EHF Euro - European Hattrick Federation

NEWS

19.2.2021 Round of 16 Preview

The start of the knockout stage of the last unofficial edition of the EHF Euro is starting tonight. We have the best 16 teams after the group stage facing each other and let's take a look at three of the most interesting matches.

We start off with the Philippines, who play against Oceania. Both teams entered the tournament with wildcards and now will be battling to progress further in the knockout stage. Philippines got second in group C as they lost their last match against Austria. Oceania won group F with 3 wins out of three games. Although Oceania are undefeated their average hatstats is slightly lower than the Philippines. It's hard to say that there is a favorite in this game. The winner of this match will face the winner between Luxembourg and Hungary, where Hungary are the big favorites as they're the team with the best average hatstats in the tournament so far.

In the other match on our radar we have Azerbaijan playing against the Netherlands. The winner of this match will most likely play the hosts from Slovakia in the quarter-finals. Azerbaijan managed to win Group B after some drama in the last round. Their opponents finished second in group G. Both teams have won 6 points in the group stage, so in case of a draw in this one Azerbaijan will progress as they finished first in their group. Azerbaijan have also won their last two games of the competition, but the Netherlands have slightly better average hatstats. Tonight we'll see if Azerbaijan will continue their winning streak or Netherlands will build on that last win against Ghana in the third group stage round.

The last match we'll focus on is between Finland and Cyprus. Finland have the tournament's top scorer Luka Heritty (4) in their squad currently and he'll be looking to add more goals to his tally and help his team progress to the quarter-finals. Cyprus have higher average hatstats (439-432), but Finland have achieved a higher hatstat rating in a match (459-445). Of course those differences are very slim and we can't point out a favorite in this game. Finland have won all of their group stage games in group E and Cyprus on the other hand finished second in group D after the draw with Scotland in the last group stage round. If the match ends as a draw, Finland will be the team that will progress through.

16.2.2021 Round 3 Review

The group stage has now finished and now it's time to look back at some drama that happened in the last round.

We're starting with the match from group B between Azerbaijan and Lithuania. It was clear before the start that the winner will qualify for the knock out stage. Both teams played 4-4-2 counterattacks and Azerbaijan opened the scoring after 19 minutes. It stayed 1-0 as both teams went back to the dressing rooms. In the second half Azerbaijan managed to get two more goals in the 51st and 58th minute an it looked like it was all over. A small spark of hope came for Lithuania in the 78th minute as they pulled one back, but 6 minutes later Azerbaijan restored their 3 goal lead and the game finished 4-1. Looking at the replay analysis the visitors will be feeling very unlucky after this match as they were the favorites in the game winning 60 of the replays, 25 ending as a draw and 15 going towards Azerbaijan, but at the end the winners of the game are Azerbaijan.

There was drama in group A as well, where the group leaders Saudi Arabia faced Luxembourg, who needed a win to secure their progression to the knock out stage. In the other match from the group Norway played against Greece. A win for Saudi Arabia would have meant a chance for Norway or even Greece to make it through. At half time Saudi Arabia were leading 1-0 and Norway were leading 2-1 against Greece and if things stayed that way, Norway would have gotten the second place in the group. With the start of the second half Greece equalized against Norway and even took the lead in the 54th minute as there were no changes in the other match, so in the virtual standings Luxembourg claimed back the second place. A huge sigh of relief for Luxembourg came in the 64th minute as they equalized, but two minutes later they found themselves trailing again. One minute later Norway equalized against Greece and claimed back the second place in the virtual standings. Luxembourg had to wait until the 77th minute, when they equalized again and even took the lead thanks to Thierry Zeyen and that secured the second place in the group for them regardless of the other result.

Finally we'll look at the match between Belarus and France. Another decisive match that would guarantee qualification to the winners. Late in the first half France opened the scoring through Baptiste Rouat and in the 57th minute Lionel 'Granadero' Grenard doubled up their lead. Belarus needed at least a draw to qualify as their goal difference was better than the French. In the 69th minute Belarus managed to pull one back with Mikalaj Rabykin going through the French central defence and giving the keeper no chance. In the dying moments of the game the group of fans who travelled all the way from Belarus to Slovakia went ecstatic as their team managed to equalize and claimed the second place in the virtual ranking. France had no time to respond to that goal and the game finished 2-2 meaning that Belarus will play in the knock out stage of the tournament.

