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25 YEARS
EUROPEAN HANDBALL FEDERATION
CONTENT
008
FOREWORDS
022
STRUCTURE
016
PROLOGUE
180
PARTNER
STATEMENTS
054
EUROPEAN
CHAMPIONSHIP
6
118
CLUB
COMPETITIONS
156
DEVELOPMENT
092
YOUTH EUROPEAN
CHAMPIONSHIP
7
FOREWORD
JEAN BRIHAULT
President EHF
The key to the success has been
the combination of long standing
values with modern approaches
“Whoever bears in his heart a cathedral to be built is already victorious” wrote Antoine
de Saint Exupéry in 1938. This could be an apt evocation of those who, in the late 1980s
came together with the idea of founding a European Handball Federation. Because their
ambitions were high, they were bound to succeed. And succeed they did! Far beyond their
wildest expectations.
They had a vision, not a dream. For a dream, as Martin Luther King well knew, is far away
from reality. A vision is an inspiration for action, an ambition which is shared, an abstraction
only waiting to be made concrete.
Action immediately followed the founding Congress held in Berlin in 1991 and over the
past twenty five years initiatives have succeeded one another to make European handball
what it is today. Those old enough (and I am one of them) to remember the various stages
of the development of our sport cannot but feel giddy at the pace of its progress on our
continent.
Our competitions now rank among the very top sport events in Europe, our continental
championships are followed all over the world and our European Cups have become mesmerizing
events with a conclusion, our famous Final Fours, that has been compared to what
is best in American sport.
The key to this success has been the combination of long standing values with modern
approaches, of shared confidence with permanent self-criticism, of democracy with efficiency.
There is no doubt that the next twenty-five years will witness the further progress of European
handball in a world context also characterised by the supersonic growth of our sport
on all continents. May the present book be an inspiration to the next generations in their
efforts. History, for us, far from being what James Joyce calls “a nightmare from which [one]
is trying to awake”, is a shared treasure of immeasurable value, a guarantee of success for
the future.
9
FOREWORD
MICHAEL WIEDERER
Secretary General
Only those who are
aware of the past can
shape the future…
Twenty-five years are cause for celebration, not only for those persons
who were present in 1991, but for all those who on this journey
walked a few steps of the way with us. The development of a sport
and an institution is not to be measured only in facts and figures, but
rather the positioning on the many various levels that they represent.
But what are 25 years…
…historically, it is but a juncture in time
…in our case, it is ideally a quarter of our lives
…in sport, it is an abundance of victories and defeats,
experiences and partners.
But above all, it is the community of people who are active in and for
the sport.
As someone who had the pleasure to ‘live’ handball with people from
all European nations for the entire duration of this 25 year period,
I have to emphasise that the sport of handball is a ‘people’ business.
Only through the engagement of the many handball enthusiasts can
the matches take place, and this is from the smallest youth handball
competition to the greatest tournament.
Europe wide, the sport of handball is rich with such people and for this
reason handball and the EHF have been able to develop over the past
quarter of a century.
On that note, I wish our sport – both Europe and worldwide – many
active and interested protagonists, and with that in mind – PROGRESS!
11
FOREWORD
DR. HASSAN MOUSTAFA
President IHF
Europe is the cradle of handball
The European Handball Federation plays a key role in showcasing our sport at the highest
level, and contributes considerably to the development of handball in many nations where
it has the most potential for growth. Europe is the cradle of handball with the longest and
strongest history of any continental confederation, and the EHF is therefore considered the
spinal cord of the International Handball Federation.
It was the passionate defenders of handball in Denmark and Sweden that invited the handball
world to participate in the IHF Founding Congress, which was held in Copenhagen,
Denmark in July 1946. Since that moment, exactly 70 years ago, much has changed with
regard to the game itself, the nations so dedicated to it, and even at a club level with the
continued development of the EHF Champions League – undeniably the premier handball
club competition in the world where the best athletes are on court every week. One thing
has remained the same, however: as long as the EHF is healthy, handball is as well.
The development and promotion of handball is based on the effective collaboration between
the IHF and the respective continental confederations, especially the European
Handball Federation, which is an exemplary organisational body consistently showcasing
the very best of our sport. The IHF and EHF work continually together with a focus on
handball in the continent of Europe, periodically organising meetings where all matters
relating to our sport are discussed and any hindrances to the development of handball are
addressed.
Together, we are always working on new ideas to increase the attractiveness of our sport
– particularly for younger people, who are so important as they represent the generations
to come and will be vital in continuing the work done before them. We have made a significant
progress and we are moving in a positive direction, and though there is still a long way
to go, I am confident any challenges will be handled in effective cooperation between our
Federations.
The continuous cooperation between the International Handball Federation and the European
Handball Federation allows the further development of our beloved sport not only in
Europe but all over the world. I personally and on behalf of the IHF look forward to moving
forward together along the same positive path, and congratulate the EHF on 25 years of
success. I hope the next 25 will prove just as fruitful.
13
FOREWORD
ERWIN LANC
Honorary President IHF and ÖHB
The beginnings of the EHF
After the loss of life and property in World War 2, the renaissance of European and international
handball was necessarily in the hands of those states and their handball functionaries
who, having stayed neutral, had survived World War 2 without material damage, among
them names like Hans Baumann, Curt Wadmark, Paul Högberg, Erik Elias, and others.
The political division of Europe that followed prevented what was achieved on all other
continents: the foundation of a continental federation. The East of Europe, strong also in
the sport of handball, was allowed to take part only under the auspices of the IHF. Until the
disintegration of Soviet-ruled Eastern Europe, the very continent that boasted the strongest
performance in handball and, most importantly, the largest number of players, did not
have its own continental federation. Within the IHF, problems kept emerging though that
called for a legitimate representation of Europe. To address this situation, a European advisory
and organising board was created, chaired by the Swede Staffan Holmqvist, which,
while lacking any executive powers did wield some well-respected influence within the IHF.
It was at this point that Michael Wiederer, at the time Secretary General of Österreichischer
Handballbund, started working for European handball.
The founding congress held in Berlin after the fall of the Berlin Wall marked the official start
of the continental federation EHF led by Holmqvist.
Beside the need to draw up statutes governing work and decision-making processes, the
EHF’s seat had to be defined and funding secured. The aim was to locate the Secretariat at a
place in the centre of the united Europe of handball. Bids were submitted by Berlin, Zurich
and Vienna as well as by Lisbon and Bratislava. The funding of the EHF Secretariat caused
the national handball federations some headache. Berlin and Zurich were unable to offer
any start-up capital, Lisbon and Bratislava withdrew their bids.
Michael Wiederer and I succeeding in obtaining commitments from the City of Vienna and
the Republic of Austria to provide initial funding, which in a rule of law state is easier said
than done. In due course, the EHF Congress finally chose Vienna as the seat of the new continental
federation.
Today, the EHF runs the best and most functional Secretariat in international handball
with a staff drawn from a large number of EHF member nations. The FINAL4 tournament
in Cologne is the biggest handball event worldwide. EHF Presidents hailing from Sweden,
Norway and France have always enjoyed the Secretary General’s loyal support in the EHF
bodies. The upcoming decisions to be taken by the EHF will have to be guided by the objective
of continuing the broad, democratic and at the same time efficient development of the
first quarter-century.
15
16
MILESTONE
MADEIRA OR:
THE LONG
ROAD TO
THE EHF
The vision of a European umbrella organisation was first
conceived in 1960. For a long time, sports-political
tensions between the East and the West prevented the
foundation of the EHF – the demise of the Soviet Union
had to happen first. A milestone leading towards the
European idea was the 1990 IHF Congress in Madeira.
17
PROLOGUE
18
The vision of a united handball
Europe was still a long way
off – compared with other
sports, in any case. In football,
the interests of European national
associations have been represented
by the Union of European Football Associations
(UEFA) since 1955. The first continental
tournament took place in 1960.
Track and field athletes had their first European
Championships as early as 1934,
while the European Athletic Association
(EAA) has been operating as an institution
since 1969/70. The European Handball
Federation (EHF) was hence a latecomer
when it was created in Berlin on 17
November 1991.
This late date appears all the more curious
as the idea of a European federation
had already been on the agenda of an
European handball for more than three
decades. It had been the Yugoslav Handball
Federation that had proposed to establish
a European Handball Federation
at the IHF Congress of Liège on 23-24
September 1960. The then IHF Secretary
General Albert Wagner defused this
“bomb”, as the sports magazines called it,
by putting forth the weighty argument that
this would create a “state within a state” of
the International Federation. After all, the
World Championships were nothing but
European title contests anyway, Wagner
reasoned. The background: in 1960, of
the IHF’s 24 members only Japan, Cuba,
Brazil and Argentina were non-European
nations.
Over the years, however, the balance of
powers shifted enormously in the world
federation. By 1972, Europe, with its 24
member federations, only had a very slim
majority left among the 47 IHF members.
In the 1980s, Africa and Asia gained even
more influence. When the IHF Congress
1992 convened in Barcelona, Europe, with
42 out of 129 members, only had a share
of about 30 percent of all votes in the International
Handball Federation. Meanwhile,
the other continents had already set
up their own organisations to look after
their respective interests – Africa in 1973,
Asia in 1976, and Panamerica in 1977.
Calls for a European federation and a
continental tournament hence became
increasingly vociferous. But the numerous
attempts undertaken after the 1974 Congress
in Jesolo, Italy, to bundle European
interests in a European federation all came
to nothing, even though the establishment
of a European continental federation was
in fact the logical answer to the globalisation
of handball, as the Dane Erik Larsen
noted in 1974. He predicted it would be
achieved before the end of the 1970s: “My
tip: the summer of 1979.”
But he erred. In 1976, at the initiative of
the German federation Deutscher Handballbund
(DHB), an informal body was created,
consisting of DHB President Thiele,
Quarez (France), Dimmer (Luxembourg)
and Paulsen (Denmark), to explore potential
options with the federations from the
Eastern bloc. In 1979, even a “Congress”
of West European nations met in Luxembourg.
And in 1981, the same Congress
resolved in Copenhagen to create an EHF
in London in 1982. But a lot of time had
yet to pass.
“Europe needs its own federation” – was
the conclusion of the 1980 Congress held
in Moscow, as reported by the Handballwoche
magazine. How complex the balance
of powers was, was highlighted by
the debate on the politically sensitive issue
of the admission of Palestine to the IHF,
which was finally carried by a coalition of
East European federations, Asia and Africa.
The Asian representatives moreover
almost succeeded in adding Israel to the
Asian continent (which would actually
have meant the end of Israeli handball).
The rest of the world was certainly no
longer willing to recognise the traditional,
leading role of the Europeans based on
their stronger performance. “Against the
backdrop of increasing popularity of handball
in the countries of Asia, Africa and
America, which in Moscow resulted in the
election of IHF Vice Presidents from these
continents to the Council and the Executive,
Europeans will have no choice but to
launch their own federation to better safeguard
their own interests,” was the conclusion
of Handballwoche.
The resolve to found such an organisation
already existed: “In separate deliberations
of the Western nations on the
19
PROLOGUE
20
one hand and of friends of handball in the
socialist countries of Eastern Europe on
the other, the will to take this increasingly
inevitable step has already become quite
clear. As a result of the Moscow IHF Congress,
it will not be long before the first
concrete steps in this direction will be
taken, as the strongest performing handball
nations of the world will not want to
lose control over their own affairs.“
But even in the 1980s Europe was not
yet homogeneous enough to establish an
umbrella federation. The pressure to act,
especially in the IHF‘s socialist member nations,
was not strong enough yet. “At that
time, the East European federations enjoyed
a very strong representation in the
bodies of the IHF, the global federation,”
recalls Karl Güntzel from Switzerland
(photo), who at the time served as Secretary
of the European working group, an
informal predecessor of the EHF. But other
nations also had something to lose. The
breakthrough that had been hoped for
had also been thwarted by Scandinavian
functionaries, who feared that on creation
of a European federation they would be
set to lose key positions in the IHF, as was
explained in a commemorative publication
of the Luxembourg Handball Federation.
Representative bodies hence remained
informal until the end of the 1980s. Both
the West Europeans and the East Europeans
continued the practice of gathering
before IHF Congresses for coordination.
According to Güntzel, the West was represented
by the Swede Staffan Holmqvist,
Berhard Thiele (GER) and himself, the East
by the President of Deutscher Handball
Verband (DHV), Georg Herrmann, Jaroslav
Mraz from Czechoslovakia, and the
Russian Vladimir Kriwtschow. “There were
a number of meetings, but nothing of an
official nature,” Güntzel recalls. It was an
attempt to merge the interests of the two
large political blocs in Europe. But this did
not always prove possible.
floated once again in1985 and in 1987,
recalls the present EHF Secretary General
Michael Wiederer, who as ÖHB delegate
witnessed political developments, their
impact on sports, and the conflicts. It was
only in1989, though, that the vision became
more realistic, as three representatives
each of Western Europe and Eastern
Europe met in France to explore the possibility
of establishing a continental umbrella
organisation.
The actual history of the EHF started only
at the 23rd IHF Congress in Madeira, which
was held from 23 to 25 October 1990. At
that time, a heated debate had flared up
between the European nations and the
other continents about the future system
of WCh qualifications. While the rest of the
world advocated the continuation of B and
C World Championships, the Europeans
wanted to determine their participants in
the future by means of European Championship
tournaments.
“At that time it emerged once again
that the voices of the Europeans were no
longer sufficiently heard,” Wiederer recalls.
“And so it was decided: we are now
going to create a European Federation.”
Hans-Jürgen Hinrichs, at the time President
of Deutscher Handballbund (DHB),
said: “Interests have developed in different
directions. In terms of rules, Europe differs
quite a lot from Africa.“ On the last day of
the IHF Congress in Funchal, the Swede
Holmqvist and the Swiss national Güntzel
announced that a european umbrella organisation,
the EHF, would be formed in
the first half of 1991. This made Madeira
the most important milestone on the road
to the long overdue foundation of the EHF.
It was only the end of the East-West
conflict in the late 1980s that changed
everything. “Without the collapse of the
Soviet Union, the foundation of the EHF
would not have been possible,” said Güntzel.
The idea of a European federation to
represent common interests had been
21
22
THE
STRUCTURE
OF THE EHF:
CONTINUITY
AS THE KEY
TO SUCCESS
When the EHF’s founding fathers launched the federation
on 17 November 1991, they really got it right the first
time: the way the EHF bodies were structured right at the
start has proved effective and has hardly been modified
since. The tasks of the Federation and hence also
the administration responsibilities have
expanded dynamically as well.
23
“The EHF has really
been lucky to go to
Vienna. As the bid for
the Olympics turned
into a disaster, the
promises made by
Berlin were becoming
increasingly vague”
Former EHF Vice President Hans-Jürgen Hinrichs (2014)
28
Whoever enters the European
Handball Federation’s
headquarters
at Hoffingergasse 18 in
Vienna quickly gains a
vivid impression of the international orientation
and professionalism of the umbrella
organisation’s administration – phone conversations
going on everywhere, offices
bustling with activity. Today, the EHF and
its subsidiary EHF Marketing employ a staff
of 57 from 17 nations in the south-west of
Austria‘s capital. Conversations are therefore
held not only in typically Viennese
dialect, but also in the Hungarian, Danish,
French, Serbian and Polish languages and,
most importantly, in English.
Today, 25 years after the EHF’s foundation,
its administration is organised in a
large number of different departments.
Every member of the staff has clearly defined
duties in their respective areas of
work. Some of them work for Competitions,
the department headed by Markus
Glaser. Others, directed by David Szlezak,
take care of marketing and organisation of
the VELUX EHF Champions League. Others
again, inspired by Helmut Höritsch, drive
activities in the Education & Development
Department. The department managed
by Christoph Gamper dedicates all its
time and effort to IT equipment and facility
support. And then there are the specialists,
headed by JJ Rowland, who focus
exclusively on the EHF’s website and social
media maintenance, as the fans’ thirst for
news and moving images from European
handball is known to be insatiable. And,
of course, in an active sporting federation
comprising 50 nations and many partners,
the Finance and Legal Management Departments
also play an essential role.
The very top of the organisation is formed
by Strategic Business under the leadership
of Secretary General Michael Wiederer.
The General Secretariat is not only responsible
for organising EHF Congresses and
Executive meetings, but also serves as the
central body controlling communication
and the umbrella organisation’s promotional
activities. This department is nothing
less than the hub of European handball.
The many queries and ideas from the
member federations that converge at this
point are centrally collected and organised
to form the basis on which this “think tank”
discusses and develops concepts for the future
of European handball.
This, of course, is always done in close
collaboration with the higher-level body of
elected representatives serving in commissions
whose first origins can be traced back
to the year 1991, but which have become
increasingly numerous and specialised in
the course of the 25 years of EHF history.
In a way, they mirror the stakeholders’ diverse
interests in the umbrella organisation.
After the EHF Congress, which meets
every two years, the next most important
body is the Executive Committee, which
meets to discuss and decide key sports-political
issues between the Congresses. The
Executive Committee also considers motions
submitted by the Professional Handball
Board (PHB), the Women’s Handball
Board (WHB) and the Nations Board (NB)
in pursuit of the interests of national federations
and clubs.
The Congress elects the chair persons
of the Competitions Commission (CC),
the Methods Commission (MC), the Beach
Handball Commission (BC), the Comptrollers
and the legal bodies: the Court of
Handball, the Court of Appeal and the EHF
Court of Arbitration Council. The work of
the Competitions Commission, the Methods
Commission and the Beach Handball
Commission (BC) provides direct input to
the meetings of the Executive Committee,
as their respective chair persons are ex officio
members of the Executive Committee.
The structure and development of these
bodies and institutions, whose members
serve on an honorary basis, also reflect the
25 years of EHF history.
This history started on 15 November
1991 at a deeply symbolic place: the Dom
Hotel at Berlin’s Gendarmenmarkt in the
eastern part of the city whose Wall came
down in November 1989, an event that
significantly accelerated the disintegration
of the two large political blocs. The EHF’s
foundation had been prepared in detail in
a number of informal meetings held after
the 1990 IHF Congress in Madeira. Further
important meetings of the acting commissions
convened in Manchester (GBR) and
Frankfurt (GER) in the spring and summer
of 1991.
29
STRUCTURE
30
“Handball in Europe has
attained a level that
nobody would have
dreamed of twenty years
ago. But we must not
lean back now; there are
still big tasks ahead that
we need to tackle”
EHF President Jean Brihault (2012)
32
The founding session, which was opened
by a concert performed by a wind ensemble,
was funded and organised by
Deutscher Handballbund and the City of
Berlin. On that 15 November, a total of 29
national handball federations established
the European Handball Federation. Its first
President was Staffan Holmqvist (SWE),
its Vice President Hans-Jürgen Hinrichs
(GER). Karl Güntzel (SUI) was elected as
Treasurer, and Jozef Ambrus from Slovakia
as Chairman of the Technical Commission.
Additional members of the EHF Committee,
as the precursor of the Executive Committee
was called at the time, were Tor Lian
(NOR), Claude Rinck (FRA) and Gintautas
Stasiulevicius (LTU).
In the Technical Commission (TC), four
additional members had responsibility
for clearly defined duties: Jan Tuik (NED)
for “Competitions”, Janusz Czerwinski
(POL) for “Methods and Trainers”, Manfred
Prause (GER) for “Rules of the Game
and Referees” und, last but not least, Jesus
Guerrero Beiztegui (ESP) for “School
Sport and Development“. An Arbitration
Commission was likewise established at
this early stage, headed by Jean Kaiser
(LUX). His deputies were Rui Cui Coelho
(POR) and Gunnar Gunnarsson (ISL). Also
elected were the Comptrollers chaired by
the Belgian Frans Stinissen.
The founding document stipulated that
elected EHF officers were limited to three
terms of office. Also, at the time of election,
an officer was not allowed to be older than
65 years. All these details show that key
organisational elements of the continental
federation were laid down as early as
November 1991. The principal tasks were
defined in the EHF’s first set of Statutes,
including the organisation of EHF European
Championships and of the European
Cup, which had previously been organised
by the IHF. The EHF also committed itself
to developing and promoting the sport of
handball proactively, starting in the member
federations from the grassroots level.
On these material objectives of the
EHF, the founding members were in perfect
agreement. There was no consensus
among them, however, on another important
matter, namely the future location of
the EHF headquarters. By hosting the EHF’s
founding convention, the Germans had
hoped to win decisive support for their bid
to establish the EHF Office in Berlin, with
financial assistance for Deutsche Handballbund
expected to come from the City of
Berlin’s bid to host the 2000 Olympics.
By March 1991, however, Österreichischer
Handballbund (Vienna) and Schweizer
Handballverband (Zurich) had also submitted
serious bids. And at the founding
congress, the Slovak (Bratislava) and Portuguese
(Lisbon) federations added two
further excellent proposals. The Germans
believed nonetheless that the odds were
in their favour. “The DHB has made a major
effort and presented us with a tempting
offer for setting up the Office in Berlin,”
Holmqvist reported in August 1991.
But then the situation changed when the
Austrians came up with an even more attractive
offer at the founding convention.
“The Austrians offered to pay the rental
costs for three years,” a newspaper report
said. Vienna would also provide a secretary
with foreign language skills and “introductory
training” for a secretary general.
To this, DHB President Hinrichs initially
reacted with anger: “The way the Austrians
suddenly pulled Vienna out of the hat was
not quite fair.” In November the members’
convention in any case decided to postpone
the decision on this matter to the 1st
EHF Congress that was to be held in Vienna
on 5-6 June 1992.
The attractive bid that the ÖHB finally
presented to the EHF actually went far
beyond what the Germans had offered
(20,000 Deutschmark per year for running
the Secretariat). At that time, the Austrian
federation benefited significantly from the
excellent relations maintained by its President
Erwin Lanc, a former government
minister, to political bodies. The German
competitors’ anger quickly subsided. “The
EHF has really been lucky to go to Vienna,”
Hinrichs said in hindsight shortly before
he passed away in 2014, when speaking
about the foundation phase of the European
umbrella organisation.” As the bid
for the Olympics turned into a disaster, the
promises made by Berlin were becoming
increasingly vague,” Hinrichs said.
The agreement on the location and initial
funding of the Office was signed by the EHF
member federations on 5 June 1992 after
33
STRUCTURE
“Lüthi guaranteed
us a fixed
sum. And he
paid instalments
to us even
before the first
EHF EURO had
started. This
laid the financial
groundwork
for operations,
staff, and other
activities”
Berlin, Lisbon, Bratislava and Zurich had
withdrawn their offers. After a brief preparatory
phase, Secretary General Michael
Wiederer, who had changed from Österreichischer
Handball Bund to the EHF, and
Pia Pedersen, his assistant, started operating
in Vienna on 1 September 1992.
“With just two desks and two telephones,”
Wiederer recalls, smiling. The first official
act was the attendance of the 1992 Women‘s
Youth ECh in Hungary, which, according
to Wiederer, was conducted “without
any structures in place yet”.
At the beginning, money was very tight.
In November 1991, the 29 founding
members had provided the EHF Office
with about 14,000 Swiss francs. In the
year that followed, large federations like
DHB paid 4000 Swiss francs per year,
smaller nations like Moldova 500 francs.
As early as spring 1991, however, the
EHF’s first Treasurer Güntzel – at that time
“still without any mandate or federation”,
as he said – initiated a promising contact
with the Kreuzlingen-based sports rights
marketing firm César W. Lüthi (CWL),
which he had known since the 1986 WCh
in Switzerland.
Güntzel told the owner of the agency
that the EHF was planning to organise European
Championships every two years.
Lüthi was interested. “Do drop in”, the
marketer had asked him, Güntzel says.
“The place where I live – St. Gallen – is actually
not far from Kreuzlingen. “The EHF
pioneers were, of course, also negotiating
with other marketers of TV rights, among
them the legendary Munich lawyer Axel
Meyer-Wölden, who at that time represented
Boris Becker. “If things go well, you
will earn a lot. If they don’t, you won’t,”
Meyer-Wölden explained.
