Austrian Floorball Association

The Österreichischer Floorball Verband (ÖFBV), known in English as the Austrian Floorball Association, is the national governing body for floorball in Austria. Founded in 1996 and headquartered in Linz, the association oversees the development, regulation, and promotion of floorball across the country. It is a member of the International Floorball Federation (IFF) and organizes national championships across various age and performance categories. As of 2023, the ÖFBV comprises 72 member clubs with approximately 4,500 licensed players, and it operates through regional sub-associations covering Vienna, Upper Austria, Styria, Carinthia, Salzburg, Tyrol, and Vorarlberg. The association's primary activities include organizing the Austrian Floorball Bundesliga for men and women, coordinating national teams at senior and junior levels, and providing training and workshops for players, coaches, and referees. The ÖFBV works closely with regional clubs and schools to expand the sport's reach. Its national teams have qualified for multiple World Championships across different age groups, achieving some medals in international competitions. The ÖFBV's history traces back to 1989 when Werner Daves, a student in Leoben, discovered the sport in Sweden. After establishing the first Austrian club in 1994, the national association was founded on 28 January 1996 as the "ÖFIB." The first national championships were held in 1996, and Austria joined the IFF in 1997. The association received official recognition from the Austrian Federal Sports Organization in November 2005. Today, the ÖFBV continues to develop floorball in Austria, with recent initiatives including a EUROpower contract for national teams and the expansion of the women's Bundesliga.

The history of the Österreichischer Floorball Verband (ÖFBV) begins in 1989 when Werner Daves, then a student in Leoben, discovered that the sport of innebandy was very popular in Sweden. He convinced the university sports institute to send a team to a tournament in Gothenburg. There, the Leoben delegation was surprised to find that the Swedes played not with a puck but with a perforated ball. As the best non-Swedish team, they won a set of sticks and balls and began playing with these balls in Leoben, calling the sport "Innebandy," as the Swedes did. From 1993, the Leoben team participated in tournaments again, this time in Germany and the Netherlands. After several participations, Werner Daves decided it was time to establish the sport in Austria. Thus, on 28 June 1994, the 1st Austrian Innebandy and Floorball Club Leoben (IBC Leoben) was founded—without knowing that "Innebandy" is simply the Swedish word for "floorball." Daves became the first president of the club and recognized that more clubs were needed to found a league in Austria. After about a year, IC Krokodile Graz was formed, and shortly afterwards—without the Styrians' knowledge—UHC Götzis was also established. With two clubs, the Austrian association was founded on 28 January 1996, initially called "ÖFIB." Werner Daves became the first president of the Austrian Floorball Association. In the same year, the first Austrian large-field championships for women and men were held in Leoben. The international debut of the ÖFBV began in 1997 with the participation of the Austrian women's team in the first Floorball World Championship for women. In the same year, Austria joined the IFF. In 1998, the men's national team also competed in a World Championship for the first time. Since then, Austrian teams have qualified for numerous international competitions in various age groups. In November 2005, the ÖFBV was recognized by the Austrian Federal Sports Organization, officially establishing the association as a sports organization in Austria. In 2007, Austria participated for the first time in a U19 Junior World Championship. Since then, Austrian teams have regularly taken part in international junior competitions and qualified for several World Championships. Special events in the Austrian floorball calendar were the U19 Women's World Championship qualification in Linz in 2017 and the Men's U19 World Championship qualification in Salzburg in 2023. At both events, the Austrian team qualified for the World Championship. The Austrian U19 women's teams have qualified for several World Championships, including those in St. Gallen/Herisau (CH) 2018, Uppsala (SWE) 2020, and Katowice (POL) 2021. The participation in Uppsala had to be cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Austrian U19 men's teams have also qualified for several World Championships, including those in Brno 2021 and Frederikshavn 2023. As of 2023, the ÖFBV consists of 72 member clubs with approximately 4,500 members. The association includes regional associations for Vienna, Upper Austria, Styria, Carinthia, Salzburg, Tyrol, and Vorarlberg. The first national championships were held in 1996 for women and men on large fields. In 1996 and 1997, the championship consisted of a single tournament. A men's and women's league has existed since the 1999/2000 season (small field). In the early years, teams from Slovenia and Italy played in the Austrian league. Large-field Bundesliga has been played since the 2001/02 season for men and since the 2004/05 season for women. In the women's Bundesliga, Hungarian and Slovenian teams also competed for the title at the beginning. Since 2018, the men's league is international again and is held in cooperation with the Slovenian Floorball Association as the International Floorball League. VSV Unihockey is by far the most successful team in Austria with 11 men's national championship titles (two of them as Carinthian Flyers Villach). Small-field floorball was organized regionally through the regional associations from 2004/05 to 2006/07. The regional champions then met in a federal final. Since 2008, the ÖFBV has been responsible for organizing the national small-field championships for women and men. The international small-field tournaments Rheintalcup and Montfortcup are also held throughout Austria.

• 2023

  Men's U19 World Championship qualification held in Salzburg; Austria qualifies.

• 2018

  Men's league becomes international as the International Floorball League in cooperation with Slovenia.

• 2017

  U19 Women's World Championship qualification held in Linz; Austria qualifies.

• 2007

  Austria participates in its first U19 Junior World Championship.

• 2005

  ÖFBV recognized by the Austrian Federal Sports Organization in November.

• 2004

  Women's large-field Bundesliga begins with the 2004/05 season.

• 2001

  Men's large-field Bundesliga begins with the 2001/02 season.

• 1999

  Men's and women's leagues established (small field) for the 1999/2000 season.

• 1998

  Men's national team competes in its first World Championship.

• 1997

  Austria joins the International Floorball Federation (IFF); women's team competes in first World Championship.

• 1996

  Austrian Floorball Association founded on 28 January as ÖFIB; first national championships held.

• 1994

  1st Austrian Innebandy and Floorball Club Leoben (IBC Leoben) founded on 28 June.

• 1989

  Werner Daves discovers innebandy in Sweden and introduces it to Leoben.

National governing body for floorball in Austria, focused on development, competition, and international representation.

1. 1Österreichischer Floorball Verbandfloorball.at
2. 2Kontaktefloorball.at
3. 3Österreichischer Floorball Verbandwikidata.org
4. 4Österreichischer Floorball Verbandde.wikipedia.org