One tenth of the gentlemen
That’s how little the DHB players earn in the club
12/12/2025 – 1:08 p.mReading time: 2 minutes
Germany is currently excited about the handball players. Normally, however, the DHB women are hardly the focus. This is also reflected in the pay.
The German handball players are fighting against world champion France this Friday for a place in the World Cup final. DHB sports director Info Meckes spoke of a relaxed, focused and greedy selection. “Women want more. Maybe something really, really big will happen,” he said.
The DHB women know that for them it’s not just about taking part in the World Cup final, but also about valuable attention for their sport. Their international matches are not normally shown on public television, but today Das Erste is showing the game.
The national players are hoping for a boom that will ultimately translate into higher long-term interest and better pay. Women in the Bundesliga currently earn around a tenth of what men earn, with the average gross monthly wage estimated at 30,000 euros. This is also why some players earn something extra on the side. According to the “FAZ”, for example, Jenny Behrend from VfL Oldenburg does a mini-job at a logistics company for 556 euros.
In any case, hardly any players in the DHB selection can make a living from sport. Captain Antje Döll is a senior police detective, Jolina Huhnstock trained in chemistry and is still studying nutritional sciences. Annika Lott began studying law in autumn 2018 and is currently studying sports management. Julia Maidhof is a trained teacher, Alexia Hauf completed dual training as an educator and also worked in a daycare center near Blomberg (North Rhine-Westphalia). However, she is now part of the Bundeswehr’s sports support group and is no longer active in her former role.
Emily Vogel decided to study business psychology and business administration, Katharina Filter chose medical technology, and Lisa Antl chose social work.
Another option for many is to move abroad. There the players can live on their salary. In Denmark, France and Hungary you can get up to 8,000 euros net per month.
This Friday evening, however, the study programs and mini-jobs will be on hold when things get down to business against the world champions in Rotterdam. You can follow the game live in the ticker on t-online from 5:45 p.m.