Finally a quick note about the game that Slovakia played against Liechtenstein and unfortunately for the hosts they were defeated in a match where the replay analysis showed only 5% chance for Liechtenstein to win. That match was not that crucial for them as they were already qualified for the Round of 16 but still they were quite unlucky so the fans will be hoping things to turn as the eliminations kick in this Friday.

12.2.2021 Round 3 Preview

It's time for the last round of the EHF European championship group stage. Let's take a look at some head-to-head matches where the winners will qualify for the knockout stage.

First off we start with the match from group D, where Scotland will be facing Cyprus. Cyprus have better goal difference so in case of a draw in the match they will progress further to the knockout stage. Scotland will need a win in this one if they want to stay in the competition. Both teams have lost so far from the hosts Slovakia and have beaten the fourth team in the group Liechtenstein. When we look at the average haststats, Cyprus have the upper hand in the standings, but not by much, so it's hard to say if any of those two is considered as a favorite.

Moving on to group H, where Belarus will play against France. Although Belarus are top of the group, they might not make it through in case they lose against France and Hungary beats Denmark. It's safe to say that the winner from this match will surely make it through. There is a slight chance for Belarus to qualify even if they lose the match, but they'll need to be extremely lucky if that happens. Both teams are equally matched, but still France are in the World Cup, so they might not go 100% for the match and might gain some formation experience and give some of their best players a rest.

Finally we'll look at the match from group E, where North Macedonia will be playing against Mozambique. Mozambique are currently second with three points but if they get defeated by North Macedonia whey will be knocked out of the tournament. The thing is that North Macedonia will need the other result from their group to go in their favor to qualify for the next stage. Northern Ireland play against Finland and the best scenario for North Macedonia will be a win for Finland. Otherwise they will need to win with 2 more goals than Northern Ireland if they want to make it through. For Mozambique a win will guarantee them a place in the next round, but if they draw, they must be hoping for Finland to win in the other match, so a quite tricky situation here, and this is turning out to be a must win match for both teams.

8.2.2021 Round 2 Review

On Friday we had the second round of the EHF European Championship played and we saw some interesting results. In this one we'll focus on three of the most interesting results from the past matches.

Saudi Arabia faced Greece on the fc literpool Arena in Žilinský region. The Greeks were hoping to get a better result after their defeat in the first round, but they faced the team From Saudi Arabia, who came out and dominated the midfield from the first whistle. It was a perfect start for Saudi Arabia as they got an early opener in the third minute of the match with Elias Al-Aghbari putting his name on the scoresheet. Seven minutes later Bakr Al Dhahrani doubled up Saudi Arabia's lead and seven minutes after his goal Al-Aghbari scored his second in the match. In the 35th minute Waqqas Al zayani made it 4-0 for Saudi Arabia and it was no way back for Greece. Al zayani's goal was the last one in the match as Saudi Arabia managed to put Greece at bay recording their first clean sheet in the tournament. Looking at the replays Greece might feel a bit unlucky with the result, but still they have chance to qualify for the next stage of the tournament, if they win in the last round and the other result goes in their favor.

In group B Azerbaijan managed a compete comeback after they were 2-0 down after 60 minutes against Faroe Islands. An early injury hit Azerbaijan as Cəmil Zalov had to be replaced in the 18th minute. Three minutes Later Laroe Islands opened the scoring with a goal from Tristan Fisker and it stayed like this until half time. In the second half Grækaris Joensen doubled the lead for Faroe Islands. Five minutes later Elmar Əliyev pulled one back for Azerbaijan. In the 80th minute they even managed to equalize thanks to Ayxan Nəbiyev and one minute after his goal they got in the lead after İzzət Müslümov scored. Müslümov's goal proved to be the winner for Azerbaijan as they recorded their first win for the tournament. In the other result from the group Lithuania smashed Armenia with 5-0 and now all four teams are level on points and the final matches this week will determine which teams will progress and which teams will go out from the tournament.

Finally we'll take a look at group E, where Northern Ireland managed to rescue a point from North Macedonia. The game finished goalless and with that point Northern Ireland kept their chances for progression. In the last round however they'll be playing the group leaders Finland, who have already qualified for the knockout stage and if the other result from the group goes in their favor they will qualify for the knockout stage. North Macedonia will surely be disappointed with the result, looking at the replay analysis, which show an expected result 1-3 victory for them. Now they will have to win their last match from the group against Mozambique to qualify for the knockout stage, and will also hope for a win for Finland against Northern Ireland.