This prompted the handball functionaries
to opt for CWL. The amount “was not
exorbitant”, is as much as Güntzel is allowed
to disclose. “But the special feature
was this: Lüthi guaranteed us a fixed sum.
And he paid instalments to us even before
the first EHF EURO had started. This
laid the financial groundwork for operations,
staff, and other activities.” From
these beginnings evolved a longstanding
partnership characterised by deep mutual
trust: as has been reported, the EHF and Infront
(the successor of CWL) have entered
into a partnership for marketing EHF EU-
ROs up to the year 2020.
In any case, the infrastructure available
was extremely modest when the EHF administration
started working at Gutheil-
Schoder-Gasse 9 in Vienna in the year
1992, in offices looking out on the UHK
Wien club’s former home venue. “I think
we will manage and we will be able to
meet the challenges facing us,” – it was in
this spirit that Secretary General Wiederer
and his team started into this pioneering
period with much optimism and drive.
Rules of procedures issued by the EHF
Committee already regulated key elements
of the work. “The Executive Committee
and I trust each other fully,” were
the words used by Wiederer in praise of
the strong relationship between honorary
officers and professional staff in 1993.
34
Today, some of the problems that confronted
the EHF Office in Vienna in its first
few years appear very trivial. But, back
then, the internet was still the great unknown.
Today, information is distributed
around the globe within fractions of a second.
In the early 1990s, organisational
processes sometimes came to a halt
as communication was either largely unfeasible
or a very complex affair. At that
time, not all member federations had a
telephone or a fax machine at their disposal.
Sometimes, it took weeks for a
match planned in Azerbaijan or Moldova to
be confirmed.
It is therefore no surprise that, as early
as 1993, Alexander Toncourt, assistant
General Secretary, did all he could to build
a communication system designed to facilitate
work for the national federations
as well as for the EHF and the media. The
magic word was: computers! Computers
were the tool that the EHF wanted to use
to record the results of European Cup and
European Championship matches, to pass
them on to news tickers as quickly as possible
and to develop a sound database for
coming generations. This was the vision on
which work commenced with much vigour
in 1994. On 9 and 10 December 1994,
delegates from more than 20 member
federations were trained at the 1st International
Seminar on Computer Info System.
A second workshop was held in Sofia
in early 1995.
The introduction of electronic data processing
was an important step into modern
times. In another field, Dansk Håndbold
Forbund (DHF) rendered valuable development
assistance to the EHF. When the
2nd Women’s EHF EURO ended in Denmark
in 1996, EHFs mobility received an
unexpected boost. “After the finals we were
told that we could take home to Vienna a
number of mobile phones that had been
used by the organising committee and that
were no longer needed,” Markus Glaser
remembers, with a smile on his face. “This
was basically what enabled us to set up the
EHF hotline. This hotline was created after
the EHF Women’s EURO 1996 in Denmark
so that the member federations were
able to contact someone even on weekends.”
The number of the hotline has since
remained unchanged.
This little anecdote illustrates how difficult
these pioneering years were in some
respects. Nonetheless, the new structural
organisation proved workable from the
very beginning. After the first key meetings
– the meeting of the EHF Committee
in Hamburg on 15 December 1991 and
the 1st Ordinary EHF Congress in Vienna
in June 1992 – the delegates conducted
the EHF Youth European Championships
in Hungary and in Switzerland without any
major problems.
1993, the year when Markus Glaser and
Helmut Höritsch joined the Vienna Office
as additional full-time staff, saw not only
the start of the European Cup project,
which the EHF had taken over from the
IHF. By that time, two additional EHF Congresses
had already been staged: the 1st
Extraordinary EHF Congress in Barcelona
in July 1992, organised in the run-up to the
Olympic Games, and the 2nd Extraordinary
EHF Congress in Antwerp. At this initial
stage of the EHF’s development, the main
focus was on competition-related and organisational
matters.
On 6 and 7 August 1993, the EHF held
a conference in Vilnius (Lithuania) on the
structures and mechanisms of the European
umbrella organisation as an informational
event for 16 newly admitted
member federations. By that time, the EHF
already had a total of 45 members. And
then the EHF administration even organised
two matches of a European selection:
on 3 January 1992, a men’s continental selection
played a match against Austria in Vienna,
and on 26 June Poland‘s female national
team played against Euope at Zarbze.
This heaped a heavy workload on the
still very lean staff in Vienna, all the more
so as the EHF administration also had to
prepare and support the work and meetings
of Congresses, the Commission and
working groups.
That these meetings proceeded mostly
smoothly, constructively and in a spirit of
harmony was also attributable to the amazing
continuity in the officers serving on the
elected bodies. Until the year 2000, there
was hardly any change in the team that had
started the EHF project in 1991. President
Staffan Holmqvist, who was recognised
by all parties as the leading figure, served
35
STRUCTURE
36
“A handball match may
only be played over two
periods of 30 minutes,
but we are responsible for
the whole package, which
means everything in and
around the game. It is
our job to create the best
possible conditions for the
sport – not just at the highest
of levels but also for
the beginner. We need to
do this to secure developments
and the future of
the sport. The European
Handball Federation and
all its employees will continue
working intensively
and in partnership with all
parties, both on an internal
and external level“
Secretary General Michael Wiederer (2005)
37
STRUCTURE
This unusual continuity fortunately also
corresponded with the development of
the professional office staff managed by Michael
Wiederer as Secretary General since
1992. Key figures such as Helmut Höritsch,
Markus Glaser, Alexander Toncourt, Vesna
Lazic, Monika Flixeder and Doru Simion
had also been working for the EHF administration
since the 1990s and were therefore
intimately acquainted with all aspects
and details of the organisation. In addition,
many members of the staff have also contributed
top-level handball experience.
Since the 1990s, the tasks that the administration
has had to deal with have become
increasingly comprehensive and complex.
Just two examples to demonstrate the
type of jobs handled by one of the departments
in 1996: among other things Markus
Glaser and Peter Vargo were responsible
for organising the Competitions Commission
and Helmut Höritsch and Claudia Uth
were responsible for organising the Methods
and Competitions Commissions and
for managing the Info System, i.e. for updating
players’ and delegates’ personal details,
match data, the EHF calendar and the
ongoing development of the Info System.
In addition they had to attend to finances
and comptrolling, the organisation of
matches played by European selections and
everything that related to transfers.
the maximum of three terms of office and
steered the EHF until 2004. The same was
true of Treasurer Karl Güntzel, who had
been one of the brains behind the EHF’s
formation and foundation. Its first Vice
President Hans-Jürgen Hinrichs served until
the 5th Ordinary EHF Congress 2000 in
Tel Aviv. The only change in the EHF Committee
happened in 1996, when the Hungarian
Laszlo Sinka replaced the Lithuanian
founding member Gintautas Stasiulevicius.
Changes in the other Commissions were
likewise only marginal, until 2000. In the
Competitions Commission, Frantisek Taborsky
(CZE) took charge of Women’s Competitions
in 1996. Ton van Linder (NED)
joined the Methods Commission in 1994;
later on, Taborsky took over the chairmanship
from Claude Rinck. The Technical Refereeing
Committee led by Manfred Prause
saw no change at all.
To recall: “transfer“ activities virtually exploded
after the Bosman ruling in 1995,
which also granted handball players freedom
of movement in the European Union.
As a consequence, new rules were needed.
While in 1995, the EHF had handled only
683 transfers, this figure rose to 850 one
year later. In 1997, as many as 1100 transfers
were processed. In 2002, finally, the
EHF managed more than 1700 transfers; in
2008, more than 2100.
Transfers are just one particularly impressive
example of how the workload expanded.
Against this backdrop, there was no way
around hiring additional staff for the EHF
Office. In 1997, the EHF already had a staff
of twelve employees working full time or
part time, which meant that the offices were
getting crowded. To get ready for future
challenges, a move to a new, more spacious
building was needed. After the EHF leadership’s
fundamental decision at the 1996
IHF Congress in Hilton Head Island not to
rent but to have a new building built for and
owned by the EHF, the administration took
the project on as an additional responsibility
and completed it within 18 months.
The move took place in May 1998. The
new headquarters at Hoffingergasse 18
were officially inaugurated at the 1st Conference
of Presidents, which has since
been held every two years as an advisory
body. “By completing the construction of
the new EHF house in Vienna in May 1998
a new meeting point and service centre for
38
handball in Europe has been created,”
said Staffan Holmqvist at the formal opening
ceremony.
In the year 1998, the EHF adminstration
comprised four big departments. At the
top the Secretariat, below it the Departments
for Organisation (Alexander Toncourt),
Methods & Development (Helmut
Höritsch) und Competitions (Markus Glaser)
staffed by already 14 employees. In
1996, the EHF family grew to 46 member
federations when Bosnia-Herzegovina and
Malta were admitted at the Congress in
Athens.
The 5th Extraordinary EHF Congress
1999 in Vienna and the 5th Ordinary EHF
Congress 2000 in Tel Aviv moderately
reformed the bodies elected by the Congress.
While the number of Commissions
remained unchanged, one member was
added to the Competitions Commission
to attend henceforth to club competitions
(the member elected was Leopold Kalin
from Slovenia). The Methods Commission
was likewise expanded by one member
tasked with focusing exclusively on the development
of non-competitive handball
(Allan Lund from Denmark). The Court of
Arbitration also received one additional
member, resulting in a total of eight.
The motion to also raise the number of
Executive Committee members from seven
to nine was rejected in 1999, yet adopted
the following year. From then onwards,
the chair persons of the Competitions
Commission and the Methods Commission
have also been ex officio members
of the Executive Committee. At the time,
all these motions were driven in particular
by the political will to raise the number
of female members, as emphasised in the
Annual Report of the year 1999. This was
implemented in 2000 when Helga Magnusdottir
(ISL) was the first woman to be
elected to the Competitions Commission
to take charge of Women‘s club competitions.
Another member to newly join the
Executive Committee was Jean Brihault
(FRA), the future EHF President.
At that time, the key duties of the EHF
management included organisation and
marketing of EHF competitions as well as
the development of effective communication.
In this regard, Sian Rowland, daughter
of the former chairman of the British federation,
who joined in 1999, rendered the
EHF invaluable services with her outgoing
and disarming personality. Rowland’s sudden
death in December 2008, at the age
of only 33, came as a deep shock to all the
staff and marked one of the saddest day in
EHF history, as did the unexpected passing
away of the distinguished EHF pioneer Alexander
Toncourt in 2012.
In 2002, Secretary General Wiederer
underlined that well-targeted and professional
communication was a great asset for
the EHF and its members: “The presence of
handball on today’s sporting market, the
interest that the sport brings with it and the
absolute necessity to communicate with
the handball world as well as with media
and the public both with speed and efficiency
brings with it many challenges at all
levels. Please do no forget that the General
Secretariat responsible for the management
of the daily business is the service
arm of the European Handball Federation
and the office members are here to help
in matters both large and small.” In those
years in any case, a lot of effort was dedicated
to creating the EHF website and the
Media Department.
A major change in EHF history took place
in May 2004, at the 7th Ordinary Congress
in Nicosia (CYP): the end of the presidency
of Staffan Holmqvist. When the Congress
said good-bye to the Swede, the delegates
39
“By completing
the construction
of the new EHF
house in Vienna
in May 1998 a
new meeting
point and service
centre for handball
in Europe has
been created”
EHF President Staffan Holmqvist at
the formal opening ceremony for
the new EHF House (1998)
rose from their seats. President Staffan
Holmqvist left his office after 12 years of
service to a standing ovation for his outstanding
contribution to the entire European
Handball Federation and handball in
general. His work was honoured with the
award of “Honorary President of the European
Handball Federation”. Karl Güntzel
from Switzerland, who had also been one
of the umbrella organisation’s trailblazers
both prior to and after 1991, was likewise
honoured in Cyprus for this great contributions
and was voted honorary member of
the EHF.
Holmqvist’s successor was elected in
a hotly contested democratic vote: after
four candidates had waged offensive election
campaigns, the Norwegian Tor Lian
won with a very slim 23-22 majority over
Jean Kaiser from Luxembourg. Both candidates
had held EHF offices since 1991. Lian
thanked the delegates for their trust and
his predecessor for the good work he had
done. “He was an inspirational and motivational
leader,” Lian said about the Swede
later on. As the subsequent years were to
41
STRUCTURE
“I have been very impressed with
the work of the EHF staff and with
their attitude both to the job and to
the development of handball.
This is part of the culture of the EHF,
we have been happy to meet
challenges and I think we are ahead
of many other international sports
organisations, when we look at the
way we work and the technology
we use. We not only have the best
people on the court, but also off it”
EHF President Tor Lian (2012)
show, the vote for the Norwegian was again
a very good choice for the EHF. During the
eight years of his EHF presidency, Lian also
proved an extremely circumspect and politically
prudent leader.
Lian’s subtle diplomacy was of fundamental
benefit to the EHF, particularly in
his first term of office up to 2008. At that
time, the unity of the umbrella organisation
was at risk, as in 2006 elite clubs created
their own representative body, Group
Club Handball, the precursor of today‘s Forum
Club Handball (FCH). This period was
nothing less but a breaking test for the EHF
as an organisation. It was certainly one of
Lian’s greatest achievements that he, with
the support of Jean Brihault and working
with Secretary General Wiederer and other
associates, developed plans that paved
the way for a joint future of national federations
and clubs. After a phase of transition
and using various inputs, the Vice President
developed a plan for the political and
factual integration of the interest groups
for 2009 and then, successfully, for 2010.
The challenges of this time in terms of
handball policy are reflected by the institutions
of the EHF even today. Following the
resolutions passed by the 9th Extraordinary
EHF Congress 2008 in Lillehammer,
which was held on the fringe of the 9th EHF
Men‘s EURO, club representatives were
included in EHF bodies for the first time.
Three bodies were newly constituted: the
Nations Board (NB) representing the interests
of EHF members concerning national
teams. It was chaired by Stig Morten Christensen
(DEN). The Men’s Club Committee
headed by the Spaniard Joan Marin and
the Women’s Club Committee chaired by
Gunnar Prokop (Austria).
These committees were not only represented
by their chairs in the Competitions
Commission, which was thus expanded
from five to eight members; they also had
42
a say in the policies of the Advisory Board
of EHF Marketing, the organiser of the EHF
Champions Leagues. When these motions
were adopted in Lillehammer, EHF President
Lian emphasised the unity of the Federation:
“The very large support obtained
by these motions is a clear sign of Europe’s
national federations’ desire to preserve
the unity of handball in Europe, to recognise
the fundamental role of clubs in the
success of European handball and to keep
handball in the hands of those whose sole
motivation is the success and development
of sport.”
Ultimately, Lian said in the same year,
the new structural set-up reflected the vital
interests of the many stakeholders of
European handball, who could now safeguard
their interests through these mechanisms:
“The EHF works closely with all
its partners, whether it is the national federations,
leagues, clubs, players, media
or marketing partners. The strong link to
each and every member of these groups is
highly important. Of course, there are different
interests, differing perspectives and
expectations, but it is a necessity to find a
balance for the equation and react quickly
and professionally to changing trends
and demands.”
After a proposed structural change that
had initially been rejected by the Extraordinary
Congress 2009 in Cyprus, the
organisational structure of the EHF was
expanded two years later, at the 10th Ordinary
Congress in Copenhagen (DEN) in
September 2010, by adding representatives
of the European leagues and athletes.
The Congress resolved to establish a Professional
Handball Board (PHB) to replace
the Men’s Club Committee. This PHB has
since consisted of twelve members: the
EHF President and the Secretary General
plus two additional Executive Committee
members, and two representatives each
of the European Professional Handball
Leagues Association (EPHLA) and the European
Handball Players Union (EHPU),
the National Board for the national teams
(NB) and Forum Club Handball (FCH) on
behalf of the clubs. The Nations Board (six
members) for men‘s handball continued
to exist.
The Women’s Professional Board (WHB)
was structured similarly, but comprised
only ten members. Since the 11th Ordinary
EHF Congress 2012 in Monaco, the
chair persons of PHB and WHB have also
been ex officio members of the Executive
Committee, which was hence expanded
43
“The presence
of handball on
today’s sporting
market, the interest
that the sport
brings with it
and the absolute
necessity to communicate
with the
handball world
as well as with
media and the
public both with
speed and efficiency
brings with
it many challenges
at all levels”
from nine to eleven members. This further
differentiation was an almost logical move,
according to Lian: “Here, the EHF Member
Federations voted to form additional bodies,
to accentuate the status and consult
the progress of club and national team
competitions – these are in form of Technical
Committees within the structure of
the EHF (men’s club, women’s club and national
teams), and, parallel to this, Boards
for men’s and women’s club competitions
within the spheres of EHF Marketing.”
Another forward-looking decision had
been taken by the 9th Ordinary EHF Congress
2008 in Vienna: by establishing the
Beach Handball Commission (BC), which
consists of five members, the EHF also
created a first institution for the strong
beach handball movement within its organisation.
The importance that the EHF
accorded this discipline was illustrated by
the fact that the BC chair was also given
a seat on the Executive Committee. The
first chairperson was the Hungarian Laszlo
Sinka, succeeded by the Norwegian Ole
R. Jørstad. The EHF thus took the initiative
not only in modelling this sport, but,
from an early stage, was ready to support
a development that not many would have
expected of beach handball. Quite a few
would have ruled out categorically that the
International Olympic Committee (IOC)
would ever include beach handball in the
programme of the Youth Olympics. But
this is exactly what has been agreed for the
year 2018, when the Youth Olympics will
take place in Buenos Aires.
In 2012, the Executive Committee finally
moved and the Congress agreed to
establish an Anti-Doping Unit (EAU) within
the EHF organisation. Another important
landmark in the development of the
EHF structure was the foundation of its
own marketing entity, EHF Marketing, in
the year 2005 (see chapter on Club Competitions).
This growth of EHF institutions
mirrors the spectacular expansion of administrative
tasks. While the structure of
the EHF administration basically has not
changed since the late 1990s, its headcount
has risen significantly. In 2000, the
EHF was still coping with a staff of 16. Two
years later, it already had 23 employees
and, in 2008, more than 30, including
those employed by EHF Marketing. Today,
as already noted, the number of employees
working for European handball
has exceeded the figure of 50.
President Tor Lian was in any case able
to look back with satisfaction when he decided
to retire from his position in 2012.
“We have initiated a lot of projects, starting
with the setting up of the EHF office,”
said the Norwegian. “I have been very impressed
with the work of the EHF staff and
with their attitude both to the job and to
the development of handball. This is part
of the culture of the EHF, we have been
happy to meet challenges and I think we
45
are ahead of many other international
sports organisations, when we look at the
way we work and the technology we use.
We not only have the best people on the
court, but also off it.”
There has been little change to date to
this very finely balanced system of the
EHF: “Structurally, the EHF is a very complex
body. Outsiders often underestimate
the way we pass decisions,” says
Secretary General Michael Wiederer.
“The most important thing is finding the
right balance. That the EHF agreed sensible
solutions with the clubs, the leagues
and the national federations, was
extremely important for the future of European
handball.” After all, the EHF has
the obligation to serve not just one party,
but all stakeholders.
The baton was then taken over by Jean
Brihault, who was elected as third EHF
President by a large majority at the 11th
Ordinary Congress 2012 in Monte Carlo.
Brihault, a brilliant speaker, rector of a
French university and eminent intellectual,has
led the EHF with great prudence
and, in his considerate and accommodating
way, has managed to balance and
sensibly weight the diverse interests with
the EHF. His charming manners made him
moreover a perfect representative of the
EHF in its external relations.
Brihault’s excellent skills as a facilitator,
for example, had an exceedingly positive
impact on the relations between the EHF
and the International Handball Federation
(IHF). Brihault’s predecessors Staffan
Holmqvist and Tor Lian had also promoted
the EHF’s interests in the global federation
very energetically, in Europe’s best
interests. Especially during Lian’s term
of office, however, certain tensions had
arisen between the umbrella federations
when debates revolved around the powers
of the continental federations.
The relationship between Vienna and
Basel was at times mildly complex as European
handball has always been the biggest
46
powerhouse in international handball. As
is well known, many of the initiatives and
ideas of the past 25 years were conceived
and developed at the EHF headquarters
and by the EHF’s 50 member federations.
Among them were projects such as Minihandball
and Handball at School, which
were largely championed by Vienna and,
today, are organised by the IHF even outside
Europe. In addition, Vienna had discovered
the great potential of beach handball
already at a very early stage (see chapter on
Development.
In recent years, the two umbrella
organisations have developed an excellent
working relationship, though, and the diplomatic
relations among them are characterised
by a fine balance of interests. This is
reflected in jointly organised projects such
as the promotion of so-called Emerging
Nations, with trophies and other well targeted
measures designed to raise the level
at which handball is played. Today, after
25 years of common history, the procedures
followed by IHF and EHF bodies
have become standardised and run smoothly.
Even though divergences of opinions
may occasionally arise in technical matters,
bilateral talks between IHF President
Hassan Moustafa and other senior IHF
functionaries and European leaders are
always conducted in harmony. As already
mentioned, this is also owed, in large part,
to the outgoing EHF President Brihault.
“Handball in Europe has attained a level
that nobody would have dreamed of twenty
years ago,” was Brihault’s analysis after
his election. “But we must not lean back
now; there are still big tasks ahead that we
need to tackle.” The university professor
and former referee declared the development
of women’s handball as one of his
goals. “Women’s handball is a key issue
that we need to work on,” he said in 2012.
“The gap between women and men has
widened in recent years, partly due to the
fast advancement of men’s handball, partly
also due to events such as the VELUX
EHF FINAL4.” By now, a number of objectives
have been reached, such as, for exam-
47
“Structurally, the EHF is a very
complex body. Outsiders often
underestimate the way we pass
decisions. The most important thing
is finding the right balance. That the
EHF agreed sensible solutions with
the clubs, the leagues and the
national federations, was extremely
important for the future of
European handball”
ple, the launch of the FINAL4 Tournament
in the Women’s EHF Champions League.
That Brihault had been watching the
EHF’s development from close up and had
contributed to it for a long time was an asset.
As a delegate, a member of the Executive
Committee and as Vice President he
had witnessed from close quarters how
the umbrella organisation evolved into a
modern provider of services. Against this
backdrop, many would have liked to see
Brihault continuing for at least another
term of office, but the motion proposing a
higher age limit, as envisaged at the 12th
Ordinary EHF Congress in Dublin in 2014,
finally failed, by a very narrow margin, to
win a two-thirds majority at the subsequent
Congress 2015 in Bucharest.
As a model democrat, Brihault accepted
the decision with good humour. “I might
become a good gardener,” he answered
when asked about his plans for the future.
“No, seriously: this marks the end of my career
in handball, as I do not see any other
position that I would aspire to. I had a great
time in handball! When you are sad when
something draws to an end it means that
you enjoyed it! I therefore must be grateful.”
Other important figures in the EHF
also viewed this decision with concern as
it will not only be Brihault who will leave
his position as of the 13th Ordinary EHF
Congress in November 2016, but also his
deputy Arne Elovson (SWE) and Treasurer
Ralf Dejaco (ITA), who after long and dedicated
service to the EHF have likewise surpassed
the 68-year age limit for top functionaries.
In Bucharest, one of the most outstanding
features of the EHF’s 25-year history,
the unusual continuity in its human resources,
was suddenly at risk. The EHF was
faced with a scenario which the umbrella
organisation with its currently 50 members
(plus the two associated federations
of England and Scotland) had not witnessed
to date, namely that from one day
to the next, the partners of the EHF would
have to deal with completely new people
at the top. This was the scenario that
prompted EHF Secretary General Wiederer
to announce in Bucharest that he would
be a candidate for the office of president
at the Anniversary Congress on 17th and
18th November 2016.
