Elite.A
The Elite.A is the highest professional hockey league in Italy.
The league was founded in 1924 as Serie A, was later in Serie A1 (full name: la Serie A1 di hockey su ghiaccio ) and renamed in 2013 Elite League Serie A. It is organized by the Italian Ice Sports Federation. As in football, the winner will receive the championship the Scudetto, a plaque in the Italian national colors that he must wear the following season on the jersey.
Record champion of the League is the HC Bolzano with 19 titles before the SG Cortina with 16 titles and the HC Milan with 15 titles. As Italy's Hockey stronghold apply Milan, in 81 years, eight different clubs a total of 32 times the championship bring in the northern Italian city, and South Tyrol, which in addition to 24 championship titles in men and ten titles for the women from the HC Eagles Bolzano and the largest density can boast amateur clubs.
There will also be every year, the " Coppa Italia " and the " Super Coppa " in parallel to the regular season instead.
The next lower Italian leagues are the 2 a Divisione and Serie C ( Under 26 ).
History
In the 2007 /08 season nine teams participated in the league play, champion HC Bolzano. After the regular season followed by two rounds of so-called master with two groups, distributed according to the season placement. Depending on the placement in the Master round the clubs then play in a play-off round in the best- of-five mode, beginning with the quarter-finals, the masters from.
In the 2008 / 09 season, 8 teams took part in the championship. After the regular season was followed by a second round and then finally the play-offs and play-out. Four teams of a total of eight played play-off, the other four played play-out. Play-off met the first- and fourth- placed ( Bolzano - Cortina ) and the second- and third -ranked ( Ritten - Val Pusteria ). Played best-of -seven was there. The SV Ritten and HC Bolzano qualified for the finals, with the HC Bolzano won the championship title.
Since the 2013/14 season the league acts as Elite League to Serie A. A five-year plan is to ensure, among other things, the economic health of the clubs. The number of foreign players will be gradually reduced and the League closed. 2a Divisione clubs can join in fulfillment of economic conditions of the elite league.