Color of Hockey: 2025 Amerigol LATAM Cup to represent game’s global growth

William Douglas has been writing The Color of Hockey blog since 2012. Douglas joined NHL.com in 2019 and writes about people of color in the sport. Today, he previews the 2025 Amerigol LATAM Cup, which takes place from Aug. 17-24 at Florida Panthers IceDen in Coral Springs and Palm Beach Skate Zone in Wellington, Florida.

The Amerigol LATAM Cup just keeps on growing.

What started out with five teams representing Latin American and Caribbean countries in a three-day tournament in South Florida in 2018 has exploded into an eight-day extravaganza with more than 62 teams and an international flavor that extends far beyond the Americas.

Growth has been the hallmark for the LATAM Cup which begins Sunday through Aug. 24 at the Florida Panthers IceDen in Coral Springs and the Palm Beach Skate Zone in Wellington, Florida.

More than 1,450 players will compete, representing 16 countries and territories including Argentina, Armenia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Greece, Israel, Lebanon, Mexico, Puerto Rico and Venezuela.

A men’s team representing India and women’s squads representing Pakistan and 12 First Nations/Indigenous tribes will make their first LATAM Cup appearances.

The tournament has expanded to the point that it’s launching AMERIGOLHOCKEYTV, a digital platform to broadcast live games from the tournament for free. With more scouts attending the LATAM Cup, the tournament is also unveiling a program that will allow players to create profiles that scouts from junior, NCAA, college club hockey teams and other programs can access.

“This tournament started with Latin America as the prime focus, primary focus, and has grown to include a lot of other countries,” LATAM Cup founder Juan Carlos Otero said. “But it’s all about growing the game. Chile is a good example. They started off with two teams competing and now they’re up to five. Greece is up to three.

“We're trying to grow hockey, not only within the communities here, but also within the countries that participate. That's something that's important for us. Every organization has their own mission, but us as a tournament, our goal is to grow it not only within the Latin communities or any of the participating countries communities, but in those countries as well.”

The NHL and NHL Players’ Association through the Industry Growth Fund and the Florida Panthers help support the LATAM Cup. The fund was created as part of the Collective Bargaining Agreement in 2013 to support and accelerate the development of League and Club initiatives and projects that promote long-term fan development and increase participation in hockey at all levels.

"We are continually impressed by the dedication and effort of Juan Carlos and his colleagues at the LATAM Cup in making hockey more accessible to non-traditional markets," said Rob Knesaurek, NHL senior vice president youth development and industry growth. "The growth in participation and the exceptional level of amateur hockey being showcased by teams from around the globe are truly remarkable. This initiative exemplifies the inclusive spirit of hockey, demonstrating that the sport truly is for everyone."

The Panthers are excited about hosting the LATAM Cup at the IceDen, the team’s former practice facility, for the seventh year.

“With hockey thriving in South Florida and growing interest year after year, this tournament is a great showcase of talent, culture and community pride,” said John Colombo, vice president of the Florida Panthers Foundation & community relations.

Many of the teams enter the LATAM Cup in hopes of getting the attention of government officials, sports federations or private investors in their countries or territories to convince them to help develop hockey in their homelands, mainly by building ice rinks.

India’s organizers jumped to play at the tournament to highlight the talent among expats living in Canada and the United States and generate buzz an in effort to elevate hockey’s profile in their ancestral home. The India squad, which will play exhibition games against LATAM Cup Division I opponents, is largely comprised of Canadian and American players of Indian heritage who have played major junior, college or minor league hockey.

India has been a member of the International Ice Hockey Federation since April 1989, and the country has men’s and women’s teams. But the nation of more than 1.4 billion people has only four indoor rinks and 2,554 men’s, women’s and junior players, according to IIHF figures.

“Our goal is to help India domestically with their hockey, and I think the best way of doing that is allowing these expat players to travel one day back and help stimulate hockey development back home,” said Lali Toor, an organizer for India’s LATAM team and co-founder of Apna Hockey, an initiative that provides a network and support for South Asian hockey players in Canada.

“There's a lot of talent coming up here, whether it be NCAA, juniors or pro that’s in the pipeline,” Toor said. “And if we can create a program that supports the men's and women's side in India, I think we have a really good shot at seeing India being at the Winter Olympics one day. That's our goal. And the LATAM Cup is basically the start of it.”