Austria EHL Bitcoin Sports Betting

The Österreichische Eishockey-Liga or Austrian EHL is the highest hockey league in Austria. Founded in 1923, the league has now 12 active members that compete in the league. Fans of the league are now able to bet on teams like Dornbirner EC, Graz 99ers, HC TWK Innsbruck, EC KAC, Black Wings Linz, Red Bull Salzburg using their Bitcoins. To assist with the betting, we have provided the betting odds for the next Austrian EHL games.

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The Erste Bank Eishockey Liga (EBEL) is the highest league in Austrian ice hockey and has existed in its current form since the 1965/66 season. Parallel to the league win, the Austrian champion will be played out among the Austrian participants. Until the 2005/06 season, it was a purely Austrian league, and since the 2006/07 season, clubs from surrounding countries have also been taking part. 2017/18 are teams from Croatia, Hungary, Italy and the Czech Republic.

With the 2005/06 season, the company was founded as an independent club and international league under the name “Erste Bank Eishockey Liga” (EBEL). From the 2005/06 season to the 2008/09 season, Karl Nedwed was president of the EBEL. From September 4, 2009 it was Dr. Karl Safron until Peter Mennel took over the position in December 2013.

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

Mode

The mode of play changes almost every season, but since the 1989/90 season playoffs of different kinds have been played regularly to determine the champion. Prior to that, a championship round was held several times, in which the best placed teams all competed against each other once again.

In the last seasons a mode with a two-part intermediate round after the basic round was established, in which the six better placed teams play for the right to vote of the opponent for the quarter finals, the six worse placed teams play for the two remaining playoff places. The election will be specially broadcast by TV partner Servus-TV after the end of the intermediate round.

Affiliated leagues

In the 2012/13 season, the Erste Bank Young Stars League was established for the U20 age group, and one year later the Erste Bank Juniors League (U18) was established to improve the training level for junior players. Like the senior league, both youth leagues are run on a multinational basis, with EBEL managing both leagues.

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

A special feature of the EBEL is the so-called points rule. The system introduced in the 2007/08 season, as a variant of a salary cap or similar regulations, should succeed the legionnaire’s restriction and ensure more balance in the league and support for young players. Against the background of the Bosman decision and the widely differing playing strengths of the nations participating in the league, a system was developed in which the players of the clubs are evaluated according to points, with each club having a certain maximum number of points at its disposal.

In the 2007/08 season, each team had a total quota of 65 points. Transfer card players scored four points, local players (based on the participant’s home country) were scored between zero and four by the opposing teams. From now on, each team was free to determine the composition of its squad for a match within the 65-point rule.

Since then, the system has been adapted several times. Since the following season, the maximum number of sixty points now applies to the entire team registered and no longer to the respective match, as a game from the 2007/08 final series had to be decided at the green table because the HDD Olimpija Ljubljana had only subsequently determined that the number of points had been exceeded. In addition, it was decided to move away from the purely subjective evaluation and to determine the players’ score on the basis of criteria such as age, position and last year’s statistics, with players up to a certain age automatically counting zero points. In addition, clubs will be able to change the number of exchanges after the limit is reached.

The system itself has not remained without criticism over the years and often had the opposite effect, as teams withdrew local players shortly before the end of the transfer period in order to make room for additional legionnaires. This subsequently led to a court case, which the ice hockey player Christoph Harand tried against the league, and which went through several instances without leading to any changes.

Even though alternative regulations have been repeatedly discussed over the years, the points rule has proven itself despite all weaknesses in league operation and also represents a functioning solution against the background of available alternatives, which would also entail their weaknesses. The former sports director of the Austrian Ice Hockey Association noted a conflict of objectives with the national ice hockey team. They are working too selfishly in different directions, in contrast to Scandinavian countries. He especially criticised that in important positions such as the centre and goalkeeper there are hardly any local players, and it is an illusion to wait for them to become better without playing practice. OEHV President Mittendorfer also sees this in a similar light and favours regulation on the number.