Wiederer is the only candidate. His election
would preserve the continuity that
has been a major factor contributing to the
49
“The EHF works closely with all its
partners, whether it is the national
federations, leagues, clubs, players,
media or marketing partners. The
strong link to each and every member
of these groups is highly important.
Of course, there are different
interests, differing perspectives and
expectations, but it is a necessity to
find a balance for the equation and
react quickly and professionally to
changing trends and demands”
EHF President Tor Lian (2008)
EHF’s development, within a quarter-century,
from a nobody in international sports
to a modern institution that is appreciated,
recognised and respected as a serious and
reliable partner by everyone.
However, the EHF has taken on the role of
ambassador to European handball, acting
as a common voice for the European member
federations and representing the entire
European handball family on the international
sporting stage.
Starting with the very conception of the
European Handball Federation, the structure
of the EHF has changed in line with its
dynamic business philosophy and new and
changing trends within the spheres of
European handball. This change has
brought with it new initiatives and indeed
new challenges. The EHF never loses sight
of handball’s unique passion and speed and
strives to use these characteristics as the
underlining statement in the development
of the sport.
The EHF focuses its strengths and invests
its resources on the development of the
sport of handball in general with the overall
objective to optimise product placement
on the competitive sporting market, delivering
the delights of handball in the form of
high-profile branded events.
51
STRUCTURE
EHF
CONGRESSES
1991, NOVEMBER 15-17
Foundation Congress
(Berlin/GER)
1992, JUNE 5-7
1st Ordinary Congress
(Vienna/AUT)
1992, JULY 21
1st Extraordinary Congress
(Barcelona/ESP)
1993, APRIL 30-MAY 2
2nd Extraordinary Congress
(Antwerpen/BEL)
1994, MAY 27-29
2nd Ordinary Congress
(Antibes/FRA)
1994, SEPTEMBER 7
3rd Extraordinary Congress
(Noordwijk/NED)
1996, MARCH 22-23
3rd Ordinary Congress
(Athens/GRE)
1996, JULY 14
4th Extraordinary Congress
(Hilton Head/USA)
1998, APRIL 3
4th Ordinary Congress
(Budapest/HUN)
1999, NOVEMBER 6
5th Extraordinary Congress
(Vienna/AUT)
2000, APRIL 7-8
5th Ordinary Congress
(Tel Aviv/ISR)
2006, MAY 5-6
8th Ordinary Congress
(Vilamoura/POR)
2007, OCTOBER 13
8th Extraordinary Congress
(Rome/ITA)
2008, JANUARY 26
9th Extraordinary Congress
(Lillehammer/NOR)
2008, SEPTEMBER 26-27
9th Ordinary Congress
(Vienna/AUT)
2009, OCTOBER 24
10th Extraordinary
Congress (Limassol/CYP)
2010, SEPTEMBER 24-25
10th Ordinary Congress
(Copenhagen/DEN)
2011, MAY 29
11th Extraordinary
Congress (Cologne/GER)
2012, 22-23
11th Ordinary Congress
(Monte Carlo/MON)
2014, SEPTEMBER 19-20
12th Ordinary Congress
(Dublin/IRL)
2015, NOVEMBER 14
12th Extraordinary Congress
(Bucharest/ROM)
2016, NOVEMBER 17-18
13th Ordinary Congress
(Wolfgangsee/AUT)
2002, JUNE 14-15
6th Ordinary Congress
(Salzburg/AUT)
2003, OCTOBER 4
6th Extraordinary Congress
(Vienna/AUT)
2004, MAY 7-8
7th Ordinary Congress
(Nicosia/CYP)
2004, DECEMBER 18
7th Extraordinary Congress
(Budapest/HUN)
52
EHF
CONFERENCE OF
PRESIDENTS
1998, OCTOBER 17
1st Conference of Presidents
(Vienna/AUT)
1999, NOVEMBER 6
2nd Conference of Presidents
(Vienna/AUT)
2001, NOVEMBER 17
3rd Conference of Presidents
(Vienna/AUT)
2002, JUNE 14
4th Conference of Presidents
(Salzburg/AUT)
2003, OCTOBER 4
5th Conference of Presidents
(Vienna/AUT)
2004, NOVEMBER 6
6th Conference of Presidents
(Vienna/AUT)
2005, NOVEMBER 19
7th Conference of Presidents
(Vienna/AUT)
2007, OCTOBER 13
8th Conference of Presidents
(Rome/ITA)
2009, OCTOBER 24
9th Conference of Presidents
(Limassol/CYP)
2011, NOVEMBER 17
10th Conference of Presidents
(Vienna/AUT)
2013, JUNE 2
11th Conference of Presidents
(Cologne/GER)
2015, NOVEMBER 14
12th Conference of Presidents
(Bucharest/ROM)
EHF
CONFERENCE FOR
SECRETARIES GENERAL
1997, FEBRUARY 21-22
1st EHF Conference for Secretaries General
(Vienna/AUT)
1999, MARCH 12-13
2nd EHF Conference for Secretaries General
(Vienna/AUT)
2003, MARCH 14-15
3rd EHF Conference for Secretaries General
(Vienna/AUT)
2005, NOVEMBER 02-03
4th EHF Conference for Secretaries General
(Vienna/AUT)
2011, NOVEMBER 18
6th EHF Conference for Secretaries General
(Vösendorf/AUT)
2012, APRIL 19-20
7th EHF Conference for Secretaries General
(Copenhagen/DEN)
2014, APRIL 09-10
8th EHF Conference for Secretaries General
(Warsaw/POL)
2016, APRIL 12-13
9th EHF Conference for Secretaries General
(Dubrovnik/CRO)
2007, APRIL 16-17
5th EHF Conference for Secretaries General
(Vienna/AUT)
53
54
IT TOOK
THE EHF
EURO
ONLY 25
YEARS
The launch of the Men’s EHF EURO 1994 in Portugal
proved more challenging than the start of the first women’s
event in Germany. After the competitions had been
moved to winter and the number of entrants increased to
16, both the men‘s and the women‘s events flourished.
Today, the EHF EUROs are outstanding events with
a fantastic reach among television audiences.
55
56
59
EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS
“On the sport level it
was an extremely open
tournament. I think this
is a very good signal
concerning European
handball, that we have
this renewal of teams”
EHF President Jean Brihault after the EHF EURO 2016 in Poland
On the final day of the 12th
Men’s European Championship
in Poland, Jean
Brihault wallowed in superlatives.
“EHF EURO 2016
has been the biggest and the best EHF EURO
event to date,” the EHF President said. The
Frenchman took pride not only in record
spectator numbers: 400,622 viewers
clearly beat the previous record hit in the
EHF EURO 2014 in Denmark (316,500).
Brihault also praised the strong commitment
of volunteers and organisers and
highlighted the extraordinarily broad coverage
by the media. “The EHF EURO 2016
was a big success for Poland, for our sport
and handball,” said Andrzej Kraśnicki, President
of the Polish Handball Federation.
“We want to thank all stakeholders including
volunteers. We have one winner and the
winner was handball.”
Two months later, in April 2016, the EHF
presented facts and figures that confirmed
its first impression. In terms of reach, the
EHF EURO 2016 was indeed a tournament
of records, as announced by the EHF and
Infront Sports & Media, its exclusive media
and marketing partner for EHF EURO
events. A cumulative audience of more
than 1.65 billion people followed the action
on television with the event screened
in 175 territories by 75 broadcast partners.
These results make the EHF EURO 2016
the most-watched European Championship
ever, breaking the previous record set
in Serbia at the Men‘s EHF EURO 2012. In
terms of broadcast hours, the event also
surpassed all expectations with 2,958
hours of coverage aired, a 27 per cent increase
on the previous high at Men‘s EHF
EURO 2014 in Denmark.
The success of the German team in winning
the title for the first time since 2004
generated huge interest across the country,
13 million tuning in to public broadcasters
ARD for the final against Spain, a market
share of 42 per cent. In other nations, too,
there was widespread interest, especially
Poland with a cumulative TV audience
of more than 430 million, as well as tradi-
60
tional handball markets such as Denmark,
where games shown on TV2 involving the
Danish team attracted a market share of almost
70 per cent.
The EHF EURO was also a considerable
success across digital and mobile channels
with total audience reach climbing to
over 60 million, an increase of more than
300 per cent compared to the Men’s EHF
EURO 2014, and the official hashtag #ehfeuro2016
generating more than one billion
impressions. Continued investment
from both the EHF and Infront in the production
of engaging content across all of
its digital channels as well as new innovations
including coverage on Snapchat and
Whatsapp ensured that the event was followed
by the largest worldwide audience
yet.
Online and mobile channels attracted record
number of users, with the official website
ehf-euro.com visited by more than one
million people for the first time, an increase
of 44 per cent compared to 2014, generating
over 10.3 million page views. Video content
also proved to be hugely popular with
1.5 million live streams watched on ehfTV.
com, the federation’s dedicated handball
streaming platform, and almost 3.7 million
minutes of content watched on the event’s
official YouTube Channel. “It was fascinating
to see, not only how handball fever spread
across Europe, but also how fans engaged
with the content provided – eager to immerse
themselves in the tournament,” said
Stephan Herth, Executive Director Summer
Sports of Infront Sports & Media.
Benefiting from the increased media
reach were the event’s official sponsors including
AJ (office furniture, materials handling
and storage solutions), BAUHAUS
(do-it-yourself store, house and garden
specialist), engelbert strauss (workwear),
Grundfos (leading pump manufacturer)
and Intersport (sporting goods retailer).
Also new to the EHF EURO events were
Moneygram (money transfer and payment
services) and the VELUX Group (roof windows),
title sponsor of the VELUX EHF
Champions League.
The high viewership numbers and its big
appeal to fans and sponsors impressively
demonstrate the enormous significance
that the EHF EURO has gained as an event
on the calendar of European handball. This
is true not only of the men’s tournament
EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS
62
63
EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS
but also of the women’s, the juniors’ and
the youth tournaments. The success story
of the EHF EURO was far from predictable
when it was first launched after the foundation
of the EHF.
The idea of a continental championship
is almost as old as handball itself. It was
put forward for the first time in Vienna on
29 April 1934, when an “international
handball conference” was held on the occasion
of an international field handball
encounter between Austria and Hungary.
Shortly after, at the 3rd International Handball
Congress 1934 in Stockholm, Austria
filed a motion proposing the organisation
of European championships. Sports magazines
considered it very likely that the first
European championships might be staged
in 1938. In 1938, the first major indoor
tournament was played by four European
teams, yet the International Handball
Amateur Federation decided to organise
“world championships”.
The idea of a continental championship
was frequently proposed until the EHF was
finally founded in 1991. In 1970, the Danish
Handball Federation (DHF) suggested
holding regular European championships
to be played in tournaments, by the best
eight teams, every two years to determine
the continental champion. This was done
against the backdrop of the gradual decline
of friendlies – by staging an official championship,
the Danes wanted to boost the
attractiveness of international matches.
In 1980, at the 17th IHF Congress, Yugoslavia
filed a motion proposing continental
tournaments for men and women, but
their initiative was again in vain. Considerations
in 1985 regarding a “West European
Cup” for national teams likewise
met with little response. The next initiative
was taken by Dansk Handball Forbund
(DHF) in the spring of 1989 by presenting
a draft paper on European championships
for discussion.
It was only at the IHF Congress 1990 in
Madeira, though, which paved the way for
the foundation of the EHF in 1991, that
the idea became more tangible. Qualifications
should no longer be controlled by
IHF tournaments, Karl Güntzel from Switzerland
said at the time: “They should be
replaced, by 1994, by a European championship
determining WCh qualifications.”
The WCh format was too complex for the
public, added Walter Kreienmeyer from
the West German delegation. The resolution
on the organisation and staging of European
Championships was finally passed
officially by the 1st Ordinary EHF Congress
in Vienna on 5 June 1992.
The draw for the 1992 Women’s and
Men’s Youth European Championships
scheduled for September 1992 was already
held at that very Congress. The final
tournament of the Women’s Youth Championship
was played at Miskolc, Hungary
from 1 to 6 September 1992. The first
EHF European Champion was Norway. The
Men’s Youth tournament took place in the
subsequent week in Switzerland (Gossau,
Herrliberg, Kilchberg, Will and Winterthur),
with Portugal winning the first title.
The venue of the first game played officially
as part of an EHF EURO was Holon, Israel,
where on 13 March 1992 the Turkish
referees Korkmaz/Oytan blew the whistle
to start the qualification match for the 1992
Men’s Youth European Championship, Romania
vs. Czech Republic (16-25). The responsibility
for conducting these trailblazing
tournaments rested with Stig Gustavsson
from Sweden. Serving as EHF representatives
in Hungary were Jozef Ambrus (SVK)
and Jan Tuik (NED), in Switzerland Karl
Güntzel (SUI) and Manfred Prause (GER).
64
“The EHF and the IHF cannot both
stage their major events in summer.
The principal argument: in the run-up
to other major events such as a soccer
WCh or ECh, competition for attention
is so overwhelming that the handball
events would simply not be adequately
perceived by the public and
the media. We therefore decided to
act, last but not least at the instigation
of our key marketing partner. The
perfect time for handball is winter”
How rocky the road to the flagship
event of European handball was going to
be was realised when the first Men‘s EHF
EURO was played in Portugal (3 to 12 June
1994). The EHF’s hope that this tournament
would serve as the only qualification
for the 1995 WCh in Iceland did not materialise,
but at least a number of additional
European places were awarded over and
above those that had resulted from direct
qualification in the 1993 WCh. Supporter
interest was also lacklustre. With swathes
of seats often left empty, atmosphere in
the arenas left much to be desired. At least
the final played in Porto, in which Sweden
started its ECh winning streak by beating
Russia 34-21, was watched by 3,200 fans.
Despite low spectator numbers, how-ever,
the EHF officers’ assessment of Portugal
1994 was nonetheless upbeat as
marketing of the event by partner CWL
produced respectable results: TV reach
was more than satisfactory. “Regular
presence on television benefits handball
marketing,” said Karl Güntzel. The twelveteam
playing format had proved successful:
in sporting terms, the ECh was in any
case more attractive than a worldwide
tournament, as performance differences
between the teams were minimal. At the
subsequent Congress in Antibes, France,
the EHF members, by a 22-8 majority,
voted to play European Championships
every two years in the future. “Now, with
the Olympics, World and European Championships,
the sponsors of handball finally
have a highlight event every year,” EHF
Secretary General Wiederer was pleased
to note.
The biggest obstacle to the continuing
development of the event was considered
to be the fact that the event was held in
June. This became even more apparent
in the second edition of the Men’s European
Championship in Spain in 1996,
which started only a few weeks ahead of
the Olympic tournament in Atlanta. With
many teams focusing on the Olympic
Games, the athletic value of the event was
diminished. Moreover, just one single ticket
to the Olympics was awarded in Seville
and Ciudad Real.
In 1998, the EHF tackled this problem
head-on after the International Handball
Federation (IHF) had resolved, in Novem-
65
EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS
Another typically
European feature:
a coach, here Icelander
Dagur Sigurdsson,
directing Team Austria
against his native
country’s national team
in the EHF EURO 2010.
67
68
“Now, with the
Olympics, World
and European
Championships,
the sponsors of
handball finally
have a highlight
event every year”
ber 1997, to move its World Championships
from March to late May/June. The
initiative to also play the Men‘s European
Championship in January sparked some
heated debates between EHF officers and
leading European leagues, including the
German Bundesliga, which even threatened
to boycott the ECh should such a decision
be taken.
However, EHF Secretary General
Wiederer stated in an interview in June
1998, that the new date was practically
imperative to secure the sound
development of ECh tournaments:
“The EHF and the IHF cannot both
stage their major events in summer.
The principal argument: in the run-up
to other major events such as a soccer
WCh or ECh, competition for attention
is so overwhelming that the handball
events would simply not be adequately
perceived by the public and the media. A
lack of response had already left the seats
empty in the 1994 ECh in Portugal and
in Spain in 1996, except when the home
team made an appearance, or the finals
were being played. We therefore decided
to act, last but not least at the instigation
of our key marketing partner. The perfect
time for handball is winter.” According
to Wiederer, “international federations
have to think ahead further than just from
one week to the next.”
This was not intended as a venting of
personal opinions but reflected the views
of a large majority of EHF working groups
that had discussed this issue. Overall,
23 EHF member countries were represented
in these groups. Most important-
69
EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS
70
“The ECh is the top-quality event, as
is gradually being reflected in media
acceptance and media presence.
More than 30 countries are reporting
from the ECh here in Croatia – live or
with a time lag. This is more than has
ever been attained in any WCh. After
all, we cannot take any decisions that
go against the markets and hence
against the overall interests of European
handball. For the sport of handball,
the two-year rhythm is a matter
of substance, not just of finances”
ly, a survey among TV stations had had
a major impact, Wiederer reported. As
a result, the EHF made concessions to
the large leagues and umbrella organisations.
The ECh qualification system was
changed to reduce the number of match
dates. When German league representatives
still threatened to boycott the competition,
EHF President Staffan Holmqvist
said: “Being a democratic nation, Germany
will surely respect a clear decision taken
by the Congress.” And this assessment
proved correct.
The motion drafted by the working
group on “European Championships
in the Future” was presented at the 4th
Ordinary EHF Congress in Budapest on
3 and 4 April 1998 and finally adopted
by a large majority. In January 2006, the
Men’s European continental tournament
was held in Croatia as the first one staged
in winter. The women’s national teams
had been playing their European Championships
in December already since
1996. At the same time, the number of
EHF EURO entrants was stepped up from
twelve to 16 teams, but only from 2002
onwards.
The 2nd Men’s EHF EURO in Spain
marked another organisational milestone.
As the Spanish organising committee
had not opted for traditional venues
like Barcelona and Granollers, as indicated
in their bid, but instead chose cities
and halls with less affinity to handball,
spectator attendance, except at matches
featuring the home team, was paltry. As a
consequence, the EHF claimed the right to
veto major changes of this kind in future
events.
71
“Spain has taught us to remain firmly
in control. We have since been working
on media concepts that involve the host
while at the same time safeguarding European
interests,” said Secretary General Michael
Wiederer after the 2000 ECh in Croatia.
Since that time, the manifold activities
conducted in organising an ECh by the EHF
as owner of the event, by the organising
committee, the hosting national federations,
media and TV partners as well as the
sponsors have been closely coordinated.
One concrete consequence of the unexpectedly
low spectator figures in Spain
in 1996 was the change of the venues
originally planned for the 1998 ECh. The
games were moved from Rimini and Pesaro
to Bolzano and Merano in order to attract
more supporters from Germany. Another
example: inspections held prior to
the 2000 ECh showed that Split was excessively
prone to windy and foggy conditions,
which prompted the EHF to decide against
the port city on the Adriatic Sea in order
to avoid problems with the timetable.
The 1996 tournament in Spain was
marked by the politically sensitive return
of the Yugoslav team, which after the Balkan
wars had been excluded from international
tournaments for several years. The
Spanish team, on the other hand, showed
first signs of its great potential by reaching
the final. There, however, the home team
lost narrowly 22-23 against the strong
Russian team. Two years later, in Italy in
1998, the tournament was marked by a
strong showing of the Swedes led by playmaker
Ljubomir Vranjes. After beating title
defender Russia in the semi-finals (27-24),
they kept the – again strong – Spanish team
under control and won 25-23, carrying off
the second continental title to Scandinavia.
When EHF officers looked back on the
EHF’s first decade in 2001, they were able
to note the development of the European
Championships with pride and satisfaction.
That moving the tournament to winter
had been the right decision had already
emerged at the 4th ECh in Croatia. After
many dramatic encounters, which culmi-
72
“Hosting an ECh
after Sweden will
be a challenge.
They have set a
standard that is
hard to rival”
EHF Executive Board Member
Tor Lian after the Men’s EURO 2002
nated in the ECh final of Zagreb, where the
Swedes triumphed for the third time after
beating Russia, the tournament had genuinely
evolved into a new beacon event.
According to EHF President Staffan
Holmqvist, the European Championships
were characterized by strong athletic performance,
with entrants playing at largely
comparable levels of performance. There
was no two- or three-tier class system like
in Ice hockey. “Six years ago, the handball
market was rigidly structured, and a new
product like the handball ECh was hard
pressed to find its place and acceptance,”
recalled Wiederer.
“This has meanwhile been achieved in a
process that has occasionally proved painful.
The ECh is the top-quality event, as is
gradually being reflected in media acceptance
and media presence. More than 30
countries are reporting from the ECh here
in Croatia – live or with a time lag. This is
more than has ever been attained in any
WCh.” As a logical consequence, the twoyear
rhythm of the tournaments was maintained.
Wiederer: “After all, we cannot
take any decisions that go against the markets
and hence against the overall interests
of European handball. For the sport of
handball, the two-year rhythm is a matter
of substance, not just of finances.”
That the decision to raise the number
of EHF EURO entrants was as good as gold
was demonstrated in the year 2002, which
was celebrated as a climax in tournament
history. What happened in Sweden in January
was a genuine handball fairy tale, with
the number of tickets sold virtually exploding
and crowds filling even huge arenas like
the Stockholm Globen. A total of 276,282
tickets were sold, more than double the
previous record. Cumulative viewership
rose to about 500 million.
In this tournament of superlatives, exciting
games were guaranteed: Croatia,
who went on to win the WCh title one year
later, took last place in the Sweden EURO.
Iceland, on the other hand, delivered a
brilliant performance, led by their famous
left-handed player Olafur Stefansson. The
highlight of the event was the final at the
Globen, in which the experienced Swedish
home team met the young German team
in a match that went into extra time: finally,
Sweden lived up to its reputation as an ECh
specialist and won their fourth title. “Europe
is strong enough to enter 16 teams,”
EHF Secretary General Michael Wiederer
had opined before the tournament – and
he was proven right.
After the Sweden tournament, EHF officer
Tor Lian had an inkling that not all future
tournaments would feature similar
records. “Hosting an ECh after Sweden will
be a challenge,” the Norwegian said. “They
have set a standard that is hard to rival.”
This foreboding was indeed to materialise
with regard to a number of parameters. On
the other hand, the establishment of a set
routine for procedures and processes prior
to and during the event, which had been
rigorously promoted by the EHF, proved
very helpful to subsequent tournament organisers.
Accreditation systems, ticketing
procedures, information systems deployed
during the tournament and also the provision
of flooring by the EHF – all this was to
be professionalised even further, promised
EHF Secretary General Michael Wiederer
after the Sweden ECh. To raise these standards,
the EHF also engaged in an exchange
of views with representatives of UEFA,
the Union of European Football Associations,
whose President Lennart Johannsen
had watched the dramatic final between
the home team and Germany from the
VIP stands.
Given the infrastructure available it was
almost to be expected that the 6th EHF
73
74
EURO in Slovenia would not be break any records
in terms of tickets sold. For this, the capacities
of Hala Tivoli in Ljubljana and the other
arenas at Koper, Celja and Velenje were just not
big enough. But the ECh was again well organised
and boasted a great atmosphere. Some 88
percent of tickets were sold, and the organisation
committee directed by Zoran Jankovic was
showered with praise from all sides. With welltrained
security guards at hand, the organisers
retained tight control of the politically charged
encounters between the nations of ex-Yugoslavia,
which had been classified as high-risk matches.
“The organisers have invested a lot of time
and money,” lauded Helmut Höritsch, the EHF’s
Senior Development Manager.
On the other hand, the EHF had to deal with
criticism of the playing format used in Slovenia
as it emerged that the rule change resulting
in the “fast middle” had made the game much
faster and hence made even more demands on
the players’ physical strength. In view of this development,
the EHF had already added one additional
rest day compared with the 2002 ECh.
“The players are of course exposed to enormous
levels of stresses and strains,” said Höritsch.
“The ECh, however, is what it is: a top product.”
In due course, the EHF reacted to the new conditions
by significantly extending the tournament
in order to provide more time for regeneration.
While, initially, the tournament had been played
over ten or eleven days, the 2016 ECh in Poland
lasted 17 days – a concession to safeguard the
professional players‘ physical health.
