The United States men's national field hockey team, known as the USA Eagles, represents the United States in international field hockey competitions. While field hockey isn't a major sport at the college level for men in the United States, the players on the national team often play overseas in European and Australian pro leagues. The sport is largely thought of as a women's game in the United States.
Olympic Games and Pan American Games
The United States has a history of hosting and participating in the Olympic field hockey tournaments. The United States hosted the Olympic field hockey tournaments three times. In their first Olympics in 1932, Team USA hosted India and Japan. In their first Olympics in 1932, Team USA lost both their games and finished third for the bronze medal. The team was the host nation for the Los Angeles 1984 Olympic Games.
Here is a summary of the team's performance in the Olympic and Pan American Games:
| Competition | Appearances | Best Result |
|---|---|---|
| Olympic Games | 6 (first in 1932) | 3rd (1932) |
| Pan American Games | 15 (first in 1967) | 3rd (1967, 1987) |
During group stages, Team USA lost to Australia 2-1. The team lost to Kenya in sudden death penalty strokes 6-5 after a 1-1 regulation and then lost 11th/12th place game to Malaysia 9-8 in sudden death penalty strokes after 3-3 tie in regulation. The team finished last in tournament play.
Early Olympic History
Hockey made its Olympic debut in the 1920 Summer Games. Yes, ice hockey used to be part of the summer Olympics. The roster included Frank “Moose” Goheen, who is a Hockey Hall of Famer. Team USA took silver that year.
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The jerseys didn’t deviate much in 1924 from 1920, though this was the first winter Olympics. Team USA once again took silver. Among those on the roster, Clarence “Taffy” Abel and Herb Drury, who each played a bit in the NHL. regulars in the NHL. Love the hats. St. Moritz hosted the Winter Games.
was back in action on home turf and once again claimed silver. These jerseys were eventually worn as throwbacks in the 2004 World Cup of Hockey, with a slight alteration. was on the medal stand again, this time winning the bronze. Oddly enough, it was Great Britain who stopped Canada’s reign as Olympic champions. Weird, right?
As you may have noticed by the year and location, this was also an event under a cloud in Nazi Germany. Here is Team USA, looking awfully happy to be sitting so close together. Again, there’s the crest, though this jersey featured some shoulder stripping and more pronounced stripes on the arms.
Mid-20th Century Challenges and Changes
So this one is really complicated and actually it’s something I had never heard about until researching this post. was actually disqualified from the 1948 Winter Games, because two different organizations sent national teams. Weird, right? It’s actually quite a fascinating tale. Very similar to the standard Olympic jerseys of years past, but a chunkier shield and less colorful striping on the arms.
took the silver at the Olympics. This team came awfully close to gold, but tied Canada 3-3 in the final game to fall just two points short of the top prize. This was the first time the USA word mark appeared prominently on the jersey. Though small and off-center it shared the jersey with the AHAUS crest. You can see the beginnings of those iconic 1960 Olympic jerseys starting to form here.
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This was perhaps one of the most important Olympic Games in history for this was the dawning of the Soviet hockey super power. Though underdogs then, the USSR took the gold for the first time at this Olympics. lost to the Soviets in the final round to finish second. The big USA diagonally across the jersey makes no mistake of who is playing. The AHAUS patch is small, but still an important part of the jersey in the upper left shoulder. Great unis.
The "Forgotten Miracle" and Beyond
The Miracle before the Miracle. This was simply one of the most significant events in American hockey history. The team was led by head coach Jack Riley and had a host of American-born stars, many from the previous team. Also part of the team was John Mayasich, Bill and Roger Christian, Bill and Bob Cleary, Jack Kirrane and Dick Meredith. Team USA wore replica throwbacks of these during the 2010 Winter Olympics and even beat Canada in the prelims while wearing them.
outfit failed to medal and placed fifth while the Soviet Union claimed their second gold. It would be the first in a run of four consecutive Olympics with gold. The 1964 team included a few holdovers from the 1960 squad included Herb Brooks this, who eventually got to live his Olympic dream, albeit with a less successful side. team failed to medal, this time co-captained by Herb Brooks.