Let's take a quick look at the seven teams that have already qualified for the knockout stage after the second round:
Philippines
Austria
Slovakia
Finland
Wales
Oceania
Georgia

5.2.2021 Round 2 Preview

Tonight we have the second round of the last unofficial European championship. Let's take a quick look at three of the 16 games we have in store.

In group F we have England facing Wales. England lost their first match from the competition against Oceania, Wales on the other hand defeated Andorra. Both teams are out of the World cup and have nothing to play for, so we may see an interesting encounter between two neighbor countries. In 2020 both teams met each other twice in friendly matches and both games finished with victories for Wales. There were a total of 12 goals scored between the teams in the above mentioned games so we might be in for a high scoring match. A victory for Wales could potentially qualify them for the knockout stage if the other result from the group goes in their favor.

Moving on to group D where Scotland are facing Liechtenstein. Both teams lost their matches in the first round and now will be looking to bounce back after those defeats. Liechtenstein have a match against the hosts from Slovakia after this one, so this is a must win match for them if they want to keep their chances for the Round of 16. On the other hand a second defeat for Scotland might mean that they'll be playing for their pride against Cyprus next week. In the other match from the group Cyprus are playing against Slovakia and a win for the hosts followed by a win for Scotland in the other match would mean a reserved place for Slovakia in the Round of 16.

Finally we'll have a look at the match from group G between the Netherlands and Georgia. Both teams had almost equal hatstats ratings in the first round as they recorded victories. They share the first spot in the group and now the winner of the match might qualify for the Round of 16 if the other result goes in their favor. As already mentioned in one of the previous articles Netherlands are still in the World Cup, therefore Georgia are the slight favorites in this one as coach Stadjer might not risk his best players in this one. Both teams didn't concede a goal in the first round and it'll be interesting now to see if one of them can continue that run of clean sheets, or who knows, maybe both teams won't concede a goal. We're about to see this match and all the others tonight, with the kick offs being at 20:00 CET.

1.2.2021 Round 1 Review

Last Friday the last unofficial European Championship in Slovakia has started along with the first official U20 European championship. Let's take a look back to three of the most dramatic matches that were played last week.

In a match where both teams were relying on counterattacking football Greece faced Luxembourg. Lefteris Diogos gave Greece the lead after only 11 minutes. Yiorgos 'Zeus' Paltos missed the chance to double up their lead and in the 20th minute Luxembourg have equalized. On half time the score remained 1-1. In the second half both teams remained unchanged and Greece missed to get back in the lead twice after Theofanis Antonatos missed the target in the 64th minute and Schwartz saved Trechagirevopoulos's free kick. In the 76th minute Mechel Huberty headed home a cross from a corner kick and put Luxembourg in the lead. The Greeks tried immediately to get back in the game, but Terovolas was denied by the woodwork. Until the end of the match Luxembourg had a couple of chances to increase their lead but failed to convert any of them and the match finished 1-2.

In group B Lithuania faced the team from Faroe Islands. Eyðun Mikkelsen failed to score in the 12th minute for Føroyar just before Ernas Kiriliukas from Lithuania limped off field and will be out for about 2 weeks. Until the end of the first half Landsliðið missed another big chance as Jógvan Jensen missed the target with his shot and it remained goaless after 45 minutes. In the second half we saw a tripple change for Faroe Islands as they continued to be the more active team on the pitch. Končinaitis failed to put Lithuania in the lead in the 81st minute. The last few moments of the match it was only one team on the pitch. After Končinaitis's miss Føroyar organized a quick counterattack but failed to score and in their next chance Knútur Wenningsted finally opened the scoring in the match. In the final minutes Fisker and Sand missed to double the lead for the Faroe Islands and it finished with a minor victory for them 0-1.

The last match we'll look at Hungary played against France. In the first half Hungary had three big chances to open the scoring, but Yannick Messin made two saves and the last shot hit only the side netting. In the second half Hungary continued to push forward. Bendegúz Jova and Tibor Czombos failed to score for the second time in the match. In the 80th minute however it was third time lucky for Bendegúz Jova, who has broken the deadlock. Until the end France didn't manage to get any response and although they had 60% possession in the second half they didn't create enough to get any points from that game.

Before the kickoff of all matches from the first round there was a minute of silence dedicated to the great Dr. Jozef Vengloš, who sadly passed away last week.

