑ ZNOJMO DOES NOT PARTICIPATE IN SEASON 20/21. Retrieved May 25, 2020 . 
27. ↑ EBYSL - The Youngsters also play internationally , report on hockeyfans.at from August 28, 2012
28. ^ The unloved point rule , report on derstandard.at of November 18, 2011
29. ↑ Press release on the first instance judgment of November 3, 2014
30. ↑ The history of points regulation , analysis of the point regulation by Bernd Freimüller on laola1.at from April 1, 2015
31. ↑ The objective system - the parameters , analysis of the point rule by Bernd Freimüller on laola1.at March 1, 2015
32. ↑ The strengths and weaknesses of the system , analysis of the point rule by Bernd Freimüller on laola1.at from April 1, 2015
33. ↑ The point regulation as a salary cap , analysis of the point regulation by Bernd Freimüller on laola1.at from April 2, 2015
34. ↑ Damage to Austrian ice hockey legionaries , analysis of the point rule by Bernd Freimüller on laola1.at from April 2, 2015
35. ↑ The internationality of the EBEL - curse or blessing , analysis of the point rule by Bernd Freimüller on laola1.at from April 2, 2015
36. ↑ Alternatives to the point rule, analysis of the point rule by Bernd Freimüller on laola1.at from April 3, 2015
37. ↑ A new league for the national good? , New Vorarlberger daily newspaper, 2016-09-14.
38. ↑ Alpo Suhonen settles goodbye , orf.at, 2017-06-06.
39. ↑ EBEL introduces 3-point rule , report on hockeyfans.at dated December 3, 2014
40. ↑ http://www.nachrichten.at/sport/wintersport/eishockey/Servus-TV-verlaengerte-Vertrag-mit-EBEL-Sky-ist-neuer-Partner;art193191,2200281
41. ↑ Il campionato EBEL in diretta su SDF Südtirol Digital Fernsehen ( Memento from September 30, 2016 in the Internet Archive )

swell

• Margreiter, Haiszan, Kilias: The Great Austrian Ice Hockey Book , Verlag Buch Spezial Dornbirn, ISBN 3-900496-04-4
• OMR. Dr. Hellmuth Reichel: KAC - ice hockey conquers a city! Ed .: Klagenfurter Athletiksport Club, Klagenfurt 1995
• Club brochure: 75 Years of KAC, 1909–1984 , publisher: Klagenfurter Athletiksport Club, Klagenfurt 1984

Web links

Commons : Austrian Hockey League  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Austrian Ice Hockey Association (ÖEHV)
• Erste Bank Ice Hockey League (EBEL)