THE Fiji Hockey Federation will begin looking for sponsors to assist them in hosting the first regional round of the Hockey World League.
The event will feature Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Vanuatu, an Australian under-21 side and a development team from New Zealand.
FHF development officer Tai Smith said Fiji was always willing and ready to host international events but the only concern was finance.
She said it would cost FHF about $50,000 to host the first regional round and they would use a few avenues to raise funds for it.
"We will be working on fundraising and then we have the MH Fiji Open in October and we will use that to generate funds too," Smith said.
"But the biggest challenge will be securing a sponsor because we cannot raise $50,000 on our own.
"We will send out requests to the government and to the business sector asking for financial support."
The tournament will play an important role in the Hockey World League with the men's winning team advancing to the second round in Delhi, India, and the women's team going to Rio de Janeiro in Brazil.
"So should our teams advance to the next stage, we will require sponsors to assist us take our teams there but the main focus now is on hosting the first round," Smith said.
Smith said some upgrade works would be required at the National Hockey Centre in Laucala Bay.
"We are working closely with the Fiji Sports Council to ensure lighting and our facilities are in good condition to host the event," she said.
Fiji is the only country in the region apart from Australia and New Zealand to have an artificial turf.
The first round of games will be played in December.