29.1.2021 Round 1 Preview

The time for the start of the last unofficial European cup has come. We'll focus on three matches from the first group stage round in this short article.

We have last season's World Cup semi-finalists Denmark taking on Belarus. Both teams met three times so far in their history and Denmark have won on all three occasions. Having qualified for the World Cup again the Danes probably won't play on 100% in the competition, and that increases Belarus's chances to get their first win over their opponents.

Next up we have two teams that qualified for the World Cup and in fact this is the only match from the first group stage round, where both teams will play in the World Cup. We have Netherlands against Albania. Both teams have qualified as second placed in their groups. The amount of points they earned is also equal - 25, but the Netherlands have performed better in the attacking third and they've scored 35 goals compared to Albania's 27. Both teams have received 19 goals. It's very hard to say which team is the favorite here and I'm sure we're up for a great match.

Finally we'll take a look at our hosts Slovakia and they're facing Scotland in Poprad, Prešovský region. Failing to qualify for the World Cup Scotland will probably be looking to do well in this friendly tournament, but I can't imagine a tougher start than facing the hosts in the first round. Kanit0's team have qualified for the World Cup and similar to Denmark, that I mentioned above will be looking to save some of their best players for the World Cup which is surely the top priority for them. Will Scotland be able to stop Slovakia in front of their own fans, we're about to see tonight.

22.1.2021 Slovakia announced the stadiums for the EHF Euro

The Stadiums

Our hosts Slovakia announced the 16 stadiums where the matches from the competition will be played. We ask all the participating national teams to respect the host country and to arrange their friendly matches on the assigned stadiums.

Living the dream (1122637)
Pokosené (715678)
Tajfun Park (1123723)
Pusté pole (1118152)
Spirit Arena (1121298)
Hawks Arena (1119580)
Štadion Petra Dubovského (715407)
Tata Arena (1120127)
Stadion MSK (1118181)
Štadión Philippa Pinela (1116619)
Majir Stadium (1120316)
The Frozen Tundra (1115945)
Worms Arena (715966)
fc literpool Arena (715050)
Zeleno bielo zeleny (715774)
FC Golostroj Arena (1118669)

The Draw
The group stage draw will be held tonight with the start of the NT friendlies and will be published not later than 21:00 CET

You can see that for each match there is an assigned stadium on the website. When you click on the stadium name you'll be redirected to the stadium page in Hattrick where you can get the stadium ID. (https://www.ehf.futbol/EHFEuro/Matches.aspx)

19.1.2021 Slovakia will host the 8th edition of the EHF Euro

After the vote from the national coaches during the weekend it was decided that Slovakia will host the last edition of the EHF Euro with the current format.

Slovakia got all the votes leaving Spain and Wales without any. Here are the host cities of the competition presented by the Slovak organization:

in representation of Banskobystrický region: Banská Bystrica
https://prnt.sc/wnhiin
in representation of Bratislavský region: Bratislava (the capital)
https://prnt.sc/wnhjck
in representation of Košický region: Košice
https://prnt.sc/wnhhgw
in representation of Nitriansky region: Nitra
https://prnt.sc/wnhend
in representation of Prešovský region: Poprad
https://prnt.sc/wnhdui
in representation of Trenčiansky region: Trenčín
https://prnt.sc/wnhcqr
in representation of Trnavský region: Trnava
https://prnt.sc/wnhbz7
in representation of Žilinský region: Žilina
https://prnt.sc/wnhacb

"Slovakia never had the chance to host a competition on HT and has a very nice community who knows how to welcome people from other countries (as foreigner, I'm a good example of that), so I think they deserve to host this competition and that's why I'm trying to take it there." - stated the Slovak NT manager Kanit0 and wished good luck to all participants.

15.1.2021 Vote for a host

It's time to announce the host applications I have received. We have three nations that requested to host this friendly competition.

1. Wales
2. Spain
3. Slovakia

You can now vote for a host until Saturday 23:59. The host country will be announced on Sunday.

Only NT coaches votes will count

Write your preference here.

You can vote for a shared competition but you must specify where would you like the final to be like for example: Wales, Spain and Slovakia with final in Spain. The shared votes can contain 2 or 3 countries but you must definitely specify the country for the final\

Also since we don't have 32 European teams we allow non-European teams to join the competition until we reach 32 teams.

