SC Magdeburg has already won the trophy at the Handball Club World Cup twice in a row, and now there is a chance for a hat-trick of titles in Dammam, Saudi Arabia. The incentive is great: the winner will receive prize money of 400,000 US dollars. In the preliminary round the SCM meets an old friend.
There was great celebration: SC Magdeburg will take the trophy for the second time in 2022.
Will SC Magdeburg score the third goal? Already on Tuesday (November 7th, 5:30 p.m. in the SpiO live ticker) things will get hot in the truest sense of the word for coach Bennet Wiegert’s team, then the SCM will take part in the Club World Cup in Saudi Arabia.
There is still space in the SCM display case
30 degrees outside temperature, the people of Magdeburg already know the whole thing. Both 2021 and 2022 If they have already won the title at the IHF Super Globe, there should still be room for the third trophy in the SCM showcase. The tournament runs until next Sunday (November 12th. Sports in the East ticks all Magdeburg games live in the SpiOapp and on sport-im-osten.de).
Defending champion requested on Tuesday
As always, it will be a difficult undertaking in Saudi Arabia. The defending champion’s first opponent at the start of the tournament is the host Al-Khaleej Club, which has been reinforced with a number of European professionals. FC Barcelona and Füchse Berlin (both teams with wild cards), for example, have one more day to get used to the game.
Complicated arrival in different groups
The matter is difficult for the Magdeburgers, as 14 SCM players were recently with their national teams and now have to make the long journey from various locations. “The players are traveling in different groups via Doha. Some come from Tunisia, some directly from Norway. Let’s hope that we have everyone on board for breakfast on Tuesday,” said SCM managing director Marc-Henrik Schmedt on SpiO-Microphone. Coach Wiegert added: “The preparation is of course not optimal when you have a game against the home club on Tuesday.”
SCM group with Khaleej and Brisbane
The game is played in the port city of Dammam in four groups of three teams each. The best team in each case qualifies for the semi-finals. “The field of participants is clear, it will be a difficult task,” emphasized Magdeburg’s managing director Schmedt.
In addition to the Saxony-Anhalt team, Barcelona, the SCM final opponents of the last two years, Champions League finalist Kielce and HBL leaders Berlin are among the favorites. First, however, Magdeburg has to solve the compulsory tasks in Group C against Khaleej and the University of Queensland, the Oceania champions from Brisbane, Australia (November 9th, kick-off: 2:45 p.m.).
Graphic Super Globe SC Magdeburg Al Khaleej
SCM knows the Saudi club from last year
The Magdeburgers still know Khaleej from the Club World Cup in 2022, when they defeated the Saudi team 35:29 and made it to the semi-finals. There they managed to beat Egyptian record champions Al-Ahly 36:28 before Wiegert’s team beat FC Barcelona in a dramatic final 41:39 forced to their knees after extra time. The year before, the SCM had been crowned club world champions for the first time in the final with a 33:28 win against Barcelona.
“Want to come back with something countable”
As in the previous two years, the preliminary round should of course not be the end. The SCM has big plans again. “If you can take part in the tournament for the third time and have won twice, we obviously want to come back with something worth counting,” said Schmedt.
High fives: Coach Bennet Wiegert (middle) in the first moments after the successful title defense against Barcelona in October 2022.
The prize is hot: $400,000 in prize money
The price is also hot. The Green-Reds have already enjoyed the prize money twice, and this time too the title holder will receive $400,000. “That then goes down to third place,” said Schmedt, referring to the “consolation prizes”. The game for third place and the final will take place on November 12th.
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