New changes have occurred in the Kontinental Hockey League. They led to the KHL becoming a more autonomous organization. Now there is virtually no influence left on the part of the Russian Hockey Federation, which until now has delegated the rights to host national championships to the league, and approval from the International Hockey Federation (IIHF) will not be required to process transfers. About the main changes in detail — in the material Sport.
The KHL terminates the contract with the FHR Since its founding in 2008, the league held competitions under a contract with the FHR: the federation delegated to the KHL the rights to hold tournaments and determine the champion of Russia, respectively. This agreement between both organizations was periodically extended, the last such contract was valid until the end of April 2025. Now the KHL has asked the FHR to terminate the agreement, as stated in the league’s latest press release. The Russian Hockey Federation has already responded to this proposal and stated that it will be considered by the organization’s board.
What does this mean in a nutshell? The KHL will be responsible for the activities of hockey agents, as well as their accreditation. The work of the refereeing corps will also be handled by the league. Certification, testing of candidate referees and a video analysis center — all this will become the prerogative of the KHL. Finally, the league gained independence from the FHR in drawing up the calendar for the season. Applications for holding the KHL and MHL championships will be submitted to the Unified Calendar Plan of the Ministry of Sports by the KHL independently. Thus, from the 2024/25 season, the competitive year in the KHL will last until the end of May. The league will only pause for the Channel One Cup. When the Russian national team is allowed to participate in competitions under the auspices of the International Hockey Federation (IIHF), the league clubs will release their players before the Olympics and world championships. What to do in this situation for the conditional Kazakh “Barys” or the clubs for which Canadians and Americans play with a theoretical possibility of being called up to their national teams is not very clear.
The KHL also reserves the right to interact with Ministry of Sports of the Russian Federation on the issue of the limit on foreign players. Let us remind you that from the 2024/25 season onwards there are three foreigners per team. As for the Women's Hockey League, its status remains with the FHR. The league will not hold a separate championship.
«»The KHL remains in the system of Russian hockey and will directly interact with the Ministry of Sports, gaining independence from the IIHF and the FHR. The KHL will continue to create equal conditions for all KHL teams, increasing sports competition and entertainment, and also work for the development and promotion of hockey — not only professional (KHL and MHL), but also for children and youth,” the KHL press service quotes league president Alexei Morozov.
Has the KHL met CSKA halfway? One of the main innovations is related to amendments to the federal law “On Physical Culture and Sports,” which should be adopted by the Federation Council in the near future. Thanks to him, KHL clubs no longer need to issue IIHF transfer cards through the FHR to sign contracts with players from clubs in foreign leagues and include them in the application. In this regard, CSKA is in an advantageous position: the army club, due to the “Ivan Fedotov case,” is under sanctions from the IIHF and has a ban on international transfers. Innovations in the KHL will allow the “red-blues” to bypass this ban.
It is also worth paying attention to one of the paragraphs in the league’s press release:
«The League will not register new contracts of hockey players who have valid contracts with other clubs or unfulfilled obligations, as well as other circumstances that prevent the signing of a new contract.»
There is a certain vulnerability in this. As is known, in recent years the KHL has lost the relevance of the memorandum on mutual respect for contracts with the National Hockey League and other foreign leagues. At the same time, the NHL has not yet «taken away» players from KHL clubs: when it was necessary to make a transfer, both parties reached an agreement on mutually comfortable terms. Thus, Matvey Michkov terminated his contract with SKA and moved to the Philadelphia Flyers, the St. Petersburg team in turn received compensation.
But will the NHL still remain gentlemen? More and more rumors are appearing in the media — both Russian and North American — about the possible transfer of a player with a valid contract with a KHL club to the NHL. Will these rumors find a foothold that will allow them to grow into something more? It is unknown.
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