8.1.2021 Season 8 signup is now open

With the start of 2021 we announce the last edition of the EHF European Championship - the friendly competition which is organized by the European Hattrick Federation since 2012. After the first two editions of the tournament we had several years without this tournament, but since 2018 we haven't missed a season. With the change of the World cup format this will be the last friendly tournament as next season there will be an official European Championship.

National Team coaches can now sign up their national teams for the competition by visiting the thread in the World Cup forum

15.9.2020 Bulgaria wins Season 7 of the EHF Euro!

Bulgaria won the final of the 7th edition of the EHF European Championship. On the final match they faced Switzerland and they won with 3-2 to lift the trophy after 90 minutes.

The game was played in France on Shab-family Stadium and it was actually Switzerland the team that opened the scoring thanks to Axel Chomette. Bulgaria then made three changes switching from 3-4-3 to 2-5-3 and managed to score 3 goals within 11 minutes. In the last moments of the game Switzerland pulled one back, but it wasn't enough to get them a rematch.

Congratulations to Bulgaria and their manager Celestial_Tear for the first European title!

Winner: Bulgaria

Runners-up: Switzerland

Top scorer: Anestis '3D' Moutsouroufis (422389437) - Greece - 4 goals

Thank you everyone for participating. Next season we will have the last EHF U20 Euro before the change of format in the national teams. We in EHF will think of another competition which will be taking place during international friendlies, but we will have to see what the schedule is going to be.

12.1.2020 Vygaudas Eidininkas grabs a hattrick as Lithuania wins their second European title

The first Friday of the 2020 year had to offer the final match of the sixth EHF European Championship. The game between Lithuania and Georgia was played in front of 26309 spectators on the National Arena Park in Moldova.

The match started well for Lithuania and they were leading after 14 minutes thanks to Eidininkas's first goal of the game. Georgia had missed two big chances to equalize before Eidininkas scored his second in the 31st minute. It wasn't getting any better for Georgia when Kenia and Dgebuadze limped off with injuries before the half time whistle.

In the second half Vygaudas Eidininkas finished a counter attack to complete his hattrick. Vitenis Jačkonis also bagged a brace to make final score 5-0.

Post match Lithuania coach topsportas prized his assistant coach saying that he's "the real winner". Topsportas also added that his team deserved the win although the result was way too big.

2.1.2020 Lithuania - Georgia (Preview)

The 6th edition of the EHF Euro is about to finish tomorrow when Lithuania face Georgia in the final match on National Arena Park in Moldova. Both teams have made it to the final thanks to their performance in the group stage as the semi-finals finished with 1-1 draws last Friday.

Lithuania finished first in their group collecting 6 points. There was a draw on the first paragraph with Greece as they had 6 points in the group as well, but they were second after Russia in Group D and that meant that Lithuania will have a chance to win a second European title after the one in season 3 when they've beaten Sweden 0-2 on the final.

On the other end Georgia knocked out France in the semi-final and again it was down to the position in the group stage as both teams were on 7 points, but Georgia won their group and France finished second after Turkey in Group E. This will be their first final in the history of the EHF European Championship.

With both teams already eliminated from the World Cup, this is a chance to get a piece of silverware and get to a positive start of the 2020 Year. It's very dificult to say which team goes into the match as favourites and it promises to be a very interesting game for the neutrals as it could go either way.

25.5.2019 Dimitris Saravakos brings the European title to Greece!

On Lambo Field in Győr the hosts Hungary faced Greece in the fifth EHF Euro final. The tactic of the Greeks was to sit back, let Hungary have more possession and try to break on the counter.

During the first half both teams missed to open the scoring on a coupe of occasions. Barna 'Bébé' Busa forced a save from Aspiotis and hit the post. It was all level at half time with Hungary having 63 percent possession.

After 55 minutes the quick Dimitris Saravakos was on the end of a counter-attack and scored the opener in the game to put Greece in front. Five minutes later Mod-rupi made a double change and a switch of the formation to apply even more pressure to their opponents. It seems that this had the desired effect with Busa missing another chance for Hungary. In the 67th minute the crowd exploded after Martin Csáky scored the equalizer. However only 4 minutes later a Greek counter was stopped with a foul by the Hungarian defence. Saravakos placed the ball down to take the free kick. He was booed by the whole stadium, but that didn't affect him as his power shot gave the keeper no chance and the small group of away fans went crazy. After the goal the away manager Hottestkiss made a double substitution and switched from a 4-4-2 to a 4-5-1 which put the game to bed and Greece were crowned European Champions.

