The Dutch ice hockey premier division will start this September with just six teams, the ice hockey association confirmed on Wednesday.

HIJS Den Haag, the ice hockey arm of The Hague’s ice club, has been unable to raise the necessary funding and organisational back-up and will drop out of the competition.

The six teams which will take part are the Tilburg Trappers, Flyers Heerenveen, Eaters Geleen, Eindhoven Kemphanen, Belgium’s HYC Herentals and the Dordrecht Lions.

The Tilburg Trappers won last year’s competition and HIJS Den Haag was runner up to the title. HIJS Den Haag also had the competition’s top scorer in Raphael Joly

There are three other amateur and recreational Dutch ice hockey leagues.