Girls’ bandy in the United States will take another step in its development with the launch of the Girls Bandy Development Program, an initiative set to begin on 7 June and designed to create a specific pathway for girls and young athletes to discover the discipline through their previous experience in ice hockey. The project will run across five Sunday sessions until 19 July, with a clear objective: to build an initial development base so more girls can learn, practise and progress within bandy.

The initiative carries particular significance for the growth of the sport in a country with a strong hockey culture. The programme uses that foundation to introduce bandy in a familiar environment, but with a different dynamic: more flow, fewer stoppages, greater emphasis on skating, creativity, movement and team play. For Rebecca Draper, head of USA Women’s Bandy and Chair of the FIB Athletes Committee, the goal is to offer “a new opportunity to experience the world’s second most popular winter sport”.

Rebecca Draper turns a family idea into a development project

The story of the programme began at home. In 2021, Draper built a backyard ice rink with her husband and began hosting hockey gatherings for children. In that setting, she also brought out bandy sticks and balls to introduce the sport in an informal way. “My kids would occasionally pick them up and give it a try, though their main focus remained hockey,” she explained. Every winter, the same pattern continued: a backyard rink, hockey gatherings and an increasingly regular presence for bandy.

The turning point came in August 2025, when Draper took the Wayzata Warriors 12 Youth team to Västerås, in Sweden. There, Olle Wiberg and members of the Swedish youth national bandy team led a one-hour session that included practice and game play. “That experience gave our players and their parents a real sense of the sport, its feel, awareness, and scale,” Draper recalled. The impact of that trip strengthened an idea that had been developing for years: launching a girls’ development programme in the United States.

A programme to build confidence before big ice

The momentum grew stronger after the World Championship in Pori, Finland, in January 2026. “After returning from the World Championships and speaking with fellow bandy leaders, I felt even more encouraged and supported to move forward,” Draper said. In February, her 13-year-old daughter officially played with the SISU women’s winter team on big ice, a step that confirmed her belief: “She showed strong promise and ability, solidifying my belief that the time to establish a development programme is now.”

The sessions will take place on Sunday evenings and will be open to athletes born in 2013 or earlier. The goal is to bring together approximately 20 to 24 skaters and two goalkeepers per session. Each practice will include one hour on the ice: the first 30 minutes will focus on skill development, with shooting, flow drills, regrouping, steering and other fundamentals; the final 30 minutes will be dedicated to game play. “Athletes will be introduced to the sport of bandy while building on their hockey foundation,” Draper explained.

A base for a future girls’ national team

The programme will start in a rink bandy format, on a hockey rink, as a pathway that makes the transition towards big ice easier. Draper stresses that this format shares similarities with hockey, but offers a freer dynamic: four skaters per team, no offsides or icing, no use of the stick to impede opponents and minimal stoppages. “The game emphasizes creativity, skating, speed, movement, and teamwork,” she said. For the players, it offers an accessible way to discover bandy without moving away from their previous training base.

The wider ambition goes beyond five initial sessions. Draper wants to “create a fun, supportive learning environment where girls can enjoy the sport alongside their friends”, but also to build a base that allows athletes to progress into summer and fall rink bandy leagues, the women’s winter big ice league and, eventually, the women’s national team. “Another important plan is to ultimately build toward forming a USA Girls National Team, capable of competing in Youth World Championships,” she said.

The project will begin in one city, but the roadmap points towards gradual expansion. “The expectation is to launch the programme in one city initially, with the long-term goal of expanding into additional cities and ultimately forming a structured league with youth practices and inter-city games,” Draper explained. The first edition of the Girls Bandy Development Program will begin on Sunday 7 June, with five sessions until 19 July, all starting at 6:30 p.m., as a first step towards a broader girls’ youth structure for bandy in the United States.