24.5.2019 Hungary - Greece (Preview)

We've reached the Final of the fifth edition of the EHF Euro. Hungary are the hosts for a second time in the tournament's history, after they've hosted Season 2, when a Final wasn't played and Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia shared the title. Back then Hungary were eliminated in the quarter-final from Serbia and Greece lost from Bosnia and Herzegovina at the same stage. This was the best performance in the competition for the Greeks. Hungary on the other hand reached the 3rd place playoff in Season 1, but back then managed by alibi they lost with a walkover result from the hosts Russia.

The top two teams in terms of hatstats have made it to the final and Hungary have slightly the better stats and with the home advantage on their side they enter the final game as favourites for the title.

Hungary coach Mod-rupi is for the second time in charge of the national team. Previous time he reached the World cup final back in 2013, but lost it on penalties from Bulgaria. Now six years later he'll play another final, but this time for the European cup and he'll face another team from the Balkans. He was also in charge when Hungary hosted Season 2 of the Euro and as already said he only managed to reach the quarter-finals back then.

Mod-rupi's opponent Hottestkiss is managing the Greek National Team for a second time as well and his previous period as manager is the same as Mod-rupi's (09.10.2012 - 21.05.2013). During that period Greece finished bottom in Round IV - Group 2 in the World Cup XIX and reached the quarter-final of the EHF Euro Season 2.

Top scorer Adam Mpithas who has 4 goals to his name in the competition is expected to start for Greece. He's featured in the starting eleven in five games and came in as a substitute in one match, so he looks the favourite to grab the top scorer award if he adds to his tally.

Kick off 20:00 CEST!

10.5.2019 Last week of the World Cup Round 2

A reminder that after tonight's matches from the World Cup, next week we'll be back for the EHF Euro Semi-finals.

Hungary - Liechtenstein
Lithuania - Greece

Don't forget to arrange the games on the respective stadiums in Hungary.

Good luck to Liechtenstein who are the only nation from the semi-finalists that is still in the World Cup. A draw against Belarus would see them qualify for the next round.

23.3.2019 Hungary faces Belarus on the start of the EHF Euro

The hosts from Hungary will be facing Belarus on Stadio Tottonho in their opening match of the EHF Euro next Friday.

The other two teams from group A are Scotland and Bulgaria. Bulgaria, who will face Belarus in the second stage of the World Cup as well.

Hungary and Scotland didn't manage to qualify for the second stage of the World Cup, so they'll be looking for good results in the European championship, which comes as a second chance to fight for a medal. On the other hand Bulgaria and Belarus may be a bit more precautious and may be experimenting with new formations getting ready for the next stage of the World Cup.

8.3.2019 Signup closed!

We now have 32 nations signed in. The full list is here

We will now have 2 free weeks as there will be no qualifiers and on 22 March the groupstage draw will be held and announced.

We'll remind all NT coaches signed in for the competition when the draw is held to check their opponents and to start sending challenges.

Good luck!

7.3.2019 Hungary to host EHF Euro 5

As already stated host applications will be received until 6 March 22:00. Since only one country applied I'm delighted to announce the host country of the 5th edition of the EHF Euro - Hungary!

Signup will close tomorrow before the start of the last qualifiers for the World Cup.

So far 26 nations have signed up. If by the deadline we don't have 32 nations, the signup period will be extended and nations which are not members of UEFA will be allowed to join as well. Signup period will be extended until 32 teams are signed up.

28.2.2019 Hosting competition

As always you can apply for being a host of the tournament. The only requirement is to name 16 Stadiums from the host country.

Host applications will be received until 6 March 22:00 CET. Then there will be a vote between the NT coaches of the participating nations. The vote will be 24 hours, until 7 March 22:00 CET, when the host country will be announced.

Signup for the competition will close on 8 March 19:00 CET.

Qualifying rounds draw will be on 8 March 22:00 CET.

13.10.2018 Finland and France share the title

Three games and no winner between Finland and France and both managers agreed to share the title. The teams were in Group C where they finished on the top 2 spots with the same amount of points and it was that 1 goal advantage for France which allowed them to claim the first place in the group. The match between Suomi and Les Bleus in the group finished goalless.

On the final both teams played a very intense match with 4 goals in the last 5 minutes of regular time to make the final result 4-4. According to the rules the match had to be replayed but even on the replay nothing could separate both teams and managers reached an agreement to share the European Title.