Here starts the more horizontal USA word mark and the scrapping of the shoulder crest. The jersey’s shoulders and striping is quite similar to the ones from 1960. One of the lesser known American clubs, the 1972 team was quite a good one. Among the big names on Team USA’s roster in Sapporo, Mark Howe, who was recently inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.
Recent Performances and Rankings
The team has never qualified for an outdoor World Cup. The team missed out on the final of the 2009 Men's Pan American Cup from a missed penalty stroke in normal time. Had the penalty been converted the team would have won the final vs. Canada for direct qualification to the World Cup. The team competed in FIH Hockey World League Round 1 in Salamanca, Mexico.
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The team put in a dominant performance to finish undefeated and as FIH Hockey World League round 1 champions to secure a spot at FIH Hockey World League round 2 in March 2017. The team was familiar with their opponent as they had played Barbados in the first game and came out on top with a 3-1 victory. With the roster that was representing the United States, the squad kept developing their play throughout the week culminating in a dominant performance in the final.
As of December 19, 2025, the FIH ranking of the USA Eagles is:
- Current: 25
- Highest: 20 (2009 - 2010)
- Lowest: 30 (2008)
USA Field Hockey Association
USA Field Hockey is the national governing body for the sport of field hockey in the United States and is based out of Colorado Springs, Colo. USA Field Hockey’s purpose is to be an Effective Sport Leader, by generating and allocating resources to achieve its mission to:Grow the Game by promoting and developing field hockey as a sport for all, sport for life. Serve and Inspire Membership by helping people achieve their field hockey ambition and creating value for membership. Succeed Internationally by performing well in elite competition and enhanced high performance programming.
The United States Field Hockey Association (USFHA) was founded in 1922 by Constance Applebee to govern women's field hockey in the United States. Six years later in 1928, the Field Hockey Association of America (FHAA) was founded to govern men's field hockey in the United States. In April 1993, the USFHA and FHAA merged to form the United States Field Hockey Association. Later that year, the name was changed to just USA Field Hockey. Grow the Game. Serve & Inspire Membership.
Women's National Team
The United States women's national field hockey team represents the United States in international field hockey. The team is currently coached by David Passmore. It made its first international appearance in 1920 when a touring team visited England, coached by Constance M.K. Applebee. The team made several international appearances in the early 20th century, leading to the United States hosting the 8th International Federation of Women's Hockey Associations Tournament in 1963.
Once the IFWHA merged with its counterpart on the men's side, the United States' first appearance at an FIH-sanctioned tournament was the 1983 Women's Hockey World Cup in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, where the Americans ended up in sixth place. During the 1984 Summer Olympics, the team won their first international prize, a bronze medal. This happened after the Netherlands defeated Australia (2-0) in the final match of the round-robin tournament and Australia and the United States were left tied for third place with identical records: two wins, two losses, one draw, and nine goals scored and seven goals conceded.
Following the Netherlands-Australia match, the United States players came down from the stands and competed with the Australians in a penalty shoot-out to decide the bronze medal. The Olympic qualifying squad placed first in the second series of games during the 2008 Women's Hockey Olympic Qualifier. The USWNT qualified for the London 2012 Summer Olympics after defeating Argentina 4-2 at the Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico. had high hopes of finishing their rocky 2012 Olympic campaign on a high note.
In similar fashion to qualifying for the London 2012 Olympics, the USWNT defeated Argentina at the Pan American Games in Toronto, Canada to punch their ticket to the Rio 2016 Summer Olympics. In pool play the USWNT toppled both global hockey powerhouses Argentina (2nd FIH World Ranked) and Australia (3rd FIH World Ranked) with the same score of 2-1. The team pushed past Japan (6-1) and India (3-0). The match in quarterfinal play with Great Britain blemished the undefeated record of USWNT and resulted in a loss, 2-1.
