Antwerp in Belgium has been awarded the 2019 EuroHockey Championships ©Getty Images

Belgium has been awarded the men’s and women’s 2019 EuroHockey Championships, beating only rivals Germany, it has been announced.

The decision was made by the European Hockey Federation (EHF) Executive Board at the organisation’s meeting in Brussels.

The event is due to take place in Antwerp in August 2019.

The 2019 EuroHockey Championships will feature eight men’s and eight women’s teams and will serve as a direct qualifier for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, with the winner of each tournament guaranteeing their place in the hockey competition in the Japanese capital.

Six nations in both the men’s and women’s tournaments will qualify for the event in Antwerp at the 2017 EuroHockey Championships, due to be held in Amsterdam.

Two other countries will secure their spot through the EuroHockey Championships II, with the men competing in Glasgow and the women in Cardiff.

EHF President Marijke Fleuren admitted it was a tough choice between the Belgian and German bids and reiterated the process was “fair and transparent”.

England are the current women's European champions following their victory in London last year ©Getty Images
England are the current women's European champions following their victory in London last year ©Getty Images

“It was a challenging decision for the EHF Board to decide between the two very strong bids for the 2019 EuroHockey Championships, so firstly I would like to thank the two National Associations for their excellent bids,” she said.

“This time Belgium came out as the winner after a fair and transparent decision making process.

“The Royal Belgian Hockey Association is one of the biggest success stories in recent European hockey history.

“In 2013 they hosted a magnificent fan focused EuroHockey Championships in Braxgata HC.

"Since then they have made massive gains in their capacity to deliver world class hockey events to the fan base and the popularity of hockey continues to grow all the time.

“We believe that the best is yet to come both on and off the pitch and we are looking forward to delivering together something very special for the athletes and fans in Antwerp 2019.”

Belgium also played host to the 2013 EuroHockey Championships in Brussels.

“With the 2013 Euros in Boom and the FIH World League semi-finals in Brasschaat last year, Belgium has shown to the world that it is capable to organise world class hockey events, providing outstanding experiences for both athletes and fans,” added Serge Pilet, general secretary of the Royal Belgian Hockey Association.

“We are very proud that our hard work has been acknowledged by EHF and has resulted in this new allocation to Belgium.”