Now for the second time in the tournament's history we have two winners after Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia shared the title in Season 2, now it's between Finland and France. So here are the awards summary after the end of the competition:

EHF European Champions:
Finland and France

Third placed teams:
Israel and Keniya

EHF Golden Boot:
Ron Itshaki - Israel - 5 Goals

EHF Golden Glove:
Vincent Gonnet - France - 5 Clean Sheets

That's about it for this season's edition of the EHF European Championship. For the first time we had 16 teams instead of 32, but I really hope that from next season we can go back to the 32 teams format :)

Now it's time for a short break and in a week or two, we'll be back with the EHF U20 Euro which will be next season, so NT/U20 fans and coaches, keep your eyes open for the new thread of the U20 Euro.

As always I want to say thank you to those who participated and respected the rules of this friendly competition. See you soon!

5.3.2018 Lithuania is the new EHF European Champion!

The final match on The Fortress in Wales was between Sweden and Lithuania. The game started better for Blågult and in the 5th minute Arvid Tuvlund was denied by the Lithuanian goalkeeper after a freekick. Until the end of the first half Lithuania missed a couple of chances and Sweden wasted one more, so it was goalless after 45 minutes.

Lithuania missed the target twice after the second half kicked off and Sweden had a chance from a counter-attack and it was Tuvlund again who failed to score. Right after that the opener came thanks to an attack down the right and at the end Mindaugas Račius was on the scoresheet. In the 79th minute Aigirdas Pržemeneckas put the game to bed after a brilliant assist from Jurikas Kasenkovas.

EHF European Champion
Lithuania

Runner up
Sweden

EHF Golden Boot
Salvys Kurlinkus (398492395)- 5 Goals

Congratulations to masterzy and Poppen_HT48 for reaching the final and thank you to all other managers who took part in the Welsh adventure called European Championship. Without your cooperation and friendly spirit, this tournament would not have been possible.

4.2.2018 Sweden and Switzerland go through thanks to good performances in the groups

Sweden and Switzerland are through to the semi-finals after both teams got a draw 2-2 against Georgia and 0-0 against France respectively.

Sweden were 2-0 down in their match against Georgia until the 71st minute of the game. Erik Stjernland got one back after a corner and 6 minutes before the end Niklas 'Junior' Flodskog got the leveller after a counter through the middle. That meant that we had to go back to the group stage where Sweden had 1 goal better goal difference than their opponents and that goal qualified them to the semi-final.

On the other quarter-final France met Switzerland. The game finished goalless which means Switzerland is through to the semi-finals as they have 7 points in the group stage compared to France's 6.

In the other two quarter-finals Ukraine and Lithuania got 3-0 wins against Austria and Bulgaria respectively and are through to the semis as well.

Now the tournament will make a 2 weeks break for the World Cup where both semi-finalists Sweden and Switzerland are still participating and we'll be back on the 23 February for the semi-finals.

6.1.2018 A one man show by Salvys Kurlinkus

In the first round of the EHF Euro group stage there was one star performer, who bagged the first hattrick of the tournament. His name is Salvys Kurlinkus and he helped Lithuania to get off to a flying start with a 4-0 win against Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The divine skill of counter-attacks for Lithuania proved to be the key for their win. All goals in that game came from counter-attacks and the quick Kurlinkus was on the end of 3. The other goal was scored by the defender Blažiejus Vingiliauskas.

After this result Lithuania are top of Group D. In the other match of the group Iceland got a 1-0 win against Slovenia and are sitting on the second spot.

In Round 2 Lithuania will play against Iceland and Bosnia and Herzegovina will face Slovenia. Another star performance by Kurlinkus would mean that Lithuania will be very close to reaching the knockout stage.

29.12.2017 Ukraine grab a late winner to qualify for the Euro

Ukraine managed to beat Belarus with 2-1 at home in the second leg of the qualifying round and that meant that they've qualified for the Euro with more away goals scored.

The Yellow-Blues knew from the start, that a one goal win will get them through to the group stage, unless they don't concede more than one goal. The game started well for them and in the 6th minute of the match they've gone in front. The White Wings however equalized after 25 minutes since the start. Although Ukraine had 60% possession in the first half things weren't looking good for them and Belarus were very dangerous on the counter.