Women's National Team placed first at the 2008 Hockey Olympic Qualifier to qualify for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. In Pool B, they beat New Zealand (4-1), tied Argentina (2-2), Japan (1-1) and Great Britain (0-0), and lost to Germany (4-2). Women's National Team qualified for the London 2012 Olympic Games after defeating Argentina (4-2) in the Pan American Games final in Guadalajara, Mexico. In Pool B, they topped Argentina (1-0) and fell to Germany (2-1), Australia (1-0), New Zealand (3-2) and South Africa (7-0).
Women's National Team qualified for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games after defeating Argentina (2-1) in the Pan American Games final in Toronto, Canada. In Group B, they finished second after beating Argentina (2-1), Australia (2-1), Japan (6-1) and India (3-0), before falling to Great Britain (2-1). Women's National Team qualified after a historic run at the 2024 FIH Hockey Olympic Qualifier in Ranchi, India.
The No. 15 United Eagles went into the event as one of the lowest ranked teams. In their first pool match they upset hosts, No. 6 India, (1-0) and then beat No. 19 Italy (2-0). They defeated No. 10 New Zealand (1-0) in their final pool game to secure a spot in the semifinals. Facing No. 9 Japan, USA knew they had to perform as the winner of this semifinal punched their ticket. After trailing, the United Eagles triumphantly rallied back with two goals in the fourth quarter to win 2-1 and qualify for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
Olympic Jersey Evolution
Olympic jersey will be unveiled. It will join a long line of jerseys that have been part of some of the greatest moments in American hockey history. There have been plenty of hits and misses, and we won’t know much about where the 2014 jersey will land until it is unveiled Tuesday. You may recall that in 2010, the IOC banned federations’ national teams from wearing the corporate logo of said federations. Therefore, USA Hockey’s trademark “Waving S” logo can’t be used on the jerseys as it was in Olympics from 1988 to 2006. So before the new jerseys joins the ranks to be judged against the rest, here’s a look at what it will be compared to for the rest of time.
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Among the Americans on this roster, Brian Rolston, Garth Snow, Todd Marchant, Mike Dunham. Nagano marked the first time NHL players were allowed to participate in the Olympics. The men had an utterly forgettable and embarrassing tournament, finishing sixth just two years after winning the World Cup of Hockey. This was also a pretty forgettable year as far as jerseys go as well. Well, the USA crest inside the circle is just unnecessary. You can’t see it in the picture, but the grey under the arms is very holey mesh. The grey is just a weird fit at all. I actually did like the numbers on this one, though.
and featured greats like Cammi Granato and Karen Bye, as well as a 18-year-old Angela Ruggiero. men had a much, much better showing than in Nagano. It’s been somewhat forgotten, but the 2002 Olympic tournament was extremely exciting. These jerseys weren’t the best either, since I prefer the more traditional horizontal striping as opposed to what’s going on here, but I do like the big USA crest and the dark blues were pretty solid. The whites were even better, for my money. Again, the lack of horizontal stripes kind of hurts, but that USA logo really pops on this jersey.
This was another rather forgettable Olympics for the men and was as well for the women, who were stunned by Sweden to get relegated to playing for bronze, which they won. The previous Olympics was the signalling of the end of an era, while 2006 was trying desperately to cling to the past. logo a prominent feature and the blue jerseys are far better than the whites, but there’s not a lot else to like. The vertical striping on the arms and the sides of the jersey were certainly unique and on the cutting edge, but hockey is a more traditional sport.
That brings us back to the most recent Olympics. teams, but again, both achieved silver, falling just short on Canadian ice. That said, I don’t know if any Olympic games did more for hockey in the country as these with the exception of 1960 and 1980. These Olympics marked the end of the Waving S on Team USA jerseys. The blue jerseys I thought were the best of the two. They have the simple USA across the front with the stars on the shoulders. For what they did with these jerseys on relatively short notice, you have to give credit to all parties. These are also the jerseys I seem to see fans wearing the most from these Olympics. So where will USA’s 2014 jersey rank among these?