Trade agreement stand-off leads to ‘ugly’ jerseys at IIHF Women’s World Championship

While the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF)’s 2026 Women’s World Championship was already making headlines as it ended a nine-month international hockey hiatus, fans were instead focused on Team USA’s and Canada’s lackluster jerseys, highlighting a year-long trade agreement stand-off between Hockey Canada, USA Hockey, and the IIHF. A new IIHF partnership with True Hockey has led to a fight over who owns commercial rights to the sale of replica jerseys. In protest, Hockey Canada and USA Hockey have refused to grant trademark permissions of their jerseys, leading to the generic on-ice uniforms.