Where media coverage was concerned, the
2004 event in Slovenia as well as later tournaments
continued the trend of a steadily increasing
viewership. In 2004, the EHF EURO matches
attracted about 709 million viewers in a total of
190 countries. Two years later, this figure rose to
760 million spectators. The 2010 competition
held in Austria was the first to hit the milestone
of a television audience of one billion. In 2012,
in Serbia, the cumulative number of spectators
almost reached 1.5 billion. The development
in the social media was likewise breath-taking:
during the EHF EURO 2010 in Austria, the
ehf-euro.com internet platform was accessed
by a new record of about ten million users. Almost
one million fans watched videos on the
EHF‘s YouTube channel. These figures reflect the
great appeal that the EHF EURO had attained by
that date as the “most challenging tournament in
global handball”. At the same time, the number
of TV stations and journalist accreditations kept
rising. 800 journalists were accredited in Switzerland,
in Austria even around 1200.
75
“This was the
biggest project
we ever handled”
TV2 sports director Morten
Stig Christensen after the
Women’s EHF EURO 2002
Even though the EHF EUROs 2006 to
2010 were not held in “traditional” handball
countries, the marked upward trend in
these measurable parameters was neither
interrupted nor stopped. The EHF hence
fulfilled its mandate, as the umbrella federation,
of developing the sport in a sustainable
manner even outside the major handball
markets.
The next new record in ticket sales was
registered in Serbia in 2012, with approximately
300,000 tickets sold. This
figure was boosted even further in the
EHF EURO held in Denmark. The figures
recorded in Norway in 2008 (180,000)
were likewise considered very strong. Basically,
all of these parameters confirm that
there is a trend leading towards handball
mega-events.
This trend is certainly also attributable
to the entrants’ closely-matched strength.
This was underlined in the 2016 ECh in
Poland, when two crass outsiders – Germany
and Norway – reached the semi-finals.
While France, Denmark and Poland
were the greatest disappointments of the
tournament in terms of performance, the
showings of teams like Sweden, Russia and
Slovenia were not significantly inferior to
the final medalists. The times when EHF
EUROs were dominated initially by Swe-
76
den and France (title winner in 2006, 2010,
2014) and Denmark (2008, 2012) seem
to be definitely over. The 2018 ECh in Croatia
is expected to see more than eight hot
medal contenders among the entrants.
Against the backdrop of this enormous
uptrend, the decision taken by the EHF Congress
in Dublin in 2014 to increase the number
of EHF EURO entrants from 16 to 24
nations from 2020 onwards, was certainly
appropriate. After all, beside the well-established
handball nations there have always
been quite a few strong handball nations
that only just failed to qualify for participation
in the EHF EURO, among them, for
example, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and
Austria, but also Switzerland and Portugal.
For these teams, playing in the EHF EURO
offers a big opportunity to make their sport
more popular in their home countries longterm.
Another compelling argument said
that the EHF and the organising committees
could not afford the absence of economically
important members such as Germany, as
had happened in the EHF EURO 2014.
Originally, the increase in the number of
participants had only been planned from
2022. At the initiative of the three organisers
of the 2020 ECh in Sweden, Norway
and Austria, this increase took effect early
following a unanimous vote at the 2014
EHF Congress in Dublin. The playing format
has already been defined: in each of
the three countries, two preliminary round
groups (of four teams each) will be played,
with two teams each qualifying for the main
rounds in Sweden and Austria. The finals
will be staged in Sweden. While the sporting
outcome is still highly uncertain, one thing is
for sure: 2020 is going to mark new records
in EHF history.
77
EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS
The Media Call has become an
institution in every EHF EURO.
Before the semi-finals, the media
get to talk to the professional
players and coaches of the
best teams of the tournament.
Here, Norwegian coach
Christian Berge is taking
questions at Krakow.
78
79
EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS
The Women’s European Championships
have recently also hit record after
record. In the wake of the Women’s EHF
EURO 2014 in Hungary and Croatia, the
EHF and its marketing partner Infront
Sports & Media reported the largest
audiences in the event’s history. The
cumulative number of spectators
amounted 723 million, up 90 percent
versus the Women‘s EHF EURO 2012 and
more than 50 percent above the previous
all-time record registered in the Women’s
EHF EURO 2006 in Sweden (461 million).
In terms of broadcast hours, the results
are equally remarkable. With 1,919 broadcast
hours, the women’s 2014 tournament
in Hungary and Croatia further
confirms its upward trend through an
impressive 65 per cent climb of 758
hours compared to 2012. Overall, the
tournament was aired in 145 countries,
following agreements brokered by Infront
with 85 broadcasters receiving an HDTV
signal produced with up to 15 cameras
per match.
The strong increase was a result of the
successful, market-by-market sales approach
by Infront, which has seen a much
broadened reach in South America, as
well as intensified news coverage worldwide.
Together with the Men’s EHF EURO,
2014 was the strongest year in terms of
exposure for European handball, totalling
4,252 broadcast hours.
Jean Brihault, EHF President, commented:
“These extremely positive audience
figures underline once again the huge
worldwide following that the EHF EURO
events enjoy, whilst at the same time
showing us just how popular the women’s
game is with TV audiences. The continued
investment by the EHF and our partners
Infront in digital media is also paying
dividends, helping us to attract an ever-increasing
number of new fans to our sport.”
Overall, the digital campaign for the
Women’s EHF EURO 2014 resulted in
improved visitor numbers across all available
platforms. Strong fan engagement
80
has been fostered even further through
the tournament’s social media outreach
across Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
The re-launched official championship
website at www.ehf-euro.com attracted
more than 3.3 million page views from
275,000 unique visitors. Particularly
striking was the increase in the number of
mobile users, benefitting from the website’s
new responsive design.
Streaming was offered through the dedicated
ehfTV.com channel, with in excess
of 550,000 video streams watched live
and on-demand. In addition, handball fans
were able to enjoy near-live clips and daily
programme teasers together with special
highlights on the championship’s official
YouTube Channel, resulting in more than
2.3 million minutes of video watched.
The increased exposure was beneficial
not only for the sport and its fans but also
the eight official sponsors that Infront
had secured for the women’s championship:
Actavis (generic pharmaceuticals), AJ
(office furniture), Bauhaus (workshop,
house and garden specialist), bring (transport,
warehousing and logistical services),
engelbert strauss (workwear), Gjensidige
“The players are
of course exposed
to enormous
levels of stresses
and strains. The
ECh, however, is
what it is: a top
product”
Helmut Höritsch, EHF senior manager,
after the Men’s EHF EURO 2004
in Slovenia
(insurance), Grundfos (pump systems)
and Intersport (sports goods retailer).
These are impressive results considering
that women’s team sports – and this
applies not only to handball – have traditionally
required more complex marketing
efforts. The recognizable determination
not to make any difference in organising,
developing and marketing men’s and women’s
handball was documented by EHF delegates
as early as at the umbrella organisation’s
founding session in 1991. And it was
hence only logical that the history of the
Women’s EHF EURO also commenced in
the year of 1994.
As a matter of fact, the 1st Women’s EHF
EURO held in Germany (17 to 25 September
1994) enjoyed a better start than
the men’s. In many respects, the level of
performance was higher than in the men’s
first-ever event in Portugal. After the inaugural
game, which was played by very evenly-matched
teams and drew large crowds,
with the Danes finally gaining the upper
hand over the home team in the final, the
EHF was very happy with the results. Media
coverage was rated as “overwhelming” as
more than 53 million viewers in 15 countries
watched the television broadcasts and
more than 400 print journalists reported
on the matches from five venues. In addition,
the first-ever tournament was also a
big success financially, with the host receiving
a DM 400,000 share out of the profit.
The Women’s EHF EURO obviously also
benefited from the tournament being
moved to winter. In December 1996, when
Scandinavian fans celebrated the matches
played in Denmark, viewership rose to
a new all-time high. That year, the home
team defended their title in the Herning
final against Norway 27-23 in front of
4500 spectators. The entire event thrived
on the fantastic atmosphere created by
the Danish handball fans’ enthusiasm for
women‘s handball after the Danes had taken
Olympic gold just a few months earlier.
Building on these achievements, women’s
handball was at times even more popular
in the handball heartland of Denmark than
men’s handball.
The euphoria and enthusiasm that had
marked Herning was not quite matched
81
y the Netherlands, the hosts of the 3rd
ECh 1998. This did not come as a surprise,
though. Compared with the first
two tournaments, almost all media and
economic parameters were down. Nonetheless,
the decision to award the tournament
to a country with little handball
tradition was strategically well-founded.
Umbrella organisations such as the EHF are
always keen to develop new markets. In
sporting terms, the Norwegians took their
revenge in Amsterdam for their defeat in
the 1996 final and started their own winning
streak in the EHF EURO.
Two years later, the Ukraine and the
new European Champion Hungary were
the first to break the Scandinavians’ predominance
– this time around, in Romania,
a country with a long-standing handball
track record. In terms of spectator numbers,
Romania marked new records in
2000, including 93,450 tickets sold. The
cumulative TV audience of 156 million
viewers also exceeded by far the records of
the three previous championships.
The Women’s EHF EURO 2002 in Denmark
finally set entirely new standards.
This tournament, too, quickly demonstrated
that increasing the number of entrants
to 16 teams had been the right move. The
entire tournament offered exciting, top
class sport. That the entrants were well
matched was demonstrated by the relatively
poor results of two long-standing
handball nations: Germany in place eleven
and Sweden only in place 15, while Denmark
again scored victory over Norway.
The great popularity of Danish handball
players was reflected in the TV ratings of
the final in Denmark: on 15 December
2002, more than 2.2 million Danes out of
the country’s 5.6 million inhabitants were
watching as the home team beat neighbouring
Norway 25-22 in the bouncy
atmosphere of the Arhus Arena, with
star goalkeeper Karin Mortensen saving
24 goals.
The high levels of technology and staffing
deployed by the Danish TV station
TV2 to produce all (!) of the 48 matches
live was extraordinary and a harbinger of
things to come. The final was broadcast
live to 29 countries. Overall, the ECh was
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EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS
84
“These extremely positive
audience figures underline
once again the huge worldwide
following that the EHF EURO
events enjoy, whilst at the same
time showing us just how popular
the women’s game is with
TV audiences. The continued
investment by the EHF and our
partners Infront in digital media
is also paying dividends, helping
us to attract an ever-increasing
number of new fans
to our sport”
EHF President Jean Brihault about
the Women’s EHF EURO 2014
85
86
“It was fascinating
to see, not only
how handball fever
spread across
Europe, but also
how fans engaged
with the content
provided –
eager to immerse
themselves in the
tournament”
Stephan Herth (Infront Sports & Media)
analysing the Men‘s EHF EURO 2016
in Poland
televised to more than 50 countries (in
1994 it had only been 15). “This was the
biggest project we ever handled,” said TV2
sports director Morten Stig Christensen,
currently Secretary General of the Danish
Handball Federation. Financially, the host
also did pretty well: Dansk Handbold Forbund
(DHF) made a profit of more than half
a million euro out of the EHF EURO 1996.
Interestingly, in 2002, a debate was
sparked in women‘s handball that in
men‘s handball was conducted only two
years later: a committee of athletes asked
the EHF to ease the playing schedule of the
Women’s EHF EURO in order to allow the
players from the Scandinavian professional
leagues more time for regeneration.
Again, the EHF listened to their concerns
and initially extended the tournament
from ten to eleven days. From 2008 onwards,
the Women‘s EHF EURO lasted
13 days, since 2014 it has finally been
15 days.
Records were also broken in the tournaments
that followed: in the Women’s EHF
EURO 2004 in Hungary, the organiser sold
more than 124,000 tickets. The event was
covered by more than 40 TV stations. Two
years later, in Sweden, the number of journalist
accreditations rose above 500 for
the first time and has since remained stable.
The EURO 2008, in FYR Macedonia,
was the first top event of women‘s handball
that was covered also by the Dubai Sports
Channel. A new record, with 220,000
tickets sold, was set in the Women’s EHF
EURO 2010, the first one co-hosted by two
countries – Denmark and Norway.
In parallel to the men’s events, the EHF
also continuously enhanced the corporate
identity of the Women’s EHF EURO.
The aim was to use images of the event to
create high recognition value. This was
achieved, for example, by using uniform
flooring in all EHF EUROs. When floors
came in yellow and blue, the spectators realised
immediately that an EHF EURO was
being played. When the EHF logo and the
entire corporate identity were updated,
the floor colour scheme was adjusted as
well. From 2016 onwards, EUROs will be
played on light blue/dark blue flooring.
One typical feature of the Women’s EHF
EURO has always been the predominance
of Scandinavian teams. Especially the
Norwegians, under the guidance of their
coaches, have left their mark on the
Women’s EHF EURO over the past decade
with their outstanding high-speed game.
The Norwegians took victory in five of
the most recent six tournaments. In the
EHF EURO 2012 in Serbia, the team saw
another triumph within easy reach but, in
the final, lost against Montenegro in extra
time due to a streak of bad luck.
These results might suggest that events
have become boring from a sporting perspective.
Nothing could be further from
the truth. The spate of surprises witnessed
in the tournaments show that the teams’
sporting performance in the Women’s EHF
EURO is closely matched. In 2010, the
great handball nation Germany, regarded
as a potential winner, was forced out as
early as the preliminary round. In the EHF
EURO 2006, superpower Denmark took
the last place in its main round group.
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88
Moreover, there have been recognisable
shifts in the hierarchy of European women’s
handball. Nations like Spain, who took silver
in the EHF EURO 2008, and France have
gradually become stronger in the course of
time. For many years, the Russians used to
travel to EUROs as title hopefuls. The tale
of the fabulous emergence of Montenegro
as a great handball nation and their winning
of the title in 2012 would fill several
books. Last, but not least the Swedes, led
by superstar Isabell Gulldén, have proven
their increasing strength. They – alongside
the French, the Spanish and, more recently,
also the Netherlands players – are ready to
play at the very top at any time.
Of course, the history of the Women‘s
EHF EURO has also known setbacks. The
biggest crisis in tournament history was
certainly the decision taken by the Nederlands
Handball Verbond in June 2012,
to withdraw as organiser of the Women’s
EHF EURO. This forced the EHF to hurriedly
call for a fresh round of bids for the tournament.
Fortunately, the Serbian Handball
Federation, which had just hosted the Men’s
EHF EURO 2012 to everybody’s satisfaction,
volunteered to fill the gap and, with
great passion and attention to detail, organised
a tournament that truly did honour
to a Women’s EHF EURO. The dramatic final
of Montenegro vs. Norway played in the
huge Belgrade Arena was watched by some
10,000 fans – another new record for the
final of a Women‘s EHF EURO.
As the withdrawal of the year 2012
shows, the history of the Women‘s EHF
EURO has not been without some disruption
and turbulence. Basically, however, the
tournament has seen a fantastic development
since it was first staged in 1994. As
far as organisation is concerned, the Women’s
EHF EURO is among the best that women’s
handball has to offer. The number of
tickets sold has risen steadily in the course
of time while viewership and reach have
increased by leaps and bounds in recent
years. And also in terms of athletic
performance, the EHF EURO – just like the
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EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS
90
The first impression is
important: over the years,
the EHF has been
consistently developing
the EHF EURO’S corporate
identity. A new feature
in the EHF EURO 2016
in Poland was the new
flooring in two different
shades of blue.
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EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS
This is also part of the EHF EURO:
meeting new cultures.
At the EHF EURO 2008 in Norway,
EHF members enjoy a joke at
Stavanger’s Petroleum Museum.
92
men’s – has earned its reputation of being
the most challenging tournament in the
world of handball.
The future of this outstanding event has
already begun, with the 12th Women’s
EHF EURO due to start very soon: From
4 to 18 December, Svenska Handbollförbundet
will be playing host to the best
women’s teams of Europe due to compete
in Stockholm, Kristianstad, Malmö, Helsingborg
and Gothenburg. Judging by the
performance that was on display in Sweden
in 2006, the upcoming event is likely
to break new records – particularly as the
home team led by Isabell Gulldén, this
year’s Champions League winner, will be
among the favourites and eager to end the
predominance of their Norwegian neighbours.
In December 2018, the Fédération
Française de Handball (FFHB) will welcome
the best national teams taking
part in a Women’s EHF EURO. Two years
later, Denmark and Norway will again
be hosting a mega-event. With hosts like
these, one does not have to be a prophet
to forecast a bright future for this
tournament.
93
94
WHERE
THE
FUTURE
PLAYS
OUT
Big stars like Nora Mørk, Christina Neagu, Domagoj Duvnjak,
Nikola Karabatic and Niklas Landin Jacobsen gained their first
international experiences in EHF tournaments for younger age
categories. These events have also offered delegates and
referees the opportunity to hone their skills for higher-level
assignments yet to come and have hence served as
schools for (handball) life.
95
99
YOUTH EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS
“On the way to the top,
the youth and junior
championships were
crucial to my development
even if it was not
always easy, eventually
I was playing in the junior
team parallel to being
in the senior team”
Domagoj Duvnjak
100
Anybody who wanted to
gaze into the crystal ball
of women’s handball was
well placed if they were
present at Rotterdam’s
Topsportcentrum on 14 August 2011.
In the middle of the Dutch summer,
before the start of the actual season, teenagers
were playing here for the crown
of European handball, in the final of the
Women’s 19 European Championship. Pitted
against each other were Denmark, the
country with the great handball tradition
and a virtually inexhaustible pool of talents,
and crass outsider Netherlands, where
the sport of handball had time and again
been confined to a marginal existence.
On that day, however, this clash of cultures
was all but invisible. Supported by
2,100 fanatic spectators, the Dutch hosts
gave the Scandinavians a really hard time.
Goalkeeper Tess Wester saved three of
the favourites’ penalty throws and quite
generally did a a great Job saving the ball
the ball (and was celebrated as her team’s
best player). The tournament’s top scorer,
Lois Abbingh, scored nine goals. Angela
Malestein as right wing and playmaker Estevana
Polman even exhibited such a strong
performance that they were even voted
into the tournament’s All-star team.
In the end, after a tough fight, the Netherlands
were honourably defeated 27-29,
but had gained some invaluable experiences
in a match played at the highest level.
They felt how close they had come to the
big handball national Denmark. While they
lost a final, they won great motivation for
the future.
Some four years later, the core of this
team had a fantastic run that took it to the
next final – the final of the Handball World
Championship 2015 in Denmark. They
lost again, though, this time against Norway.
But the Netherlands had made it to the
global top, and for good, as shortly thereafter
the team also qualified, for the first
time, for the Olympic handball tournament
in Rio de Janeiro. And who knows, perhaps
both these finals were only just a harbinger
of the rise of Dutch handball at large.
These Dutch teenagers, who used a youth
tournament as a catapult lifting them to the
top of world handball, are just one eminent
example in the history of younger age category
tournaments held under EHF auspices.
For many of the stars, these tournaments
were the first time they were exposed to
an international atmosphere and got a
sense of what it was like to compete with
other excellent players of their generation.
as ist eine zweizeilieg Bildunterschirft,
ür dieses Bild.
102
Any other examples? – 2006 saw the start
of the stellar career of Domagoj Duvnjak
in Estonia, when he led his Croatian team
to victory in the EHF Men‘s 18 European
Championship and was voted Most Valuable
Player (MVP). “To be voted the Most
Valuable Player at the Men’s 18 European
Championship was for me the sign that I
had a certain talent. From out of the youth
national team: many of the players have
transitioned well into the senior men’s
team“, said Duvnjak. “You have to take it
one step at a time. On the way to the top,
the youth and junior championships were
crucial to my development even if it was
not always easy, eventually I was playing
junior team parallel to being in the senior
team.”
And then there was Christina Neagu. The
Romanian back took part in the Women’s
17 European Championship 2005 and
the Women’s 19 European Championship
2007, where as Top Scorer and All Star
she already signalled her enormous potential.
“In Romania there is a tradition of
good coaching for the younger generation
of players, but it is only through the international
tournaments such as the YAC European
Championships that you see where
you stand in comparison and where you
need to improve. Moreover, these competitions
are the way to the adult competitions
and that is a great motivation,” said
Neagu. Both Duvnjak and Neagu quickly
became mainstays of their national teams
and won the highest honours: both have
won the title of World Handball Player of
the Year.
And it is this learning and this experience
that the EHF seeks to promote. “These European
Championships for Younger Age
Categories serve a very important purpose
for the up and coming generations,” said
EHF Secretary General Michael Wiederer.
“The EHF regards this as one of its core missions.
With the tournaments, we have created
a rhythm that allows a young player
to play close to 100 international matches
before moving on to the senior men’s or
women’s competitions. For young players,
these tournaments and events thus already
become a way of life.”
It was therefore no coincidence that the
history of the EHF started, in a way, with the
Youth European Championships. The first
qualifications for this event had already
been played in the spring of 1992 even
before any decision had yet been taken
on where the EHF office would finally be
located. On 1 September 1992, only four
weeks after the inauguration of the Office
in Vienna, the Women’s Youth European
Championship was started in Miskolc, Hungary
– “without any structures in place yet,”
as Wiederer recalls.
The beginning of this history was in any
case marked by much acclaim and interesting
trends. The finals in Miskolc were
watched by some 3,000 fans and two
matches featuring the Hungarian hosts were
even televised live. And when the young
Norwegians won the first final in EHF history
against Denmark 17-14, the competitors
were amazed by the winners’ professional
attitude. Even back then, the young Norwegian
players were training together once
a week, which enabled them to attain the
level of performance of a Bundesliga team,
as the German coach Renate Schubert observed.
It was hence already at this inaugural
tournament that the first signs of the Scandinavians’
future predominance began to
show.
The large degree of improvisation that
was necessary at this pioneering stage was
highlighted in the Men’s Youth European
Championship, which started at Winterthur,
Switzerland and its environs on 7 September
1992, just one day after the Miskolc
final. At that time, everything had been organised
in great haste, with teams accommodated
in Swiss civil protection shelters,
in spartan twelve-bed rooms. When the
Portuguese delegation lodged a sharp protest,
arrangements were changed at short
notice. While two teams spent the night in
the assembly halls of two schools, the Portuguese
moved to a hotel paid for by the
Portuguese federation.
This was not the reason, though, why the
players from south-western Europe were
the surprise winners of the tournament, having
defeated Norway (28-27) in the semifinal
and Russia (30-24) in the final, in extra
time. The true foundation of their triumph
had again been the very long and painstaking
preparation of the team, who spent
58 days practising (the other teams had
dedicated significantly less time to training).
This very first tournament already featured
103
“In Romania there
is a tradition of
good coaching
for the younger
generation of
players, but it is
only through the
international tournaments
such as
the YAC European
Championships
that you see where
you stand in comparison
and where
you need to improve.
Moreover,
these competitions
are the way to the
adult competitions
and that is a great
motivation”
Christina Neagu
105
YOUTH EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS
“These European Championships for
Younger Age Categories serve a very
important purpose for the up and
coming generations. The EHF regards
this as one of its core missions. With
the tournaments, we have created
a rhythm that allows a young player
to play close to 100 international
matches before moving on to the
senior men’s or women’s competitions.
For young players, these
tournaments and events thus already
become a way of life”
EHF Secretary General Michael Wiederer (2016)
players that later were to rise to celebrity
status in their sport. One of them was the
young German goalkeeper, the first goalkeeper
to be named World Player of the
Year in 2004: Henning Fritz.
That these youth tournaments served as
handball’s school of life not only for players,
but also for referees and functionaries,
is clearly illustrated by 1992 appointments.
Serving as EHF representatives in
Hungary were Jozef Ambrus (SVK) and Jan
Tuik (NED), in Switzerland Karl Güntzel
(SUI) and Manfred Prause (GER) – four people
that were to mark the initial years of the
development of the EHF organisation. The
qualification for the Men’s Youth European
Championship saw the German referee
pairing Bülow/Lübker, who went on to officiate
in the WCh finals in Cairo in 1999.
