The EHF European League starts its new season on Tuesday. The top-class field of participants also includes four German teams who have every hope of succeeding last year’s winner Flensburg. But what significance does the title actually have?
MT Melsungen was only three points short of last season EHF Champions League. It would have been the first participation ever for the Bundesliga club from northern Hesse and the next step towards finally establishing themselves as title candidates. In the last few meters, SC Magdeburg moved just ahead of MT and so at the end of the season it was called the European League instead of the premier class.
Pure dominance: nine German winners in ten years
Where Melsungen already last year Final Four achieved in Hamburg and narrowly missed winning the first international title in the club’s history. In the end, SG Flensburg-Handewitt won the title – for the second time in a row. That wasn’t particularly surprising, because no competition is as characterized by German success as this one European League of men. But how valuable is this triumph and why can no country end German dominance?
Even without Jim Gottfridsson: defending champion Flensburg is once again one of the big favorites in the new season
Of the ten most recent winners in the second most important competition in European handball, nine came from the Handball Bundesliga. Only Benfica Lisbon interrupted the series in the 21/22 season and narrowly prevailed against SC Magdeburg in the final. The last time there was a final without German participation was in 2014, when the Hungarians were eliminated Szeged against Montpellier won – a rarity that has only happened four times since 1993.
In the new season, four German teams will once again be in the group phase, two of which are almost certainly among the favorites. While TSV Hannover-Burgdorf should be happy about further international experience and MT will have legitimate hopes, the European League is more of a small consolation for THW Kiel and SG Flensburg-Handewitt. Of course, this is also due to the financial impact.
International stars and opponents good for ticket sales
In the Champions League would be illustrious names like that FC Barcelona or Paris St Germain visiting the Kiel Wunderino Arena. From October 14th, THW will start in Group B against teams that managing director Viktor Szilagyi also had to look up. Because over Ostrovia Ostrow Wielkopolski (Poland) doesn’t know much at the moment, said Szilagyi after the draw. They haven’t played against BSV Bern (Switzerland) yet either, but they’re excited about the challenge.
The fans of SG Flensburg-Handewitt, who are used to success, will also be there AHC Potaissa Turda from Romania or the Spanish team IRUDEK Bidasoa Irun from Group A may not have had the entire club history ready. On the club website it was said that the SG was entering “a lot of new European territory”. Well-known opponents’ names would probably have been more promising advertising for ticket sales for home games.
European clubs are stepping up and putting pressure on them
Nevertheless, although both northern clubs were part of the European premier class for a long time and contested the final against each other in both 2007 and 2014, the EHF European League far from being a sure-fire success. In more and more countries in Europe, strong teams are developing behind the top national teams RK Nexe (Croatia) or FTC Green Collect (Hungary), who have a realistic chance of challenging the Germans for the trophy.
Ex-Bundesliga player Borge Lund has been coaching the Norwegian club Elverum since 2020 and is playing a key role in the recovery.
Other participants have already gained Champions League experience themselves in the past, like Elverum handball (Norway) or the FC Porto (Portugal). The fact that German dominance is still so oppressive underlines once again for HBL managing director Frank Bohmann claimbeing the strongest league in the world still applies to the German Bundesliga. Only in the “third class” competition, the European Cupno German team is represented.
Flensburgers celebrate “Back 2 Back” triumph with thousands of fans
And what the title means to the teams themselves was seen in May 2025 when SG Flensburg-Handewitt won the title. Coach Ales Pajovic’s team had had a mixed Bundesliga season up to that point, including a change of coach. The frustration about it was after that Final victory over the top French team HB Montpellierquickly forgotten. More than 2,000 SG fans welcomed the team to the Flensburg Arena shortly before midnight.
Flensburg’s coach Ales Pajovic was able to celebrate several times in the European League final against Montpellier
A difference to the celebratory pictures of the Magdeburgers, which appeared just weeks later in the Champions League triumphant was not visible. “There is nothing bigger than a European final”said the Dane Lasse Möller at the time. Simon Pytlick spoke of one “absolutely awesome weekend”and Pajovic also classified the victory accordingly: “Unbelievable. Unbelievable. […] This success means a lot to me.”
More balanced than ever: European League starts new season
For teams, titles are primarily successes that are not directly offset against each other, but rather achieved over months of hard work. Even Jim Gottfridsson, who has won countless titles and awards, said this afterwards European League-Triumph that he feels like one “Feel like a child at Christmas”.
Maybe that’s exactly where the answer lies: As long as a title arouses emotions, it remains relevant – regardless of whether it’s a premier class or a consolation prize. And due to the increasing European competition, it could become a real challenge to German dominance this year.