Venues

The largest venues are located in Bolzano and Vienna with capacities of just over 7,000 spectators each. The HC Innsbruck has the smallest ice rink in nominal terms, but has often moved to the neighbouring Olympic Hall for play-off games in earlier seasons.

EBEL in the media

After the pay-TV channel Sky had held the rights for the television broadcasts of the EBEL games for ten years, these were awarded to The Sportsman Media Group for the 2010/11 season. As the company’s partner, Servus TV broadcasts one Sunday match each as part of the “Servus Hockey Night”. In the play-offs, one match per match day and in the case of possible decision games, these are broadcast in a conference call via the TV channel. In addition, the Internet portal laola1.tv broadcast one match live on the Internet every Friday. The contract with Servus TV was extended in 2016. In addition, Sky was won back as a partner and broadcasts 50 games.

In Slovenia, Sport TV Slovenia and SportKlub Slovenia broadcast live some of the matches of the Slovenian representatives. In Hungary, the TV station Sportklub Hungary broadcasts selected matches of Alba Volan live. In Croatia, the public HRT and Sportklub Croatia held the rights for Medvecsak Zagreb and showed selected matches live. In Italy Video33.it shows matches of the HC Bozen.

Radio Kärnten, which can also be received via Internet via livestream, broadcasts almost all matches of the Carinthian ice hockey clubs KAC and VSV as part of the “Kärntner Eishockeymagazins”. The 1st ice hockey magazine was available at the beginning of the 80s on Radio Wien during the WEV and EC Stadlau. Radio Wien reports also today above all from home games of the Vienna Capitals live, the same applies also to the home games of the Graz 99ers, which are transmitted by the private radio Antenne Steiermark. Also other national studios took up the idea in the meantime and send sporadically live transmissions of league plays.

Trophies and awards

The league’s previously nameless trophy was renamed the Karl Nedwed Cup in December 2014, following the death of long-standing President Karl Nedwed, who had been instrumental in the league’s development.

Since foreign teams can win the league championship title but not that of the Austrian champion, there is also a national champions 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 Austrian Championship Cup was awarded to the runner-up (both times EC Red Bull Salzburg).

Most valuable Player

Since the 2008/09 season, the most valuable player of 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 called the Ron Kennedy Trophy in memory of the late Ron Kennedy ice hockey player and coach who died of cancer.

EBEL Young Star

The best young player of the season is awarded the EBEL-YoungStar every year. Every month, TV experts Gary Venner, Claus Dalpiaz and Sascha Tomanek nominate several young players, after which the fans vote online for their YoungStar. At the end of the season, the winners of the month will be selected in a new election of the winners of the year.

All-Star Game

Between 2006 and 2008 there was the KELLY’S All-Star-Game, based on the American model, in which the best Austrian players of the league competed against the best legionaries. In addition, so-called Skills Competitions were organized. However, as spectator interest did not meet expectations, the All-Star Game was soon suspended again, although the All-Star players’ election will continue.

History

The predecessors of today’s league have been various championships since 1923, the winners of which are still listed today as official holders of the title of Austrian Champion. In the years 1936 respectively 1939 to 1945 no championship took place. During the Second World War some clubs took part in the German Ice Hockey Championship, which is why the Viennese EV (1940) and the EK Engelmann Wien (1939) also had a German Championship title in their club history.

Foundation

Until the 1964/65 season, the Austrian championship was played out in a single national league called the National League A. The Austrian championship was played in a single national league called the National League A. Among them there were several regional groups under the collective name Nationalliga B. The league was called Nationalliga A. Up to this 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 Salzburger Eislaufverein (SEV).

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

At the same time the professionalisation of the first league was promoted, as the ÖEHV realised that an improvement of the league level within the scope of a semi-professional organisation could no longer be achieved.