The final round in Winterthur was conducted
by the Swedish referees Hansson/Olsson,
who twelve years later were to meet
goalkeeper Henning Fritz in the Olympic
final of Athens.
The EHF‘s YAC tournaments were supplemented
in 1994 by the first-time staging
of the Women’s and Men’s Junior European
Championships, which have since been
played every two years, and Youth European
Championships staged in odd years
since1997. In the years 2004 and 2005,
respectively, the tournaments were renamed.
Since 2004, the Men’s 18 and
20 European Championships (men aged
up to 18 and 20, respectively) have been
played in even years and, since 2005, the
Women’s 17 and 19 European Championships
(women aged up to 17 and
107
19, respectively) in odd years – always
in addition to the International Handball
Federation’s (IHF) Youth and Junior
World Championships.
There has been not change to the fact
that these YAC tournaments basically offer
a glimpse of the future of handball. This aspect
alone would fill volumes. The Russian
left wing Emilia Turey, for example, provided
a sample of her great potential in 2002,
when she was elected as a member of the
all-star team in the Junior European Championship.
The same year, the Men’s Junior
European Championship All-star team included
back Karol Bielecki (POL), goalkeeper
Boris Ristovski (MD) and the Slovene
players David Spiler and Matjaz Brumen, all
of whom continued to be key handball figures
in their respective countries for many
years to come.
In the Women’s 19 European Championship,
left back Karolina Kudlacz from Poland
was the pre-eminent player. One year
on, in the Women’s17 European Championship
2005, Allison Pineau from France
excelled as playmaker. Another year on,
the Men’s 20 European Championship in
Innsbruck showcased an exceptional vintage
of players: MVP Zarko Sesum (SRB)
was fast-tracked into professional handball
along with All Stars Mikkel Hansen, Henrik
Toft Hansen (both DEN), Martin Strobel,
Uwe Gensheimer (both GER), Ivan Cupic
from Croatia and the Swedish goalkeeper
Johan Sjöstrand.
In 2007, the Women’s 17 European
Championship whisked Norwegian right
back Nora Mørk right onto the stage of
world handball followed, one year later, in
the U18 tournament in Brno, by the German
right back Steffen Fäth and, in the U20
tournament in Romania, the Danish keeper
Niklas Landin Jacobsen. In the Men’s 20
European Championship 2012, finally, the
Spanish right back Alex Dujshebaev and left
back Stipe Mandalinic (CRO) moved into
the limelight.
Among more recent prominent examples
have been the three German Junior
European Champions 2014, Simon Ernst,
Jannik Kohlbacher and Fabian Wiede, who
only two years later won the Men’s 12th
EHF EURO in Poland. In the same year, the
most outstanding high-potential of Austrian
handball, Nikola Bilyk, was voted MVP at
the Men‘s 18 European Championship.
A glance at the All Star nominations of
recent events shows that these provided
reason for joy mostly for Russian and
French fans, but also for supporters of Portugal
and Denmark. The French, for example,
may regard the All Star nominations
of Ludovic Fabregas and Melvin Richardson
(son of Jackson) in the Men’s 18 European
Championship 2014 as a promise of a
bright future. Among the female talent, the
Russians Elizaveta Malashenko (MVP W17
European Championship 2013) and Anna
Vyakhireva (MVP W19 European Championship
2013) caught the public’s eye along
with Portuguese player Monica Sores, the
top scorer of the Women’s 19 European
Championship 2013.
It would only be logical to expect that
these players, who took their first steps on
the big international stage in EHF YAC tournaments,
will evolve into eminent handball
personalities at the senior level in the
near future. And, who knows, there may be
another future world-class player among
them...
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EHF
EUROPEAN
CHAMPIONSHIPS
1992 TO 2016
111
112
113
EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS 1992 TO 2016
MEN’S EUROPEAN
HANDBALL CHAMPIONSHIP
YEAR VENUE WINNER
2016 Poland Germany
2014 Denmark France
2012 Serbia Denmark
2010 Austria France
2008 Norway Denmark
2006 Switzerland France
2004 Slovenia Germany
2002 Sweden Sweden
2000 Croatia Sweden
1998 Italy Sweden
1996 Spain Russia
1994 Portugal Sweden
WOMEN’S EUROPEAN HANDBALL
CHAMPIONSHIP
YEAR VENUE WINNER
2016 Sweden
2014 Hungary/Croatia Norway
2012 Serbia Montenegro
2010 Denmark/Norway Norway
2008 FYR Macedonia Norway
2006 Sweden Norway
2004 Hungary Norway
2002 Denmark Denmark
2000 Romania Hungary
1998 Netherlands Norway
1996 Denmark Denmark
1994 Germany Denmark
MEN’S 20 EUROPEAN
HANDBALL CHAMPIONSHIP
*Men’s Junior European Championship 1996 - 2002
YEAR VENUE WINNER
2016 Denmark Spain
2014 Austria Germany
2012 Serbia Spain
2010 Slovakia Denmark
2008 Romania Denmark
2006 Austria Germany
2004 Latvia Germany
2002 Poland Poland
2000 Greece Yugoslavia
1998 Austria Denmark
1996 Romania Denmark
MEN’S 18 EHF EURO
**Men’s 18 European Handball Championship
*Men’s Youth European Championship 1992 - 2003
YEAR VENUE WINNER
2016 Croatia France
2014 Poland France
2012 Austria Germany
2010 Austria Croatia
2008 Czech Republic Germany
2006 Estonia Croatia
2004 Serbia & Serbia &
Montenegro
Montengro
2003 Slovakia Iceland
2001 Luxembourg Russia
1999 Portugal Hungary
1997 Estonia Sweden
1994 Israel Spain
1992 Switzerland Portugal
MEN’S 18 EUROPEAN
HANDBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS
YEAR VENUE WINNER
2016 BUL/GEO/LIT Hungary
WOMEN’S 19 EUROPEAN
HANDBALL CHAMPIONSHIP
*Women’s Junior European Championship 1996 – 2002
YEAR VENUE WINNER
2015 Spain Denmark
2013 Denmark Russia
2011 Netherlands Denmark
2009 Hungary Norway
2007 Turkey Denmark
2004 Czech Republic Russia
2002 Finland Russia
2000 France Romania
1998 Slovakia Romania
1996 Poland Denmark
WOMEN’S 17 EUROPEAN
HANDBALL CHAMPIONSHIP
*Women’s Youth European Championship 1992 – 2003
YEAR VENUE WINNER
2015 FYR Macedonia Denmark
2013 Poland Sweden
2011 Czech Republic Russia
2009 Serbia Denmark
2007 Slovakia France
2005 Austria Denmark
2003 Russia Russia
2001 Turkey Russia
1999 Germany Romania
1997 Austria Spain
1994 Lithuania Ukraine
1992 Hungary Norway
114
IHF/EHF MEN’S CHALLENGE TROPHY
* Men’s Challenge Trophy 1999 - 2007
YEAR VENUE WINNER
2011 Malta/Ireland Moldova
2009 Malta/Moldova Finland
2007 Luxembourg/Georgia Georgia
2005 Ireland Moldova
2003 Malta Moldova
2001 Latvia Latvia
1999 Cyprus Cyprus
IHF/EHF WOMEN’S CHALLENGE TROPHY
* Women’s Challenge Trophy 2000 - 2007
YEAR VENUE WINNER
2016 Georgia Faroe Islands
2014 Greece Bulgaria
2012 Bulgaria Bulgaria
2010 Israel / Estonia Finland
2008 Cyprus Finland
2006 Bosnia Bosnia
Herzegovina Herzegovina
2004 Italy Italy
2002 Azerbaijan Azerbaijan
2000 Belgium Bosnia Herzegovina
MEN’S BEACH EHF EURO
*Men’s European Beach Handball Championships
YEAR VENUE WINNER
2015 Spain Croatia
2013 Denmark Croatia
2011 Croatia Croatia
2009 Norway Croatia
2007 Italy Russia
2006 Germany Spain
2004 Turkey Russia
2002 Spain Spain
2000 Italy Belarus
WOMEN’S BEACH EHF EURO
*Women’s European Beach Handball Championships
YEAR VENUE WINNER
2015 Spain Hungary
2013 Denmark Hungary
2011 Croatia Croatia
2009 Norway Italy
2007 Italy Croatia
2006 Germany Germany
2004 Turkey Russia
2002 Spain Russia
2000 Italy Ukraine
MEN’S 19 BEACH HANDBALL
EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS
YEAR VENUE WINNER
2015 Spain Russia
2013 Denmark Hungary
2011 Croatia Croatia
WOMEN’S 19 BEACH HANDBALL
EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS
YEAR VENUE WINNER
2015 Spain Hungary
2013 Denmark Hungary
2011 Croatia Hungary
MEN’S 18 BEACH HANDBALL
EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS
YEAR VENUE WINNER
2014 Spain Hungary
2012 Georgia Russia
2008 Hungary Hungary
WOMEN’S 18 BEACH HANDBALL
EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS
YEAR VENUE WINNER
2014 Spain Hungary
2012 Georgia Hungary
2008 Hungary Hungary
1994 Germany Denmark
MEN’S 16 BEACH HANDBALL
EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS
YEAR VENUE WINNER
2016 Portugal Spain
WOMEN’S 16 BEACH HANDBALL
EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS
YEAR VENUE WINNER
2016 Portugal Netherlands
115
117
118
THE CLUB
COMPETITIONS
THE META-
MORPHOSIS
FROM UGLY
DUCKLING TO
FLAGSHIP
EVENT
When, in the summer of 1993, the EHF took over the task of organising
the club competitions, things looked pretty dismal: marketing was
virtually non-existent, the sports-political situation was sensitive.
The beginnings were hence complex, but a number of cautious reforms
have since turned the Champions League and the EHF Cup into
premium products of club handball. Today, the VELUX EHF FINAL4 is
the event pulling the largest crowds in European handball.
119
CLUB COMPETITIONS
“The thrill got bigger
and bigger. Every year
the VELUX EHF FINAL4
becomes a melting pot
for the world of handball
and LANXESS arena welcomes
the ‘who‘s who’
of the sport”
Jean Brihault at the VELUX EHF FINAL4 in Cologne (2016)
124
When, at the VELUX EHF
FINAL4 2016, the last
ball had landed in the
net, Julen Aguinagalde,
who had scored
the goal, dived right into the goal and
grabbed the ball. The Spanish pivot from
KS Vive Tauron Kielce obviously wanted to
get hold of an item to keep as a souvenir.
He was fully aware that this was a historical
moment. And indeed, the way the VELUX
EHF Champions League 2016 final unfolded
at Cologne’s LANXESS arena seemed
so removed from real life that without
such a piece of evidence handball historians
might one day come to the conclusion
it never really happened.
It was a tournament that all handball
fans will remember for a long time to
come. On the very first day of the VELUX
EHF FINAL4, in the first semi-final match
Kielce vs. Paris St. Germain, the winner
was determined only in the last few seconds
of the game. The second match
even went into extra time, with MVM
Veszprém finally gaining the upper hand
over THW Kiel. The match for the third
place played on the finals day likewise had
20,000 fans holding their breaths. And
then there was this final match, which
left fans simply flabbergasted as they
watched Kielce annihilating Veszprém’s
nine-goal lead, then the lead changing
repeatedly in extra time, and the winner
of the world’s most important club
event being finally determined by sevenmetre
throws.
This was fantastic handball – not only because
it was played at the highest level of
performance, but because it also revealed
the mental obstacles that had to be overcome
and showed the efforts involved
in scoring such a victory, all within a very
narrow time span. “The thrill got bigger
and bigger,” as EHF President Jean Brihault
finally summed it up. Simply unique, however,
was the atmosphere among the spectators,
who had turned the tournament
into a place where all of European handball
wanted to be. Brihault: “Every year the VE-
LUX EHF FINAL4 becomes a melting pot
for the world of handball and LANXESS
arena welcomes the ‘who’s who’ of the
sport.”
The event has evolved into a work of
art composed of many facets. The VELUX
EHF FINAL4 has grown into one of the top
events on the European sports calendar.
“The fan groups do not need to be separated
by police or security – they celebrate
a big party together, so everybody contributes
to this event,” said Brihault. EHF Secretary
General Michael Wiederer shares
125
In pure sporting terms, the EHF Champions
League was dominated by two great teams
throughout the 1990s. In the women’s
competitions, it was the multiple Austrian
champion HYPO Niederösterreich, personified
by its manager and coach Gunnar
126
Prokop. Between 1989 and 2000, HYPO
was eight-time winner of the world’s most
prestigious club title, including four times
the EHF Champions League title. This
made HYPO the most successful women’s
team in handball history.
127
CLUB COMPETITIONS
Brihault’s general impressions of the
event: “Every time I land in Cologne prior
to the start of the tournament, the tension
is still rising. There is no VELUX EHF FI-
NAL4 routine, but annual challenges. But
it makes things easier when you have the
same partners every year, so you have mutual
control of the event.”
International handball celebrities have
abundantly praised the event. “It is always
great to be back in Cologne. The atmosphere
is simply brilliant; the fans go off like
fireworks in the stands. This is handball at
its best,” said Swedish handball star Stefan
Lövgren, who had previously served
as an ambassador of the event. Francois
Xavier Houlet, a former French international
and EHF Cup winner with Gummersbach,
works together with Daniel Saric
and praises the VELUX EHF FINAL4: “This
is the temple of handball.” Other famed
former pros, among them Marcin Lijewski,
Iker Romero and VELUX testimonial
Lars Christiansen, also gave the event full
marks. “This atmosphere is great, amazing,”
said Germany’s EHF EURO 2016 hero
Andreas Wolff.
Only three weeks earlier, European
women’s handball had likewise celebrated
a top-level club event. In the Women’s
EHF FINAL4 played in Budapest’s sold-out
Papp Laszlo arena, 12,000 fans had been
treated to thrilling, top-class handball.
There, too, the winner of the Women‘s
EHF Champions League was determined
only by seven-metre throws. The title
finally went to the Romanian champion
CSM Bucuresti, who beat Györi Audi ETO
KC 29-26. Celebrated players were CSM
goalkeeper Jelena Grubic, who was voted
MVP of the tournament, and the Swedish
goal-getter Isabell Gulldén.
For EHF Secretary General Michael
Wiederer, the combination of tournament,
organisation and venue is already a
story of success. “Three years ago we were
asked by the top clubs of European women’s
handball to create an event like we did
with the VELUX EHF FINAL4 in Cologne,”
he recalled in Budapest. And the EHF went
the same way with the pinnacle event of
women’s club handball as they did with the
male counterparts. “We had a premiere in
Budapest and then extended the contract
for two more years. Currently we are in the
state of negotiations with the Hungarian
Handball Federation as the organiser of
the event. They would like to have a longterm
contract,” said Wiederer.
Anyone who looks today at the gigantic
scope of these final tournaments, at
the many shows and entertainment of-
128
fers around the playing court, at the large
crowds in the stands and at the dedication
and enthusiasm with which the athletes
work throughout the season to get to the
place of their desires, can hardly image
how modest and complex the beginnings
of the European Cup were; how hard and
rocky the road was that led to this pinnacle
event and that started with the first official
game in Skopje on 25 August 1993,
at 8.15 p.m., under the auspices of a still
young European Handball Federation. In
the elimination round of the Women’s
Champions Cup, the first whistle was
blown by the referee almost “in private“.
The match was played by the Macedonian
club RK Djorce Petrov Skopje versus the
Bulgarian club Lokosport Plovdiv (34-17).
The referees Klucso/Lekrinszki were from
Hungary.
That this dynamic development has
been anything but unremarkable is underlined
by the history of club competitions
in the era before the EHF’s foundation in
1991. The idea of staging such a tournament
had already been voiced in 1937,
when handball magazines in Austria and
Germany called for a “Mitropa Cup for
handball” modelled on the then popular
precursor of the football European Cup.
“What about a Central European cup
for club teams?” – This was the question
raised by Deutsche Handball-Zeitung
when asked what their wishes were for the
year of 1952.
When UEFA, the Union of European
Football Associations, launched their
European Cup in 1955, handball soon
followed suit – both competitions were
the result of an initiative started by the
French sports magazine L’Equipe. The European
Cup of National Champions, as it
was called then, was indeed quite popular
at a number of venues. It was obvious,
however, that the International Handball
Federation (IHF) had problems with the
long-term marketing of the competition
to potential sponsors or TV partners and
with raising its popularity continuously in
countries outside Germany. “One should
not overestimate the volume of revenues
that can be generated by European Cup
games,” said IHF Director Friedhelm Peppmeier
in 1983. “If you don’t have German
contenders in the finals, revenues will
go down to zero due to a lack of interest in
other countries.”
After the EHF had been founded in November
1991, it soon became clear that
the European Cup would also be organised
under the auspices of the new umbrella
organisation. The global IHF had lost any
interest in club competitions, as IHF Manag-
129
CLUB COMPETITIONS
130
“Every time I land in
Cologne prior to the start
of the tournament, the
tension is still rising. There is
no VELUX EHF FINAL4
routine, but annual
challenges. But it makes
things easier when you have
the same partners every
year, so you have mutual
control of the event“
Michael Wiederer at the VELUX EHF FINAL4 in Cologne (2016)
131
CLUB COMPETITIONS
“One should
not overestimate
the volume of
revenues that can
be generated
by European Cup
games. If you
don’t have German
contenders
in the finals,
revenues will go
down to zero due
to a lack of
interest in other
countries”
IHF Managing Director
Friedhelm Peppmeier (1983) in Poland
ing Director Frank Birkefeld announced in
Vienna in November 1992: “I am glad we
are rid of them”. IHF Secretary General Raymond
Hahn likewise made it known that
the European Cup had only created problems
and headaches for the worldwide
federation. The EHF finally agreed with the
International Handball Federation that it
would take charge of club competitions
only from the 1993-94 season onwards,
as it had started operating as a federation
only as of 1 August 1992.
Even before the first draw was held in Vienna,
the EHF administration had already
decided to make some major changes to
the old IHF playing format. The system
under which preliminary qualifications
were only held on a regional basis was
terminated. Responsibility for the new
seeding system was entrusted to the Swiss
Markus Glaser. He had been recruited by
EHF Secretary General Wiederer from
March 1993 as he had already gathered
valuable experience in organising the
European Cup for the global federation.
How Glaser went about developing this
ew seeding system is one of the great legends
of early EHF history as he “built” the
format while on his way to holiday in the
United States. Sitting on the airplane he
worked out the key factors and details
of the seeding list and, upon arrival, sent
them by fax to the EHF Office in Vienna.
While the way in which this “first-ever
ranking” was calculated has meanwhile
been modified a couple of times,
“the format has basically survived to this
very day,” according to Glaser.
In the initial years, when the European
Cup was organised by the EHF, the biggest
challenges were attributable to the Balkan
wars. “At that time, many matches in Croatia
had to be moved to different venues as
the situation was simply too dangerous,”
Glaser said. “The EHF simply could not
132
Before the EHF staged the first draw for
European Cup matches on 10 August
1993, the EHF Congress 1993 held in
Antwerp had taken the first fundamental
decisions regulating club competitions.
The IHF Cup played since 1981 was renamed
EHF Cup from the 1993-94 season
onwards. In order to resolve potential calendar
problems, the EHF created the “City
Cup” (for teams placed third in national
leagues) as a fourth club competition beside
the Cupwinners’ European Cup and
the competition of national champions –
previously, many major leagues, among
them most prominently Germany’s Bundesliga,
had asked for additional places
in the European Cup. The European Cup
of National Champions was likewise restructured
and renamed: starting from
the group phase of the year 1993-94,
the competition, played by a total of eight
teams in two groups of four, was henceforth
called the “Champions League”.
risk exposing spectators and players to
bombing or shelling.” It took many years
for the conflicts in the territory of former
Yugoslavia to be finally resolved politically
and peace to be restored in a way that
made it possible to come to sensible arrangements
also where sports were concerned.
Unrestricted drawing had always
been one of the key elements of EHF competitions,
but resulted in numerous “problem
matches”, some of which had to be
played on neutral ground.
The legacy that the EHF had accepted
by taking over the European Cup competitions
from the International Handball
Federation was also challenging and complex
in many respects. Up until that date,
marketing activities had hardly been undertaken.
The EHF also had to start from
scratch again organisationally, as the political
and geographical changes in the East
of Europe had resulted in a new political
landscape. And then there were the warlike
events in the Balkans. The European
Cup had been smashed to pieces, not
only metaphorically speaking. It is also
all the more remarkable that the club
competition have evolved into beacon
events such as the VELUX EHF FINAL4 in
Cologne and the Women’s EHF FINAL4 in
Budapest.
Naturally, with the creation of their
Champions League, the EHF did model
some elements from big brother football,
but in one specific point, the handballers
were way ahead of the footballers: from the
very beginning, there was an equal Women’s
Champions League. The first playing
system, which has until today been constantly
updated and necessarily modified,
saw 32 national champions play in two KO
rounds, before eight teams would move on
to the Group Phase playing a round-robin
system against each other in both men’s
and women’s competitions. Previously,
there were only knock-out rounds. The
winner of the Group Phase then made it
to the final. In the men’s competition, the
first finalists were Teka Santander (Spain)
and ABC Braga (Portugal). In the women’s
competition, it was a repeat of the National
Champions finals with HYPO Niederösterreich
playing against Vasas Budapest.
In the first year in particular, the EHF, of
course, had to overcome major start-up
problems. As the administrative system
was not up and running yet, the Federation
refrained from sending delegates in
the inaugural season. Moreover, the Office
in Vienna was facing substantial technical
problems in issuing players’ passports as
there were quite a few cases in which the
nationalities of the successor states of the
133
CLUB COMPETITIONS
“It is always
great to be back
in Cologne.
The atmosphere
is simply brilliant;
the fans go off
like fireworks in
the stands. This is
handball at
its best”
Stefan Lövgren at the VELUX EHF
FINAL4 in Cologne (2016)
former Yugoslavia were hard to define. But
a start had been made.
The first playing system survived the first
three seasons up to and including 1995-
96, in both the men’s and the women’s
competitions. Yet even at this early stage,
the huge sporting and economic potential
of the Men’s Champions League already
started to emerge. The Croatian champion
Badel Zagreb, for example, played
all group matches and even the home
match of the 1995 Champions League
final against winner Bidasoa Irun in soldout
arenas, attracting crowds of 12,000
spectators. For German champion THW
Kiel, the Champions League was likewise
good business, said jubilant manager Uwe
Schwenker. Schwenker happily raked in
some 600,000 Deutschmark in revenues
for the club, as the three home matches
against Irun, OM Vitrolles and Dukla
Prague were nearly sold out.
Due to smaller arena capacities and the
lesser appeal of women’s handball in the
relevant markets, revenues from ticket
sales did not reach similar levels in the
134
135
CLUB COMPETITIONS
“The Champions League brings the
elite clubs of our continent together
and the other European Cup
competitions also guarantee top
European events. However, as the
conditions for club matches differ
tremendously from country to
country, it is extremely difficult to
find a competition system that suits
the needs and capacity of everybody”
EHF President Staffan Holmqvist (2002)
Women‘s Champions League, as had in fact
been expected. Indications of the big potential
yet to be tapped, though, were visible
in the finals of the Women’s EHF Cup
1994, when the Danish club Viborg HK attracted
more than 5,000 supporters in the
first leg of the final against the Hungarian
players of DVSC Debrecen.
In pure sporting terms, the EHF Champions
League was dominated by two great
teams throughout the 1990s. In the women’s
competitions, it was the multiple Austrian
champion HYPO Niederösterreich,
personified by its manager and coach Gunnar
Prokop. Between 1989 and 2000,
HYPO was eight-time winner of the world’s
most prestigious club title, including four
times the EHF Champions League title. This
made HYPO the most successful women’s
team in handball history.
