Asian Games 2026: Indian hockey teams to ditch saffron for traditional blue jerseys

The Indian hockey teams will return to the blue jersey at the upcoming Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, Hockey India (HI) has confirmed.

"Saffron is not the permanent colour. The Indian hockey teams won saffron at the World Cup. There can be more changes in the future, but at the Asian Games teams will wear blue. We have kept blue and orange both," Hockey India Persident Dilip Tirkey said on Tuesday.

Hockey India’s decision to switch to saffron ahead of the World Cup in the Netherlands and Belgium was met with widespread criticism.

The decision to wear saffron was made to improve visibility against the blue turf, but the change faced criticism when the teams switched from their usual blue jerseys.

HI president Dilip Tirkey had questioned the process, saying the decision was implemented without the knowledge of the federation’s elected leadership or Executive Board.

Tirkey had sent a strongly worded email to HI DG Srivastava, seeking detailed clarification on the process.

At the 2026 World Cup, the Indian men's hockey team finished eighth, while the women's team achieved a historic fifth-place finish, their best-ever performance at the World Cup in 52 years.