‘This is coming down to the wire’: Gary Bettman on 2026 Olympic arena construction concerns
This article appeared on hockeysverige.se and has been translated from Swedish to English.
The main venue where the 2026 Olympic hockey will be played is the Milano Santagiulia Arena. It’s a brand-new building with space for 14,000 spectators that is described as “state of the art.”
“Its acoustics, sight lines and modern amenities create a unique atmosphere where the passion for sport meets the excitement of a world-class event,” the Olympic organizers write on their website.
The problem? With less than three months until the tournament, the arena is not finished. The Athletic has also reported that the NHL is concerned about the quality of the facility, which the organizers say will be completed in mid-December.
When hockeysverige.se met NHL commissioner Gary Bettman ahead of the NHL Global Series on Friday, he confirmed his concern about the event. Next week, the league will send two inspectors to Milan to take a closer look at the arena.
“There seem to be some issues, including with the ice,” Bettman said. “And while the International Olympic Committee and the International Ice Hockey Federation are responsible and have said that we have nothing to be concerned about, we will send our own people to take a look ourselves, because the well-being of our players playing in this tournament is the most important thing.”
The delay in the construction is something that bothers Bettman, as it makes it more difficult to ensure the arena meets the required standard.
“In most instances, the facilities are created and completed a year or almost a year in advance so that you can test them. This is coming down to the wire, which wouldn’t be our preference if we were in control,” he said.
“Ice conditions are vitally important, and we’ve got to make sure the ice conditions are up to our standards. Hopefully, it will be okay. It’s beyond our control, and we’re being assured that everything will be all right, and I hope that’s the case.”
What is Bettman hoping to get for a preliminary report from your team on site in Milan?
“I just want a factual analysis of what’s going on and what the realistic prospects are, and to get a handle on the things that still need to be done,” he said.
Having key players return to the NHL injured after a major tournament, so close to the Stanley Cup playoffs, is a nightmare scenario. At the Sochi Olympics in 2014, for example, Canada’s John Tavares was injured and couldn’t play for his then-team, the New York Islanders, for the rest of the season. It contributed heavily to the team missing the playoffs and sparked a debate about whether it was really worth taking the risk of sending players to the Olympics.
The fact that there were then two Olympic tournaments without NHL players was due to other reasons. In 2018, the NHL chose to decline participation in the Winter Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea, after failing to reach an agreement with the IOC on matters including insurance and travel costs. In 2022 in Beijing, it was the uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic that made the NHL step back. The NHL obviously has extremely high hopes for the 2026 Winter Games.
“We’re excited, assuming everything falls into place, because we don’t think there’s anything better than best-on-best hockey,” he said. “Whether it’s the World Cup or the Olympics, it’s incomparable. It’s disruptive to our season, and we understand that, and there are issues regarding various media rights and such that we have to deal with. But overall, it’s important for our players to be able to represent their countries, and that’s principally why we go.
“It gives the players an opportunity to show how good they are and how great our game is, and it gives us a very broad, worldwide platform. So again, it’s a balance. And overall, it comes out in favor of going.”
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