Prokop’s counterpart in men’s club handball
was the Spanish star coach Valero Rivera,
who at FC Barcelona had first started
and then dominated a great era. The glorious
Catalans continued the Spaniards’ winning
streak in 1996 and, up to 2000, took
the title five times running. The high social
esteem that handball players enjoyed at
the time was highlighted by the attendance
of King Juan Carlos of Spain at the second
leg of the final versus Zagreb at Palau Blaugrana
in 1999. That year, Inaki Urdangarin,
the King’s future son in law, was among the
key protagonists of the team along with
left wing Xavier O’Callaghan, pivot Andrei
Xepkin and goalkeeper David Barrufet.
FC Barcelona was still the dominant
team when the EHF Champions League
playing system was first reformed for both
the women‘s and the men‘s events before
the 1996-97 season. The revised system
provided for four groups of four teams
each, not all of which had to play qualifying
matches to enter the group phase (teams
that were big league champions were seeded).
While under the previous system only
the group winners had advanced to the
finals, from then on, the two top teams of
each group went on to play in the quarter-finals,
which, like the further rounds,
were played as knock-out matches. This
resulted in a significant expansion of the
Champions League.
136
The next major modification of the European
Cup system was adopted by the
EHF for the 2000-01 season. Henceforth,
all champions of the seven leading nations
were qualified directly for the group
phase of the Men’s Champions League.
The teams of the nations placed 8 to 15
were given guaranteed access to the second
round. The system adopted for the
Women‘s Champions League proved truly
groundbreaking and forward-looking:
here, the EHF allowed the seven nations
leading the EHF ranking to enter two teams
each. In this respect, the women were true
pioneers, being three years ahead of the
men. In the EHF Cup (Men’s and Women’s),
the seven leading nations were given
the right to enter two teams each. Only
the playing format of the Cupwinners’ Cup
remained unchanged.
At the same time, the Challenge Cup
was introduced to replace the City Cup.
This tournament has been designed for
nations unable to obtain the relevant
number of Champions League or EHF
Cup places. The teams from the federations
ranked 1 to 7 do not participate in
the Challenge Cup. The EHF deliberately
sought to promote competitions for clubs
from nations that were unable to match
the standards of those with a strong handball
culture. This reform also proved beneficial,
as the past 16 years have impressively
shown.
By 2000, all club competition mechanisms
were running smoothly, but marketing
of the European Cup competitions,
including the Champions League, was still
inadequate. In contrast to the EHF EUROs,
the EHF had failed to find a partner for centralised
marketing of the European Cup
competitions in 1993-94. The rights for
marketing EHF Champions League matches
and other competitions rested with
the EHF, of course. Yet, initially, it proved
impossible to achieve a major breakthrough
in marketing television rights for
the matches. What happened instead was
a constant struggle for more viewers and
revenues, even though European handball
was increasingly gaining ground compared
with other team sports.
The idea of having the EHF Champions
League marketed centrally by a strong
partner, like the EHF EUROs, had already
been placed on the agenda of the 2000
EHF Congress in Tel Aviv. A motion to
this effect was intensely debated before
centralised marketing of the Men’s and
the Women’s Champions Leagues was finally
adopted with effect from the 2001-
02 season. “A new partnership has been
signed with the company Sponsor Service
to optimise the marketing of the product
(EHF Annual Report 2000).
The project was launched initially for
the Men’s Champions League. One year
later, EHF President Staffan Holmqvist
announced that the scheme was to be
extended to the Women’s Champions
League. “Still there is a lot of work to be
done before everything is perfect. The EHF
will also work to create such a tournament
for women as soon as possible and for the
future to get similar conditions in all the
European Cup Tournaments. However,
everybody must be aware that this is a very
difficult task.”
At the end, however, this partnership
with the Norwegian agency was not successful
financially, and the relationship
was therefore terminated in 2003, when
the agency ran into financial problems.
Nonetheless, in the 2001-02 season,
TV viewership in the Men’s Champions
League rose to almost 600 million. Most
importantly, the collaboration produced
some important initial momentum for the
development of the Champions League’s
corporate identity. With the “EHF Champions
League” a new brand was created as a
first step towards the brand-building process.
At the same time, the playing system
was modified substantially. The reform
process had started already at Vösendorf
near Vienna in November 2001, when
the future of the Champions League was
on the agenda of the European Handball
Vision Forum held to mark the EHF’s tenth
anniversary. The complexity of the task of
bringing together divergent interests was
hinted at by EHF President Holmqvist in
2002: “The Champions League brings the
elite clubs of our continent together and
the other European Cup competitions also
guarantee top European events. However,
as the conditions for club matches differ
137
138
“The new look
Champions
League, with its
fresh and unified
approach is
a huge step
for European
handball”
EHF President Tor Lian
comments the new brand (2006)
tremendously from country to country, it
is extremely difficult to find a competition
system that suits the needs and capacity of
everybody. Despite the fact that a lot of improvements
have been made in this area, a
lot work still remains to be done.”
The reform was finally implemented
after a Champions League Convention
in February 2003. Based on this convention,
the EHF Executive resolved in March
2003 that, from the 2003-04 season
onwards, only national champions would
be eligible to play in the Men’s Champions
League. As this rule guaranteed or in
any case greatly facilitated access to the
EHF Champions League for high-calibre
brands such as FC Barcelona or THW Kiel,
all stakeholders gained more planning security.
Henceforth, the federations of major national
leagues such as Bundesliga or Asobal,
which held top places in the EHF ranking,
were allowed to enter a maximum of
three or two clubs in the EHF Champions
League. At the same time, the number of
contenders in the group phase was raised
to 32, who played in eight groups of four
to determine the teams playing in the last
sixteen. The group phase alone thus saw
96 matches and, due to the newly introduced
last sixteen round, the number of
knock-out matches increased to 30.
139
CLUB COMPETITIONS
140
“In Cologne, we are the
organiser and work with
local partners with whom
we have developed a very
trusting relationship
over the years. We also
have full control of entertainment
inside and
outside the arena.
This enables us to really
shape this event”
David Szlezak, Managing Director of EHF Marketing (2016)
141
CLUB COMPETITIONS
142
“This option
opens marketing
potentials for the
future and allows
more nations to
take part in
this event. A consequence
also
coupled with this
system is the fact
that more elite
clubs from top
handball nations
can take part in
the Champions
League in the
future”
EHF President Holmqvist about the new
Champions League system (2003)
“With this new format we want to open
this high-class competition to even more
nations than in the past. We believe that
this will add yet another degree of excitement,”
the EHF said in a communication.
“This option opens marketing potentials
for the future and allows more nations
to take part in this event. A consequence
also coupled with this system is the fact
that more elite clubs from top handball
nations can take part in the Champions
League in the future,” said EHF President
Holmqvist.´
From that date onwards, each group
featured at least one elite team, which
further increased the attractiveness of
this top event. Initially, Germany and
Spain each entered three teams in the
EHF Champions League. Two entrants
each came from Denmark, Hungary,
Croatia and Slovenia, plus nine national
champions and qualified teams. “Going
down this road was the obvious thing to
do,” said Uwe Schwenker, at that time
manager of THW Kiel. Other functionaries
such as Csaba Hajnal (Veszprém)
also regarded the new format as a logical
development.
The new system also increased the
sporting quality of the tournament, which
from then on saw several representatives
of high-class leagues vying for the title in
the most valuable club handball competition.
One example: in the 2003-04 series,
SG Flensburg-Handewitt was among the
best clubs in the world when they scored
double victory in Germany and entered
the Champions League finals. Under
the old system, SG would not even
have been allowed to take part in the
event as the previous year’s runners-up
champion. EHF President Holmqvist
thanked all those who had contributed
to the reforms: “These were a result of intensive
talks with clubs, federations and
league representatives to find a common
route for the future. The EHF has always
placed great emphasis and importance on
club completions and their development,
which was the reason behind the introduction
of a Champions League Convention.”
The collective efforts were soon
crowned by success. In the 2003-04 season,
the Men’s Champions League broke
all records. More than half a million spectators
flooded into the arenas, more than
330 TV broadcasts were registered, and
the clubs won more than half a million
euro in prize money (the women close
to 400,000 euro). The EHF Cup even attracted
more than 700,000 spectators,
almost three times as many as in the
1999-00 season.
These figures, of course, were attributable
to the fact that the teams playing in
the EHF Men‘s Champions League were
more evenly matched than ever before.
In the spring of 2002, the new champion
143
CLUB COMPETITIONS
“The EHF Cup in this novel form has
proven itself, and for the clubs it is
an attractive stepping stone to the
Champions League. This is our new
success story. The new competition
has now found its own place in the
handball landscape; it now has its
own identity, its own place next to
the VELUX EHF Champions League”
EHF President Jean Brihault at the EHF Cup Finals in Nantes (2016)
SC Magdeburg with their star player Olafur
Stefannson ended the predominance of
the Spanish clubs, which had continued
until 2001 (Portland San Antonio). They
were succeeded by the French champion
HB Montpellier, whose triumph in 2003
saw the rise of new star Nikola Karabatic.
Finally, in 2004, RK Pivovarna Lasko Celje
was the first Slovenian champion to gain
victory in the world‘s more prestigious
tournament.
Quotes from the victorious pros illustrate
the great value that the athletes were
meanwhile attaching to this title. “Winning
the Champions League is like taking
Olympic gold with the national team,”
said French goalkeeper Christian Gaudin
after winning the title with Magdeburg.
“This is a dream come true, it’s impossible
to put into words what I’m feeling,” said
Olafur Stefansson, when in 2009 he lifted
the trophy for the fourth time with BM
Ciudad Real.
For the women, winning the Champions
League was likewise the ultimate that an
athlete could aspire to. “This was a massive
match with an atmosphere I’ve never
experienced before. This is the greatest
moment in my wohle career!” said German
pivot Anja Althaus after her triumph
with Viborg HK in 2009. In the women’s
tournament, the development was basically
similar to the men’s. When the
era of HYPO Niederösterreich had ended,
a struggle ensued between the increasingly
strong Scandinavian clubs and
the highly ambitious clubs from Eastern
Europe. Post-2000, the Danish clubs
Slagelse and Viborg won the Women‘s
Champions League five times, the Slovenian
champion Ljubljana, the Hungarian
champion Györ and the Montenegrin
champion Budocnost Podgorica two times
each.
The first assessment of the reform of the
Men’s Champions League was in any case
quite positive. “The new playing system in
the Men’s Champions League brought a
number of new countries and TV stations
to the competition. The EHF is now doing
part of the Champions League marketing
’in house‘ and has significantly improved
the hours of TV-broadcasting. At the same
time, relations with new partners were created
in order to develop the product contin-
144
General Michael Wiederer said in January
2005. “The Champions League has been
working since we started to take care of TV
marketing ourselves. With currently 35 TV
agreements in 32 participating countries
we have seen enormous growth.”
The positive experiences with in-house
marketing finally prompted EHF officers
around President Tor Lian and Secretary
General Michael Wiederer to institutionalise
marketing in a newly started subsidiary.
In July 2005, the EHF launched a new company
under the name of EHF Marketing,
which has been focusing primarily on the
product development of the European club
competitions, with the EHF Handball
Champions League on the business agenda
in the initial phase. Decisive steps were
taken as early as the second half of 2005,
with the introduction of a TV Highlight
Magazine and greater TV coverage around
Europe.
uously in all aspects,“ (EHF Annual Report
2004). “There are still many challenges to
face, but the current positive development
proves that it is going in the right direction.”
Among the challenges was still marketing.
Since 2003-04, the EHF had done its own
marketing of EHF Champions League TV
rights and, partly, also marketing of perimeter
and floor advertising, and successfully so.
Prior to the 2003-04 season, the EHF had
started the by now long-standing partnership
with insurer Uniqa and, prior to the
2006-07 season, entered into a partnership
with sports floor manufacturer Gerflor,
which has likewise continued to date.
For the 2004-05 season, the EHF again
registered new viewer records. According
to an analysis of TV audiences in eleven
European countries, the EHF’s premium
product EHF Champions League reached
more than 350 million viewers. This was
also the result of the media strategy aimed
at producing moving pictures and delivering
them through multiple channels.
“Competing sharply with volleyball and
basketball, handball has carved out for itself
a very good position,” EHF Secretary
Further activities in 2005 included the
presentation of the new logos for the EHF
Cup, Cup Winners’ Cup and Challenge Cup
competitions. Trailblazing was the development
of a new look for the Champions
League and of additional key tools for staging
this top event in the summer of 2006.
“The new look Champions League, with its
fresh and unified approach is a huge step
for European handball,” EHF President Tor
Lian was pleased to announce. The Annual
Report 2006 stated: “EHF Marketing,
together with its partners, have worked
hard with the Champions League clubs to
present the Champions League with a new
look. Alongside the newly developed Corporate
Event Identity, the Regulations for
the Men’s Champions League have also
been newly drawn up, going into greater
detail in the event management side of the
competition. A Broadcaster Manual and
the selection of a pool of EHF Marketing Supervisors
to support both the clubs and the
marketing and TV partners at the matches
will give a further boost to the product.”
A unique floor design supplied by partner
firm Gerflor also contributed to the
new look. “This will give the Men’s Champions
League a universal look with its ‘black
and blue lagoon’ colours, taking the Men’s
Champions League into a new generation,”
as reported in the EHF Annual Report
145
CLUB COMPETITIONS
“The signing of Stefan
Lövgren as FINAL4 ambassador,
the communication
strategy prior to
the event, the flags and
banners in the City of Cologne,
the production of
the trophy by a renowned
artist and its completion
and presentation in the
presence
of the audience all
contributed to the
build-up of an extreme
level of expectations
and interest”
EHF President Tor Lian after the first FINAL4 event (2010)
146
147
148
“It was the purely Spanish 2011
final pitting Barcelona against Ciudad
Real that broke the ice. When 19,600
spectators were standing up in the
last minute of the final to celebrate
both teams it was for all to see that
this was a handball event, not a home
event. Today, the VELUX EHF
Champions League has reached
a level where the question of
which club will play in the FINAL4
no longer matters”
EHF Secretary General Michael Wiederer (2016)
2006. Thanks to the standardised floor,
TV viewers can now tell immediately that
they are watching a Champions League
match.
Since 2002, all details relating to the organisation
of European Cup competitions
have been discussed in obligatory workshops
attended by the stakeholders. “The
aim of this workshop was to provide all
teams with an update of information concerning
the situation of TV rights as well as
marketing activities“ (source: EHF Annual
Report 2002). “Teams were provided
with all necessary material concerning the
2002-03 competition and the occasion
gave the team representatives the opportunity
to make the first organisational
arrangements with each other.” Since
2006, clubs and media partners have been
supported at each venue and match by
an EHF Marketing Supervisor, who has
been helping with the implementation of
manuals and rules.
Other things also developed beautifully.
Prior to the Men’s Champions
League 2005-06 season, the EBU
produced the first TV signal for the
draw, which was held as a formal affair
at the Museum of Catalan History
in Barcelona. Since then, live streaming
has been a media standard. When, on
29 June 2007, the EHF hosted a Champions
League gala entitled “Celebrate the
Passion” at Vienna’s Uniqa Tower to mark
its 15th anniversary, officers and 300
honorary guests, among them the stars
Bojana Popovic and Nikola Karabatic, were
able to look back on the fantastic development
that the tournament had taken.
In the previous season, more than
210 million TV viewers had watched the
Champions League matches. Of the Men’s
Champions League matches, 524 hours
were televised; of the Women‘s Champions
League matches, which were still
played in four groups of four teams each
149
CLUB COMPETITIONS
150
“This was a
massive match
with an atmosphere
I’ve never
experienced
before. This is
the greatest
moment in my
whole career!”
German Pivot Anja Althaus after
winning the EHF Champions League
with Viborg HK (2009)
(with much fewer matches), more than
230 hours. Especially the partnership with
the Eurosport TV channel sent viewership
records tumbling. The second leg of the
Men’s Champions League 2007 – THW
Kiel vs. SG Flensburg-Handewitt – had
been covered by twelve cameras. In the
2006-07 season, the ehfcl.com website
published more than 500 pieces on the
Men‘s Champions League and more than
300 on the women’s tournament. As a
new feature from 2007 onwards, a standard
musical intro has been played at the
start of all Champions League games: the
“Anthem of the Champions”.
Two years later, EHF Marketing reported
that significantly more than 30 European
TV channels were broadcasting the games
of the Women‘s and the Men‘s Champions
Leagues. Another milestone in terms of
global reach was the partnership entered
into with the Dubai Sports TV channel in
2009. This channel guaranteed to bring
European club handball to more than 100
million households in the Middle East.
In the meantime, the EHF Champions
League playing format was updated once
again by introducing a main round from
the 2007-08 season onwards. In the
Women’s Champions League, the two
top teams of each group of four qualified
151
CLUB COMPETITIONS
for the main round, which was played in
two groups of four, with the winner finally
to be determined by knock-out matches
in the semi-finals and finals rounds. This
system survived until the 2013-14 season.
In the men’s competition, the best 16
teams of the preliminary round advanced
to the main round, which was played by
four groups of four, with only the group
winners entering the semi-finals which,
like the finals, were played as knock-out
matches. In the subsequent year, the EHF
already added a quarter-final after the
main round, which offered those placed
second in their respective groups another
chance to win the title.
The expansion of the EHF Champions
League, however, spelled the end of a competition
that the EHF had created in the
year 1996: the European Club Championships,
which had been open to the winners
of the four European Cup competitions.
The first men’s event hosted by TBV Lemgo,
the winner of the Cup Winners’ Cup
competition, in Bielefeld just before Christmas
1996, was won by FC Barcelona. In
the final tournament (known by that date
as the Champions Trophy) staged in Veszprém
in 2008, victory was taken by BM
Ciudad Real. For the women, the EHF had
organised the first European Club Championship
as early as 1994, with HYPO Niederösterreich
winning in Viborg. The final
event was then also conducted in 2008,
when Champions League winner Zwesda
Zwenigorod won the title at Chekhov.
From the 2015-16 series onwards, the
VELUX EHF Champions League has been
played by two groups of eight in the preliminary
round in close co-ordination with
the clubs, which have meanwhile been
integrated into the EHF organisation (see
chapter on Structure). Now, the two group
winners directly enter the quarter-finals.
Those in places 2 to 6 go on to the last sixteen
where they will encounter two further
clubs, winners from groups C and D. When
the plan for the FINAL4 tournament had
proven successful in the Men’s Champions
League, the EHF launched the same system
in the Women’s Champions League prior
to the 2013-14 season but left the qualification
round with 16 teams (four groups)
in place.
In the years after 2010, the EHF continued
fine-tuning the format of a number
of European Cup competitions. By abolishing
the Men’s Cupwinners’ Cup after
the 2011-12 season, the Federation also
streamlined competitions in the EHF Cup
below the premium product, the EHF
Champions League. As a next step, it was
decided to stage the Men’s EHF Cup finals
likewise in the Final 4 format, at the end
of the 2012-13 season. The inaugural
tournament played in Nantes was won by
Rhein Neckar-Löwen after a dramatic final
against hosts HBC Nantes.
Another major milestone in the Men’s
Champions League was the launch of
the VELUX EHF FINAL4 in Cologne in the
2009-10 season. The idea had been conceived
by EHF officers already years earlier
with the objective of developing better
marketing opportunities for the EHF
Champions League but had always been
thwarted by various circumstances. When
the EHF Executive finally adopted the final
tournament in Cologne, it also approved
a new playing system for the preliminary
round. Henceforth, 24 teams were to play
in four groups of six for the places in the last
sixteen, which, like the quarter finals, were
to be played as knock-out matches. The reduction
from 32 to 24 teams streamlined
the event and, thereby, raised the level of
sporting performance.
152
As the 2016 final tournament in Nantes
showed, this new format has also proved
successful. “The EHF Cup in this novel form
has proven itself, and for the clubs it is an
attractive stepping stone to the Champions
League. This is our new success story.
The new competition has now found
its own place in the handball landscape; it
now has its own identity, its own place next
to the VELUX EHF Champions League,”
as outgoing EHF President Jean Brihault
summed it up.
“It seems like we have the EHF Cup almost
on a par now with the Champions
League, it is not a minor competition and
we have the ambition to help it develop
even further. It would therefore be more
or less logical to also merge the Women’s
Cupwinners’ Cup with the EHF Cup as of
the 2016-17 season,” Brihaut said. “Having
seen its success, it now feels natural to
apply the formula to the women’s competition.”
Wiederer stated: “This decision will
strengthen European women’s handball in
general, as more clubs have the chance to
bridge the gap to the current top clubs. To
have a merged competition with a group
phase below the EHF Champions League
will ignite a professionalisation of women’s
clubs all over Europe.”
The most important step in the economic
and sporting evolution of the European
Cup competitions, however, was doubtless
the introduction of the VELUX EHF FI-
NAL4 for the year 2010. How sustainable
and attractive this tournament has been
and still is for the EHF’s partners has been
proven by the partnership with the Danish
VELUX Group, which, when the event was
announced for the year 2010, signed on
as title sponsor of the EHF Champions
League and has since regularly convened
its distribution partners at the Cologne
tournament.
“The decision to stage the tournament
and the choice of Cologne as its venue was
also a big risk, though, for if only 5,000
fans had turned up, the FINAL4 would
have been dead,” EHF Secretary General
Michael Wiederer recalls. Such concerns
proved unfounded, though, as only 200
seats of the huge LANXESS arena remained
vacant when the event was first launched
in 2010. “The signing of Stefan Lövgren
as FINAL4 ambassador, the communication
strategy prior to the event, the flags
and banners in the City of Cologne, the
production of the trophy by a renowned
artist and its completion and presentation
in the presence of the audience all contributed
to the build-up of an extreme level of
expectations and interest,” EHF President
Tor Lian was pleased to note after the first
FINAL4 event.
Another milestone of the VELUX EHF
FINAL4 was the year 2011. The second
153
“Winning the
Champions
League is like
taking Olympic
gold with the
national team”
French goalkeeper Christian Gaudin
after winning the EHF Champions
League with SC Magdeburg (2001)
edition of the event in Cologne disproved
the critics’ main argument that the tournament
would work only if won by a German
club. “It was the purely Spanish 2011
final pitting Barcelona against Ciudad Real
that broke the ice. When 19,600 spectators
were standing up in the last minute
of the final to celebrate both teams it
was for all to see that this was a handball
event, not a home event,” Wiederer recalls.
“Today, the VELUX EHF Champions
League has reached a level where the
question of which club will play in the FI-
NAL4 no longer matters.” This was last
demonstrated in the 2016 VELUX EHF
FINAL4 when, for the first time, the final
was played by two teams that were neither
from Germany nor from Spain – and this
did not make any difference to the atmosphere
in the LANXESS arena.
That the origins of the participating clubs
are meanwhile of almost no relevance at all,
is illustrated by the enormous demand for
tickets. At the 2016 finals weekend, tickets
on sale for the 2017 event were sold
out within hours. The fans have truly embraced
the VELUX EHF FINAL4 as a holistic
experience with bombastic showy elements
before the games, the opening ceremony
on Friday night with fantastic musical
acts and all that comes with it. Cologne has
evolved into a genuine European handball
institution, according to Wiederer. “The FI-
NAL4 is not only a beacon event in sporting
and organisational terms, but has always
been a great meeting place for the world of
handball.”
154
One of its great advantages is the fact
that, in staging the VELUX EHF FINAL4, the
EHF does not have to deal with changing
organising committees, as is the case with
the EHF EUROs. “In Cologne, we are the organiser
and work with local partners with
whom we have developed a very trusting
relationship over the years. We also have
full control of entertainment inside and outside
the arena. This enables us to really
shape this event,” says David Szlezak,
FINAL4 Manager and, since 2016, also
Managing Director of EHF Marketing. “It
is like coming back to a familiar place.
Everyone knows where to find things.
We are not continually confronted with
new situations. Processes can be organised
more easily.” For this reason,
the EHF has extended its agreement
with the LANXESS arena until 2020
and has thus created planning security.
The new format and the EHF’s evaluation
catalogue, which regulates clubs’ participation
in the VELUX EHF Champions
League, have likewise proven helpful,
according to Wiederer. “Many more
games were on an equal level, and
as the system is quite flexible we can
adapt the number of participating teams
if needed. But for the upcoming season
the system will remain completely
the same, then we will do an evaluation.”
The clubs’ response has been very
positive.
With the VELUX EHF FINAL4, the EHF
has reached dimensions that appeared
utopian when it first took control of the
club competitions in 1993. Today, hundreds
of media representatives attend club
handball’s flagship event and TV reach has
become huge. In addition, Cologne has
earned for itself a reputation of being at
the vanguard of professional handball, as
technologies such as goal cameras and instant
replay were tested and implemented
here at a high level for the first time. The
future of European club competitors, epitomised
by the Cologne tournament, is in
any case bright. Wiederer says: “We can
expect another top event in 2017.”
155
156
YES,
WE
CAN!
The development of handball has always been one of the
EHF’s core tasks. In the 1990s, the focus of educational
programmes was initially on the development of young
talent and on coaching and refereeing. Today, the Competence
Academy & Network (CAN) manages a wide
spectrum of activities apart from competitive handball.
157
DEVELOPMENT
“I am very proud of the
support from the EHF
and I am pleased to put
my effort into handball.
The studies were a
great platform of
knowledge presented
by our lecturers”
Graduate Grit Jurack about the EHF Handball Manager Programme (2016)
A
visit by high-ranking dignitaries.
On the evening of
27 May 2016, a delegation
from Brussels paid a visit to
German Sports University
in Cologne. Among the Members of the
European Parliament and the European
Commission was also Bogdan Wenta, the
coach of the Polish Vice World Champion
2007. The political leaders had accepted
an invitation extended by the EHF to attend
a formal ceremony in which the first
graduates of the EHF Handball Manager
Programme were presented with their
certificates on the eve of the VELUX EHF
Final4 2016. “This is a very good and
effective approach based on the dual career
concept,” Wenta said in praise of the new
education programme.
The graduates had passed their tests the
day before. The atmosphere in which EHF
President Jean Brihault opened the ceremony
with a speech sprinkled with humorous
remarks was therefore duly relaxed.
“This study guarantees education and sustainability
in European handball. The original
idea was addressed to us by the clubs
and thanks to the great cooperation we
finally managed to implement these studies.
We are proud of this great cooperation
with the German Sports University,” said
Brihault. Brihault, EHF Secretary General
Michael Wiederer along with Helmut
Höritsch (EHF Competence Academy &
Network) and Carmen Manchado (EHF
Competitions Commission) handed over
the certificates to the group of managers.
Some of the graduates had influenced
handball as players for decades. Together,
Henning Fritz and Holger Glandorf had
won the World Championship in Cologne
in 2007. Grit Jurack was one of the key
figures in the great era of HK Viborg. Other
graduates had a business background and
159
DEVELOPMENT
attended the seminar to further their professional
development, among them the
two Bundesliga managers Benjamin Chatton
(Hanover) und Axel Geerken (Melsungen),
who was named Best Student of the
Year. Emmanuelle Bru (HBC Nantes) has
likewise been working successfully in her
club’s management for quite a long time.
The participants had nothing but praise
for the high-calibre lecturers. “All lecturers
are top of the line in their respective fields,”
Chatton said. “I am very proud of the support
from the EHF and I am pleased to put
my effort into handball. The studies were a
great platform of knowledge presented by
our lecturers,” said Jurack, whose attendance
had been sponsored by the Women‘s
Handball Board.
This was the backdrop against which
the cooperation project between the
EHF and German Sports University had
evolved – to prepare future managers for
their duties in the handball business. Instruction
was provided in five comprehensive
modules: “Economic and legal requirements
of team sports”, “Team sport
governance and handball management”,
“Sport marketing and sponsorship”,
“Financing and licensing” and “Media and
communication training”.
“We started our initiative two years ago
and these studies will bring handball forward
in the future, will professionalise
this sport. The programme, conducted
by the German Sports University, is much
better than the manager programme in
basketball and the one planned in football,”
said Butzeck, director of Forum Club
Handball (FCH), one of the initiators of
the programme, who also attended the
awarding ceremony.
Programme Director Dr. Stefan Walzel
was highly satisfied with the outcome of
the first year of the European Handball
Manager Certificate studies. “We can be
proud of these certificate studies and the
achievement, as handball now is the role
model for other European sports. Those
new European handball managers are the
best ambassadors for the programme. All
graduates did a great job parallel to their
demanding jobs at clubs or federations.”
Meanwhile, word has got round of the
high quality of teaching in Cologne. The
next professional development pro-
160
“This study guarantees education
and sustainability in European handball.
The original idea was addressed
to us by the clubs and thanks to the
great cooperation we finally managed
to implement these studies. We
are proud of this great cooperation
with the German Sports University”
EHF President Jean Brihault about the EHF Handball Manager Programme (2016)
gramme, to be held in English, was immediately
fully booked. Among those who registered
were participants from Finland, the
Netherlands, the Faroe Islands, Montenegro,
Croatia and Denmark, including some
outstanding former professional players
such as the Spaniard Iker Romero (World
Champion 2005) and the Dane Lasse Boesen
(European Championship 2008).
“This shows that demand is substantial and
confirms the need to conduct such education
programmes,” said Helmut Höritsch
from the EHF, like Butzeck and Manchado
a member of the programme’s academic
advisory board.
The manager programme is one of the
numerous and comprehensive activities
that the continental federation has been
pursuing since its foundation with great
dedication and commitment to promote
the sustainable development of handball.
One can understand why the matches of
the EHF EUROs and the club competitions
attract more media interest,” says EHF
Secretary General Michael Wiederer: “But
one thing is clear: programmes designed
to advance and educate young people, to
enhance the professional qualification of
coaches and managers and to address areas
still in need of further development,
such as women‘s handball or beach handball,
are the third essential core task of our
organisation – and must continue to be in
the future.”
The determination and serious efforts
which the EHF has been applying to this development
work is highlighted by a glance
at the institutions that existed in the early
years of the federation’s history. In the federation’s
first Technical Commission, elected
in 1992 as a precursor of today‘s Executive
Committee, Jesus Guerrero Beiztegui
(ESP) was already specifically assigned responsibility
for “Youth, schools sport and
development“. “The EHF will do everything
to raise the popularity of the game and to
promote it in countries in which it is not yet
as well established as in the major handball
nations,” was how EHF Vice President
Hans-Jürgen Hinrichs phrased the umbrella
organisation’s vision at the time.
The first major project initiated by the
EHF in this context was the European Day
of mini handball, staged jointly with the
International Handball Federation across
Europe on 1 October 1994. The aim was
to give six-to-ten-year olds an opportunity
161
“The EHF will do
everything to
raise the popularity
of the game
and to promote
it in countries in
which it is not
yet as well
established as in
the major handball
nations”
Vision of EHF Vice President
Hans-Jürgen Hinrichs in 1992
to get to know and love the sport of handball.
The concrete description of the project
read as follows: “The objective being
pursued is to reach as many children and
their families through a large number of
events (e.g. game days, tournaments, festivals,
camps, etc.). To achieve the widest
possible publicity and media coverage for
the ‘minihandball venture’ it is planned to
get schools, clubs, municipalities, sponsors
and business people – as licensees – involved
in the organisation of these events.”
One of the first working groups set up by
the EHF met in Vienna on 28-29 August
1993 to organise this project. Its members
were: Rinck (FRA), Nilsson Green (SWE, on
behalf of the IHF), Guerrero (ESP), Hjorth
(DEN), Oppermann (GER), Garcia (POR),
Sollberger (SUI) and Helmut Höritsch as
the EHF administration’s responsible project
manager. The project involved the production
of brochures and advertising materials,
the shipment of more than 3500
mini-softballs and training for more than
300 coaches. It proved a major success and
was therefore repeated a number of times.
163
DEVELOPMENT
“We can be proud
of these certificate
studies and
the achievement,
as handball now
is the role model
for other European
sports. Those
new European
handball managers
are the best
ambassadors for
the programme”
Stefan Walzel,
German Sports University (2016)
But this was only the beginning. In February
1994, the Working Group on Development
discussed future strategies for
the development of handball outside the
core countries. This working group was
likewise made up of high-calibre experts,
among them Paul Tiedemann, coach of
the 1980 Olympic gold medallists, who
had gathered experience as a coach in
Egypt. The IHF had delegated Kozhukow.
Güntzel, Wiederer and Höritsch took part
on behalf of the EHF administration.
At this meeting, the following themes
were defined as the principal tasks for
the future: teaching aids, promotion materials,
more languages in publications,
international workshops and courses,
minihandball promotion and material,
methods of marketing and advertising,
ball supply, support of sports contacts
with other countries, rule experiment
tournaments.
On the basis of these deliberations,
a variety of activities unfolded steadily
throughout the 1990s. As early as November
1995, the EHF had agreed joint
development programmes with the federations
of Bulgaria, Great Britain, Malta,
Ireland, the Faroe Islands, Turkey,
Albania, Cyprus, Azerbaijan, Armenia,
Georgia, Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia. A
number of agreements also provided for
attendance of the 1st Marketing Seminar,
held in Vienna from 24 to 26 November
1995, and for computer training.
The goals of the workshop were: “To
find strategies to solve the most pressing
needs in marketing handball in the new
member federations, and to identify the
factors that are instrumental in attracting
financial resources.” Lecturers were Klaus
Anders and Horst Lichtner from CWL (today:
Infront), Erich Epple from UEFA and
Thomas Weber from Deutscher Handballbund
as well as Hans-Jürgen Hinrichs
and Michael Wiederer from the EHF.
164
In the same year, EHF officers showed
a fine sense of things to come when they
issued invitations to the 1st EHF Beach
Handball Experts Seminar held at Marsala/ITA
on 28 August 1996. This early
exchange of ideas, organised jointly with
the Italian Handball Federation, made the
EHF a pioneer of this discipline, which had
been launched in Italy at the initiative of
current EHF member Dejaco. Lecturers
discussed topics such as “EHF Beach Handball
Philosophy” (J. Guerrero), “Course objectives,
Rules, Activities” (T. van Linder)
and “Technical Development of Beachhandball”
(S. Montagni). Workshops were
conducted on rules, refereeing and training
for handball played on sand. The outcome:
the desire to cooperate with the global
federation IHF, the installation of a permanent
working group on beach handball,
the wish for the introduction of binding
rules, the compilation of a beach handball
calendar and the launch of international
tournaments under EHF control.
One year on, the EHF already offered an
enormous range of events and professional
development options. On the fringes of
the 3rd EHF Congress 1996 in Athens, a
workshop on ‘Women in Handball’ was offered,
conducted by Tor Lian (NOR). Working
with the French Handball Federation
(FFHB), the EHF organised the Top Coaches
workshop in Paris-Bercy, which provided
important input for the future training
of coaches. In addition, a workshop was
held on the topic “the EHF Office”, plus a
first Conference for Secretaries General,
the Lecturers’ Course Europe (in Alanya,
Turkey) and two EHF Referees’ Courses Europe
(in Gabrovo, BUL and Nitra, SVK).
In addition, well-attended workshop
groups discussed matters such as “Handball
Marketing in East European Countries”
and “A Concept for Referees Education and
Training”. Equally productive was the “Media”
Working Group held on the fringes of
the 1996 Women’s ECh at Herning with
experts such as TV commentators Gulyas
(HUN, TV), the rights specialist Anders
(SUI, CWL), and the journalists Pfeistlinger
(AIPS/AUT for printed media), Uhl (GER/
photo), and Vom Wege (GER/radio).
Many of the thoughts and ideas that
emerged from this brainstorming session,
in which EHF President Staffan Holmqvist
also took part, are current practice today.
The first EHF/IHF coordination meeting
on beach Handball was held already on 20
October 1996. Since that date, the two
umbrella organisations have been in close
consultation with each other on this matter.
The declared target of holding an EHF
tournament for beach handball as early
as 1997 proved overly ambitious, however.
Since 2000, however, the year that
saw the inaugural tournament at Gaeta/
ITA, EHF Beach Handball European Championships
have been a fixture on the EHF
event calendar. The first European champions
came from Germany (women) and
Spain (men).
In the meantime, a binding set of rules
has been developed and a European
Beach Tour introduced for club teams.
Since 2001, special courses have been
held for beach handball referees and
delegates at regular intervals. Since 2008,
a Beach handball Commission has been
regulating fundamental questions of beach
handball within the EHF. And, of course,
this discipline has gained added attraction
for many young handball players since the
International Olympic Committee (IOC),
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DEVELOPMENT
166
He is a star of indoor handball and
two-times European Champion with
the Danish team. Right wing Hans
Lindberg is also an enthusiastic beach
handball player, as he proved in the
Beach European Championships
2013 at Randers/DEN.
“This sport is great fun,” Lindberg
said at the time. “I need action.”
In the end, he took bronze
with Denmark.
167
168
“Within this project
we will establish
a new generation
of referees,
well-educated
and with international
experience
at a young age.
They are ready
for greater challenges!”
EHF President Staffan Holmqvist about
the 1st Young referee project (2001)
in consultation with the IHF, decided to include
beach handball in the programme of
the Youth Olympic Games 2018 in Buenos
Aires, replacing indoor handball. This history
of beach handball to date in any case
underlines that the EHF was extremely forward-looking
in thought and action when it
took its first look at this discipline in 1996.
The idea of joining forces with academics
to find answers to specific questions concerning
the ongoing development of handball
and to explore some aspects in greater
depth had in fact been conceived even
before the EHF Handball Manager event
in Cologne. It was in March 1997 that the
EHF started a close collaboration with the
University of Gdansk to study a variety of
issues. “The partnership mainly focuses on
scientific research and development work
in the field of handball methods and training”
(source: EHF Annual Report 1997).
“One of the possible areas of cooperation
with the University Gdansk could be: The
development and adoption of a computerized
statistic system for match observations
have been used in the 1996 Women’s
Junior ECh in POL.“ In addition, projects
were pursued that aimed at the installation
of a professional database for the European
Championships and the capture of
key parameters for use by the media.
Another major milestone in structuring
the training of coaches within the EHF was
what in 2000 was called the Rinck Convention.
The starting point of considerations
seeking to harmonise coach training in Europe
and to create multiple qualification
categories was the “Coach meets Coach”
EHF seminar held at Bressanone (ITA)
from 6 to 7 June 1998, during the final
weekend of the 3rd Men‘s EURO 1998.
On that occasion, lectures were given by
experts like Manfred Prause (EHF Competitions)
on Rule Changes, by Antoine David
(FRA) on Tactic Tools, by Hans Holdhaus
(AUT) on Anti-doping Measures and by Dirk
Jännichen (GER) on New Media. Among
the participants were renowned coaches
like Velimir Kljaic, Jiri Kekrt, Juan de Dios
Roman Seco, Daniel Costantini, Heiner
Brand, Sandor Vass, Lino Cervar, Vladimir
Maximov, Bengt Johansson and Zoran
Zivkovic, to name just a few.
As a follow-up event, a European Coaches
Symposium was held at the 4th EHF Men‘s
EURO 2000 in Zagreb. The idea of a European
License for coaches was finally institutionalised
at the highest level in Gdansk,
on 27-28 October 2000, through the
adoption of the Convention on the Mutual
Recognition of Coaches Education, known
as to as the Rinck Convention, named after
Claude Rinck (FRA), later on an honorary
member of the EHF, who as Chair of
the Methods Commission had been one of
the key promoters of this convention. Even
at that early date, the agenda already featured
topics such as “Physiology”, “Technical
preparation” and “Measurements and
Evaluation”.
This convention created the basis of a
modular European coach training programme.
The highest level that can be attained
is the EHF Master Coach. Since 2001,
courses leading to this qualification have
been conducted at regular intervals. Initially,
only six member federations signed
the Rinck Convention. Therefore, the first
Master Coaches certified in 2001 only came
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DEVELOPMENT
170
“The EHF Competence Academy
& Network was established
as an educational
service centre for EHF Member
Federations in order to develop
and deliver sport specific
educational and training
programmes. Competences
are offered by making use of
national and international
handball experts, external
lecturers from sports science,
medicine, other sports, business
(marketing, equipment
suppliers) and media (press,
TV, internet) as well as e-learning,
blended learning and
interdisciplinary courses of
various duration”
EHF Coordinator
Helmut Höritsch
171
“We started our
initiative two
years ago and
these studies will
bring handball
forward in the future,
will professionalise
this sport.
The programme,
conducted by the
German Sports
University, is
much better than
the manager
programme in
basketball and
the one planned
in football”
Gerd Butzeck, managing director
of Forum Club Handball (2016)
from the Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany,
France, Hungary and Russia, among them
celebrities such as Heiner Brand, Michal
Barda, Frantisek Taborsky, Lajos Mocsai,
Vladimir Maximov, Daniel Costantini, Patrice
Canayer and Olivier Krumbholz
Additional EHF member federations soon
followed suit. Today, the coach education
programme leading to the Master Coach as
the highest qualification comprises three
different modules and is generally recog-
nised and accepted owing to its superior
quality. “The courses were quite tough and
the Master paper quite a challenge. I was
one of the youngest candidates, alongside
well-known names such as Dagur Sigurdsson,
Bob Hanning, Klaus-Dieter Petersen
and Christian Schwarzer, who also
completed the Master Coach programme,”
said Spaniard Raul Alonso, coach of Austrian
national league club Schwaz Tirol, after
he had been awarded his certificate. “I
learned a lot that will prove useful. Group
dynamics and the exchange of experiences
were excellent and have provided me
with fresh ideas.” In the future, all coaches
having responsibility for teams entering
European competitions will be required
to hold an EHF Master Coach License.
In the late 1990s, the EHF defined coach
and referee training programmes for
young people as an additional new priority.
The 1st EHF Youth Coaches’ Course
was conducted at Partille/SWE on 27
and 28 June 1998, on the fringe of the
renowned youth tournament held near
Gothenburg. Further courses followed in
Estoril (POR) and Rotenburg (GER) in 1999.
From an early date on, the EHF’s aim has
been to also provide training for referees
at a high level – and, as history has shown,
quite successfully.
Among the participants of the 1st Young
Referees Course, likewise held in Partille
from 1 to 6 June 2000, were the young pairs
Horacek/Nowotny (CZE), Gjeding/Hansen
(DEN) and Lazar/Reveret (FRA). These
three pairs went on to officiate at many
major matches, and some of them still do.
And this is exactly what the EHF had in mind
when it initiated the Young Referee Project
in 2001. EHF President Staffan Holmqvist
said: “Within this project we will establish
a new generation of referees, well-educated
and with international experience at a
young age. They are ready for greater challenges!”
Another of the EHF’s core tasks in the development
of handball is the promotion of
women’s handball. This topic was on the
agenda already back in the mid-1990s, at
the 3rd EHF Congress in Athens, for example.
Further initiatives were the Women’s
Action Plan in 1999, the installation of a
system with “women coordinators” and
a Women’s Handball Day in 2000, when
the EHF was proactively recruiting female
members, asking them to take part as
coach, as player or as delegate or functionary.
“The European Handball Federation
is convinced that it is important to make
handball more accessible for women and
to help them to overcome regional and
cultural barriers,” (EHF Annual Report
2000).
Five years ago, the EHF re-launched this
promotional effort by creating the Women’s
Handball Development Programme.
On the fringe of the Women’s 19 European
Championship 2011 in Rotterdam; a group
of experts around the renowned coach Marit
Breivik (NOR), including Narcisa Lecusanu
(ROU), Linde Panis (BEL), Carmen Manchado
(ESP) and Katrine Thoe Nielsen (DEN),
compiled a list of requests, which Carmen
Manchado finally presented at the 10th
Conference of Presidents. The key items
were:
• The introduction of a Women’s Handball
Board
• Measures for more female representatives
in European handball
• A full time position dedicated to
women’s handball at the European
level
• Branding of women’s handball at the
European level
• The restructuring of competitions for
young female players
• Recruitment projects for girls and
studies on ball size
The success of this initiative can be seen
today in each Annual Report of the EHF.
The Women’s Handball Board has meanwhile
been created on an equal footing with
the Men’s Professional Handball Board, but
focuses strongly on the development of
women‘s Handball and of “Women in
Handball”.
In addition to numerous initiatives started
by national federations at the external
and internal levels, one of the major champions
of this process was Jean Brihault in
his then function as Vice President. He not
only designed the structure of the Professional
Handball Board, but also presented
a plan for the Women‘s Handball
Board at the Congress. Meanwhile, women
are represented in almost every Commission.
Within the EHF administration,
the share of female members has always
been quite large.
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DEVELOPMENT
174
“The courses were quite tough and
the Master paper quite a challenge.
I was one of the youngest candidates,
alongside well-known names such
as Dagur Sigurdsson, Bob Hanning,
Klaus-Dieter Petersen and Christian
Schwarzer, who also completed the
Master Coach programme”
Raul Alonso, coach of Austrian national league club Schwaz Tirol,
after getting the EHF Master Coach certificate (2015)
The EHF launched further programmes
aimed at enhancing the quality of the game
and, in a broad-based effort, winning new
members for the handball family, especially
children and adolescents. Numerous
publications were issued in print and
video in order to make handball popular
in those countries where the sport lacks
a long-standing tradition. “The Steps to
Handball” was the title of a brochure published
in 1997. One year later, the EHF
launched the Mini Winnies project, which
used cartoon characters to teach children
not only handball, but also fair play.
Groundbreaking, finally, was the EHF
symposium on “Handball at School”,
which had been developed jointly with
the Hellenic Handball Federation and was
finally held in Thessaloniki from 25 to 27
April 2002. As a follow-up event, the
“Handball at school” conference was
staged on the fringes of the EHF 20 Men’s
European Championship in Innsbruck
(AUT) four years later. The key question
was: “How to motivate pupils/children and
how to motivate teachers/parents/universities.”
Participants from 24 countries
held a lively debate about potential solutions
and ideas. Today, the “Handball at
School” project, which has, of course, been
inspired by the Minihandball Day organised
in the early days of the EHF, is one of the
most successful and most important projects
in the evolution of European handball.
Professional support for EHF development
programmes is provided by a large
number of renowned EHF lecturers and
outside experts covering coaching, refereeing,
and beach handball.
In 2001, the S.M.A.R.T. (Specific, Milestones,
Accepted, Realistic, Time-Limited)
programme was launched, which seeks to
support children and adolescents aged 10
to 18 in countries where handball must yet
be developed. This may involve, for example,
beach handball, but also the nomination
of young people for coaching and refereeing
courses and support in the shape of
balls or goals. These projects are evaluated
on an ongoing basis and terminated, if
targets are not met: “The EHF can stop the
support, if the implementation does not go
smoothly or the programme does not follow
the schedule agreed upon.”
And then the EHF created the Foster Project,
which encourages countries with a
long-established handball tradition to forge
partnerships with so-called “lesser handball
countries” for the purpose of transferring
their know-how. Again, this has been
175
an extremely effective project. Norwegian
handball, for example, has been supporting
pioneers in Georgia for many years. As
another example, the Hungarian Handball
Federation has been providing assistance
to Latvia.
For the past ten years, the EHF has been
promoting wheelchair handball. For this
purpose, educational videos were produced
and publications printed. “We have
to be aware of our responsibility to sportsmen
and women who are not able to play
handball in the traditional manner,” was
the outline of the EHF’s motives in the Annual
Report 2006. “Handball should not
be limited to age, gender or physical condition.
Handball is a sport for all with no borders.
The EHF has therefore been working
on the pilot project ‘Wheelchair Handball’.
After less than one year of preparation,
the EHF was able to organise its first wheelchair
handball demonstration in cooperation
with the 5-time winner of the Austrian
Wheelchair Championship, the ‘sitting
bulls’ first European tournament on the
occasion of the 2006 Youth Handball Convention
dated 18 November 06.” In 2013,
wheelchair handball was part of the European
Open in Gothenburg (SWE) – a first
tangible success.
To members striving for ongoing development,
the EHF provides support in other
areas as well. In 2008, the EHF released an
Arena Construction Manual with detailed
descriptions of the key requirements to
be considered in building modern handball
arenas. This Manual had been developed
by office-based experts working with
Jan Tuik, Chairman of the Competitions
Commission, who had studied the most
effective use of venues, including routing
systems for EUROs, for many years.
Two years later, the continental federation
started an EHF Infrastructure Support
Programme designed to assist smaller but
ambitious member federations in developing
a modern administrative system.
The EHF also sponsored projects such as
Street Handball, which had been largely
masterminded by the Danish international
player Lasse Boesen.
The EHF has also been pushing for more
proactive collaboration with academics
and, to this end, has regularly organised
scientific conferences since 2011. Today,
the EHF maintains close relations with the
Union of University Handball Teachers
(UUHT), which ensures the international
propagation of recent advances in handball
teaching and research. The EHF also
cooperates closely with the University Las
Palmas/Gran Canaria, whose work is dedicated
to referee education and school projects
– EHF referee video teaching material,
2D and 3D animated promotion web tools
for minihandball and „Handball at School“
developed by the University of Las Palmas”.
A major part of these activities have been
centrally controlled and coordinated by
the EHF Competence Academy & Network
(EHF CAN) established at the EHF office
in 2008. “The EHF Competence Academy
& Network was established as an educational
service centre for EHF member
federations in order to develop and deliver
sport specific educational und training
programmes,” explains EHF Coordinator
Höritsch. “Competences are offered by
making use of national and international
handball experts, external lecturers from
sports science, medicine, other sports,
business (marketing, equipment suppliers)
and media (press, TV, internet) as well as
e-learning, blended learning and interdisciplinary
courses of various duration.”
One of the most important tasks of
EHF CAN is the provision of a variety of
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DEVELOPMENT
178
teaching resources, says Höritsch. The EHF
CAN also serves as a documentation centre
which carefully archives development
and educational programmes. At the same
time, the EHF CAN also addresses the future
of the game and technical support
for the coaching process as well as referee
education, including game administration
(goal line proof, instant replay). A concrete
example of this work were the field tests in
the 2015-16 season, carried out with Fivers
players at the Wien-Margareten sports
hall. The object of these tests was “measuring
the game”: small chips attached to
the handball players’ bodies were used
to capture the players’ position data, distances
run, speeds and height of jumps.
To put it briefly: the game was practically
broken down into its components by the
computer.
This project opened up completely new
possibilities for presenting the sport of
handball to the public, as it provides broadcasting
TV stations with facts and figures to
illustrate the fine points of handball in the
VELUX EHF Champions League, for example.
But this is only one side of the coin. The
other side is the new options that the data
collected offer in the context of training science.
Academics, coaches, engineers, data
specialists and TV experts have yet to find
out, however, how the data recorded may
actually produce benefits for the game in
the future.
This is still going to take some time, but
is another concrete example of how proactively
the EHF CAN is working for the
future of handball. No matter at which
level, whether in teaching, in science, in economics
or in recruiting new members: the
development of handball is never complete;
the socio-aesthetic aspects of our team
sport are of great significance as a contribution
to society. The EHF CAN‘s mission
should therefore always be “to serve the
sport and its people”.
179
PARTNER
STATEMENTS
European handball, at this stage of its development, has a dual responsibility:
towards itself and towards the rest of the (handball)
world. Towards itself it has the duty to continue developing its competitions
and their global economy while preserving the principles
and values that have always been the fundamental ingredients
of handball in Europe. The basis of this humanistic approach is that
the development of performance should never jeopardise personal
development. Towards the rest of the world it has the duty to
continue contributing to the development of handball on the other
continents: in team sports, the strength of your opponent is by definition
constitutive of your own. The EHF is the institutional bearer
of these responsibilities and is excellently equipped to face them.
Jean Brihault (EHF President)
Thanks to the EHF, European handball has become a role model for
handball worldwide. Now, in order to further promote and develop our
sport, we have to work on ideas how to make our sport more attractive
and how to reach our target groups. I look forward to a continuous fruitful
and productive collaboration between IHF and the European Handball
Federation to further develop our sport.
Dr. Hassan Moustafa (President International Handball Federation)
While watching the handball tournament during the Olympic Games in
Rio de Janeiro, it was obvious to see what a great competition we have
in our sport. In the future we have to protect the quality of our sport,
we don’t need a complete change of the rules, and we have to show
the spectators worldwide that we live up to true sportsmanship. To be
able to guarantee a top-level competition we have to protect our main
actors - the players - we need top-level performances, we don’t need
random activities. Together with the EHF we have been able to get the
voices of the players heard, but this can only be the first step of a long
process; we are looking forward to find solutions to protect the players
and our sport.
Marcus Rominger (President European Handball Players Union)
180
With its breathtaking athleticism, gripping intensity, lightning-fast
breaks, and unmatched team spirit, handball is rightly poised to continue
growing in popularity across the world. VELUX Group is looking
forward to sharing this journey with the EHF, and we will continue to
highlight the drive, passion, teamwork and positive values that VELUX
Group shares with the sport. Handball has a great future, and VELUX
Group will be there to share the excitement with the fans.
Michael K. Rasmussen
(Director Marketing VELUX Group)
The world of sports is changing. Old sports disappear and new competitors
are on the rise. Sport becomes an event - a show, and the stars
are highly paid. In order to attract the younger generation, we need to
modernise and simplify our sport. We need a strategic plan on how to
develop handball Europe-wide, which includes ‘emerging nations’ i.e.
England. Hopefully, in a few years we will have a real European league
with top teams from all nations as the flagship and pulling locomotive
of our sport. European top clubs are ready to work in this direction in a
fair partnership together with the EHF!
Xavier O’Callaghan (President Mens Forum Club Handball)
181
PARTNER STATEMENTS
Having maintained a global, longstanding and valuable cooperation
with the EHF, Gerflor can only envisage the continued support of this
exhilarating sport. The EHF EURO events hosted across Europe remain
a great opportunity to promote and activate the celebration of handball
and with Taraflex floors as an integral part of these events; Gerflor continues
to contribute to the universal presentation of handball as well as
the EHF corporate identity. The European Handball Federation is a
great benchmark for all handball organisations and as the sport
continues to excel, Gerflor anticipates a lasting collaboration with an
organisation that places creativity and innovation at the fore.
Pierre Lienhard & Lionel Arlin
(Director International Operations & Event Manager of Gerflor)
The sport of handball has developed greatly since 1991 – not only internationally
but especially in Europe under the guidance of the EHF.
The increased profile of the sport and the European club competitions,
especially the yearly highlight of the innovative EHF VELUX FINAL4
Champions League, has brought the sport into a very positive light. We
have always been able to rely on the EHF to provide optimum working
conditions for the media and AIPS is extremely honoured to have EHF
as one of our official partners. The partnership is cemented in the
yearly “Media Get-together” jointly organised by the EHF, AIPS Handball
Commission and the city of Cologne. Congratulations on the silver
anniversary of one of Europe’s most dynamic sports federations!
Gianni Merlo (President International Sports Press Association)
The future is very positive for European handball in general and
women’s handball in particular. Handball is the best team sport for
women, both for players and spectators, with its technique, speed and
thrill. Handball has everything what modern people want.
Arne Elovsson (EHF Vice-President)
Women are becoming more active in sports today; and the share of
women in sports is constantly growing. Handball shall use this trend
to stimulate growth in the women sector. Jean Brihault put emphasis
on women’s handball in the past – and this has to be continued in the
future! It is easier to become the leading Olympic women’s team
sport than it is to become n°2 (after football) in men’s team sports.
This should be the target. The EHF and women’s clubs need to closely
cooperate to achieve this!
Zsolt Akos Jeney (President Women´s Forum Club Handball)
182
It has been a great honour for us to accompany and support the EHF for
25 years of development and growth. Jointly, we have delivered both
spectacular sports moments and strong commercial success. And the
future looks equally promising: European handball is on the right path
to master digital opportunities, access new markets and engage more
and more fans around the world. Handball, its teams and stories build
an essential part of the European sports landscape, and Infront will
cease no effort to further strengthen the position and impact of the EHF
flagship events going forward. Our Infront and broader Wanda Sports
team truly lives and breathes handball – sharing the passion of our EHF
colleagues for the sport.
Philippe Blatter
(President & CEO Infront Sports & Media AG)
Aristotle said “the secret of being able to, lies in wanting to”…in all my
positions as a player, and on the other side of the court, I have met so
many people who are really willing to work for our beloved sport. The
future of handball will be a bright one. Our social interaction is currently
undergoing a radical change towards a digital transformation; thus
sport in general and handball need to adapt to this new situation and its
demands. But, the basis of successful handball will always stay the same:
contribute to your team and experience the great power of moving together
in the same direction.
David Szlezak (Managing Director EHF Marketing GmbH)
Founded in 1991 with more or less only one person in an office with a
desk and a chair, the EHF made a tremendous development in the last
25 years. EHF and EHFM pushed the European Championships and the
Champions League to an extraordinary level, and established a high
professional administration in Vienna. I am convinced that the European
handball family will master the challenges of the next 25 years and
improve the status of handball in a changing society and media world.
Frank Bohmann
(President European Professional Handball Leagues Association)
183
PARTNER STATEMENTS
Through the fortunate support of the City of Vienna and the Austrian
Olympic Committee, in 1991, the EHF succeeded in bringing the
seat of the organisation to Vienna. Through the work of the European
Handball Federation, handball has developed enormously both in
public perception and quality in recent years. Through the presentation
of our sport at European Championships or the Champions
League Final4, the EHF managed to establish handball as a premium
European sport. We all wish a successful future for our sport of
handball.
Gerhard Hofbauer (President Österreichischer Handballbund)
The European Handball Federation has led the way in promoting handball
to a global audience. We have seen handball audience numbers
continue to grow with increasing levels of engagement. Over the last
years MP & Silva managed to involve new broadcaster and consolidate
the number of more traditional broadcast partners, all resulting into a
significant year on year increases in the number of hours showing the
sport across multiple territories. MP & Silva is proud of its strong relationship
with the European Handball Federation and looks forward to
strengthening this partnership with the view to taking the distribution
and the awareness of European handball events to the next level.
The future looks immensely positive for handball and its fans.
Roberto Dalmiglio (Managing Director Europe MP & Silva)
184
Having lived and participated in these 25 years of our young European
Federation, my first words are dedicated to all the dreamers that have
built a strong, democratic, cooperative and very professional organization
without losing the spirit of sport. In Europe, handball is a sport
with high educational value, essential in any school and small community,
and strong and spectacular with all the conditions to be leader in
the biggest sport events. To win the future, we have to win the youth in
each school, in each city, in all European countries promoting equal opportunities,
especially the innovation and education, and cooperation
between all stakeholders. The future is ours and the EHF will continue
to be our pride.
Rui Coelho (President EHF Court of Handball)
Our sport must continue to be developed further; developments in the
area of technology and business that previously would have taken two
generations now takes place within a few years. We must preserve the
essence of our exciting sport and affiliate the new generation to us through
innovation and emotion as active and ordinary consumers.
Michael Wiederer (EHF Secretary General)
185
PHOTOS
PROLOGUE
Pages 16-17 European Cup 1983/84, THW
Kiel (Wiemann) vs. Metaloplastica Sabac (Basic)
Page 18 scene European Cup Final 1972: Partizan
Bjelovar vs. VfL Gummersbach Page 20 first
row: European Cup Final 1967, Dukla Prag vs.
VfL Gummersbach. Second row: Joachim Deckarm
in action vs. Tatabanya (1979) – European
Cup-trophy, 1974 Page 21 Karl Güntzel.
STRUCTURE
Pages 22-23 meeting Executive Committee in
2014 Page 24 second row: Tor Lian – Staffan
Holmqvist (left). Third row: Joanna Mucha,
Jean Brihault, Andrej Krasnicki Pages 25-26
11th Ordinary Congress 2012, Monte Carlo
Page 27 first row: 10th Ordinary Congress
2010, Kopenhagen – Claude Rinck, Jozef
Ambrus Page 28 Veronique Pecqueux-Rolland
(left), Nodjyalem Myaro Page 31 Jean Brihault,
Jan Tuik (background) Page 32 Second row
(from left): Markus Glaser, Helga Magnusdottir,
Jerzy Eliasz, Ralf Dejaco – Andrea Moser. Third
row: Arne Elovsson, Jesus Guerrero (above),
Janusz Czerwiński Pages 36-37 12th Ordinary
Congress 2014, Dublin Page 38 Markus
Glaser Page 39 Sian Rowland Page 40 first
row: Frantisek Taborsky (left), Claude Rinck
– EHF-Headquarter. Second row: Executice
Committee 2012, Monte Carlo. Third row:
Predrag Boskovic, Leopold Kalin Page 41 first
row (from right): Gerhard Hofbauer, Martin
Hausleitner. Third row: Andrea Moser, Ralf Dejaco
(from left) Page 44 first row: Jean Brihault,
Marcus Rominger – Lidija Bojic-Cacic. Second
row: 10th Extraordinary Congress , Limassol
(Cyprus) – Morten S. Christensen. Third row:
Gerd Butzeck, Joan Marin, Jesus Guerrero – Tor
Lian. Forth row: 10th Ordinary Congress 2010,
Kopenhagen Page 46 first row: Alexander
Toncourt – John Pedersen, Vesna Lazic. Second
row: Tor Lian, Prince Frederik from Denmark
– Hans Holdhaus, Helga Magnusdottir Page
47 first row: Christoph Gamper – Georgeta
Lecusanu, Viktor Poladenko. Second row (from
left): Helga Magnusdottir, Leopold Kalin, Jan
Tuik, Sandor Andorka, Jesus Guerrero, Carmen
Manchado – Marsha Brown, Michael Wiederer
Page 48 first row: Janka Stasova – JJ Rowland.
Second row: Hans-Jürgen Hinrichs, Dr. Hassan
Moustafa, Peter Mühlematter. Third row: Frantisek
Taborsky – TV-Reporter (Eurosport), Tor
Lian.
EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS
Pages 54-55 Winner Men’s Euro 2016: Germany
Page 56 first row: feature Men’s EURO
2016. Second row: Lukas Nilsson, Laszlo Nagy
Pages 57-58 Winner 11th Women’s EURO
2014: Norway Page 59 first row: Montenegrin
Fans, Women’s EURO 2014. Second row:
Anita Kulcsar in 2000 Page 61 Dragan Skrbic,
Michael Wiederer, Uros Zorman (from left)
Page 62-63 Messecenter Herning, 11th Men’s
EURO 2014 Page 64 Final Women’s EURO
2014 Pages 66-67 Dagur Sigurdsson, 9th
Men’s EURO 2010 Page 68 first row: Winner
4th Men’s EURO 2000: Sweden – Markus Baur,
Daniel Stephan (from left). Third row: Sann
Solberg, Heidi Løke – 7th Men’s Euro 2006,
Lars Christiansen Page 69 Aron Palmarsson
Page 70 first row: Krakow Hall at the 12th
Men’s EURO 2016. Second row: semi-final
Germany-Norway, EURO 2016 – Vladimir
Maksimov. Third row: Winner 11th Women’s
EURO 2014: Norway Page 72 Nikola Karabatic
(left), Luka Karabatic Pages 74-75 Jérôme
Fernandez, 10th Men’s Euro 2010 Page 76 first
row: Magnus Wislander, Oleg Khodkow, Staffan
Olsson, Igor Lawrow, final 4th Men’s EURO
2000 – Talant Dushebajew in action, 2nd
Men’s EURO 1996. Second row: Genius Ivano
Balic against defender Didier Dinart – Renato
Vugrinec and teammates, 6th Men’s EURO
2004 Page 77 Thomas Mogensen (left), Momir
Ilic (2012) – Fan 11th Men’s EURO 2014.
Second row: Lasse Svan Hansen – Ivano Balic,
Jesper Jensen Pages 78-79 Media Call, 12th
Men’s EURO 2016 Page 80 Sabina Jacobsen
(left), Isabelle Gulldén Page 82 first row: Kiril
Lazarov – Marta Mangué Gonzalez. Second row:
Medal Ceremony, 11th Women’s EURO 2014.
Third row: Estevana Polman (left), Sanne van
Olphen –11th Women’s EURO 2014
Page 83 first row: Jelena Eric, Tatjana Logvin.
Second row: Alain Portes Pages 84-85 Cabral
Barbosa Page 86 first row: media – Thierry
Omeyer, Zita Newerla. Second row: Stadthalle
Vienna, 9th Men’s EURO 2010. Third row:
Timeout Coach András Németh – Heidi
Løke in action. Forth row: mixed zone 11th
Men’s EURO 2014 Page 88 first row: Hanna
Fogelström – Guro Røen, Kjersti Arntsen.
Second row: Lina Olsson Rosenberg – Winner
4th Women’s EURO 2000: Hungary – Heidi
Johansen. Third row: Mette Vestergaard Larsen
– feature referee. Forth row: Katrine Lunde
Page 89 first row: Carmen Martin Berenguer.
Second row: trophies Women’s EURO 2014.
Third row: scene Women’s EURO 2000,
Romania. Forth row: camera on the pitch, final
Women’s EURO 2014 Pages 90-91 feature
Men’s EURO 2014 Pages 92-93 EHF members
2008 in Stavanger.
YOUTH EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS
Pages 94-95 scene Men’s 18 EURO, Estonia
Page 96 Benoit Konkoud, Men’s 18 EURO
186
2014 – party Time Women’s U 19 EURO 2013
Page 97 Domagoj Duvnjak Page 98 Christina
Neagu – Medal Ceremony Women’s 19 EURO
2013 Page 99 Medal Ceremony Men’s 20
EURO 2006 Pages 100-101 Estonian Team
Men’s 20 EURO 2006 Page 102 first row: U
20 Team Austria. Second row: fans Women’s
17 EURO 2013 – scene Men’s 18 EURO. Third
row: Domagoj Dunvjak – Medal Ceremony
Women’s 17 EURO 2013 Page 104 first row:
Medal Ceremony Women’s 17 EURO 2013 –
Mikkel Hansen. Second row: Opening Ceremony
Men’s 20 EURO 2006. Third row: referee
Women’s 17 EURO 2013 – Nikola Bilyk Page
105 Sweden vs. Germany, Men’s 20 EURO
2006. Second row: Winner Mens‘ 18 EURO
2014: France. Third row: Women’s 19 EURO
2005 Page 106 first row: Mait Patrail – features
Youth European Championships. Second row:
group phase Women’s 17 EURO 2013 Page
108 first row: Winner Women’s 19 Euro 2013:
Russia. Second row: Qualification Event, Faroe
Islands – Women’s 19 EURO 2013. Third row:
Bronze Medal Women’s 19 EURO 2013: Denmark
– Dionne Visser Page 110 first row: Daniel
Stephan, Stefan Kretzschmar. Second row:
Coach Marit Breivik (left), Kjersti Grini. Third
row: Silver Medal EHF 18 EURO 2006: Denmark
Page 111 Medal Ceremony Women’s
17 EURO 2013 Pages 112-113 Medal Ceremony
Women’s EURO 2012 Pages 116-117
Medal Ceremony Men’s EURO 2012
CLUB COMPETITIONS
Pages 118-119 trophy VELUX EHF Champions
League Page 120-123 first row: Viborg
HK, Winner EHF Women’s Champions League
2009 – Györi Audi ETO KC, Winner MVM
EHF Champions League 2014 – Budocnost
Podgorica, Winner 2015 MVM EHF Champions
League 2015. Second row: FC Barcelona,
Winner VELUX EHF Champions League 2015
– SG Flensburg-Handewitt, Winner VELUX EHF
Champions League 2014 – BM Ciudad Real,
Winner EHF Champions League 2009 – KS
Vive Tauron Kielce, Winner VELUX EHF Champions
League 2016 Pages 123-125 features
VELUX EHF Final4, LANXESS arena, Cologne
Page 126 first row: Media Centre LANXESS
arena. Second row: Michael Wiederer, Medal
Ceremony MVM EHF Champions League 2015
Page 126-127 Olafur Stefansson, VELUX EHF
Final4 2012, semi-final Füchse Berlin vs. FC
Kopenhagen Page 127 first row: feature EHF
Champions League 2006/07. Second row:
medals EHF Champions League Final 2009
Page 128 Christian Schwarzer (left), Magnus
Wislander, final EHF Champions League 2000
– Deja Doler Page 129 Katrine Froelund –
Bojana Popovic Page 128-129 Laszlo Nagy
(background) Page 130-131 Opening Show,
VELUX EHF Final4 2015 Pages 132-133
Frederik Petersen, Konstantin Igropoulo, EHF
Cup Final4 2015 Page 134 first & second row:
features city of cologne. Third row: Stefan
Lövgren Page 135 first row: LANXESS arena,
Cologne. Third row: show act VELUX EHF
Final4 2015 – fans KS Vive Tauron Kielce
(2016) Page 136 first row: David Szlezak, Peter
Löscher – Katrine Lunde. Second row: media
box sky. Third row: fans, VELUX EHF Final4,
2016 – King Juan Carlos, David Baruffet Page
139 first row: feature LANXESS arena. Second
row: Ivan Cupic. Third row: Anita Görbicz Page
140-141 Opening Show VELUX EHF Final4
2016 Page 142 Cecil Langanger Pages 146-
147 Gudjon Valur Sigurdsson Page 148 first
row: Sandra Toft. Second row: features VELUX
EHF Final4. Third row: Press Centre – Krzysztof
Lijewski Pages 150-151 Luc Abalo with fans
Page 152 Gunnar Prokop Page 153 (from
left): Jean Brihault, Tor Lian, Michael Wiederer
Pages 154-155 features final tournaments EHF
Champions League.
DEVELOPMENT
Pages 156-157 feature beach handball
Page 153 feature beach handball Page 160
feature wheelchair handball Page 162 first
row: Vanja Antic (front), Jelena Jakovljevic –
Ole R. Jorstad. Second & third row: features
beach handball Page 163 first row: referee
beach handball. Second row: demonstration
street handball, 2010. Third row: Rui Coelho
(left), Marco Trespidi (middle), Helmut Wille
Pages 164-165 feature beach handball Pages
166-166 Hans Lindberg Page 168 first row:
Julie Bonaventura (left), Charlotte Bonaventura.
Second row: feature beach handball
Pages 170-171 Helmut Höritsch Page 172
first row: Monika Flixeder. Second row: Peter
Sichelschmidt. Third row: Doru Simion. Forth
row: Peter Fröschl Page 174 delegates and
referees, 11th Men’s EURO 2014 Page 176
first row: Alfred Gislason, Peter Kovacs. Second
row: Lino Cervar. Third row: Sebastian Helbig,
Marcus Geipel, Martin Gjeding, Mads Hansen
– Johan Ingi Gunnarsson. Forth row: Henrik La
Cour – Dragan Nachevski Page 176 Jiri Novotny,
Vaclav Horacek Pages 179-179 feature
beach handball.
PARTNER STATEMENTS
Page 181 Michael K. Rasmussen Page 183
Philippe Blatter Page 184 Gerhard Hofbauer
Page 185 Rui Coelho.
187
PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Marsha Brown
Erik Eggers
Christoph Gamper
Thomas Krämer
JJ Rowland
Michael Wiederer
TEXT
Stadionwelt/Erik Eggers
DESIGN / POST PRODUCTION
die Plantage Kreativ GmbH
Markus Wucherer
Melanie Hauber
Kathrin Kopietz (lächle)
PHOTOGRAPHY
Axel Heimken
Imago
Uros Hocevar
Horstmüller
Rafal Oleksiewicz
Sascha Klahn
Stadionwelt
Helmut Steickmann
EHF Media
PRINT
Westermann Druck GmbH (Zwickau)
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rights reserved. All photographers
presented in this book are protected by
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Consequently, none of these photographs
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