In the second half Ukraine NT coach introduced some fresh legs on the pitch to try and turn things around. It seems that it wasn't working out as Belarus missed a chance to take the lead after Sudarushkin failed to score. With only 8 minutes to go f0G2Y's men needed to hold on to the 1-1 result, but the lack of experience with the formation led to a confusion which allowed Ukraine deffender Kyrylo Kuzyk to burst through the Belarus defence and to score the goal which proved to be the winner and which qualified Nefor's men to the European Championship.

Here are all aggregate results from the qualifiers:
Norway 10 - 0 Portugal
Hungary 6 - 0 Finland
Northern Ireland 0 - 1 Liechtenstein
Kazakhstan 0 - 18 Israel
Belarus 4 - 4 Ukraine (1-2 away goals for Ukraine)
Albania 0 - 7 Bosnia and Herzegovina
Iceland 3 - 0 Croatia
Azerbaijan 3 - 4 Faroe Islands

29.12.2017 Can Liechtenstein do it in front of their own fans?

Northern Ireland will be traveling to Liechtenstein for the second qualifying leg for the 3rd edition of the EHF European Championship.

The first leg between both teams finished goalless on The Abusement Park in Northern Ireland. Now Liechtenstein will be facing the Green and White Army in front of their own fans and will be hoping to get the better of them and secure their ticket to Wales. Are we going to see another pressing game from RJoker or Liechtenstein will be dictating the play and create some chances to get a goal for their supporters? No doubt this will be one of the most balanced games in this season's qualifiers.

With less than 30 minutes until the start make sure you don't miss all the action from tonight as after the final whistle we'll have the group stage draw!

Follow all the matches live! Start time: 20:00 CET

23.12.2017 Iceland got the better of Croatia in the first leg

In the first leg of the EHF Euro Qualifiers Iceland had to face Croatia at home.

Iceland coach gun2211 opted for a 4-5-1 formation and his opponent djuka2008_ decided to use a 5-2-3 formation. The hosts were pressing the opposition everywhere on the pitch and Croatia were relying on counter-attacks.

The first half was dominated by Iceland and they've missed a few chances which led to counter-attacks for Croatia, but they failed to hit the target too. On half time gun2211 decided to change the formation to 3-4-3 and that paid off in the 50th minute when Iceland opened the scoring thanks to an attack from the left. The goalscorer was Þráinn Friðriksson.

However Friðriksson's goal was the only one in that game and Croatia will have to turn things around in the second leg when they'll be the hosts at La Valle del Diavolo in Pula.

Here are the other results from yesterday's qualifiers:
Norway 5 - 0 Portugal
Hungary 3 - 0 Finland
Northern Ireland 0 - 0 Liechtenstein
Kazakhstan 0 - 8 Israel
Belarus 3 - 2 Ukraine
Albania 0 - 4 Bosnia and Herzegovina
Iceland 1 - 0 Croatia
Azerbaijan 2 - 3 Faroe Islands

22.12.2017 Hungary face Finland on the road to Wales

5 wins, 4 draws, 5 losses and a total of 19 points for Hungary in Group 9 means that they need to go through the qualifiers to get a spot in the 3rd season of the EHF Euro. Last week they were drawn to play against another team which failed to qualify for the World Cup in Oceania - Finland. They managed to achieve 19 points in their WC qualifying group as well but finished 6th in the group compared to Hungary's 4th place.

Hungary will have the home advantage in the first leg as both teams will come out on the MinariKatlan Stadium in Budapest in less than 60 minutes.

The EHF Euro might be a good chance for both teams to save their campaign and achieve a good result at the end, as they won't have to worry about the World Cup.

Follow all matches live!

13.12.2017 Wales will host the 3rd official EHF Euro!

After we announced that Wales, Hungary and the Czech Republic will compete to become host of this season's EHF Euro, 14 NT coaches voted and here are the final results:

1. Wales - 7 Votes
2. Hungary - 4 Votes
3. Czech Republic - 3 Votes

With that said we'd like to ask the Wales NT coach to provide us with 16 stadiums by mail.

We're closing the signup as well and you can find all teams which signed up already here: (http://ehf.futbol/EHFEuro/Teams.aspx).

We'll have the 16 lowest ranked nations playing qualifications on 22 and 29 December. On Friday after the last qualifier for the WC has been played we'll announce the teams which will play qualifications and we'll draw the pairings and update them on the website.

11.12.2017 Time to vote

Since we opened the applications for host of the EHF Euro, 3 nations have applied. Now it's time to close the applications and announce the 3 candidates.

All NT coaches from nations who already signed up for the tournament can vote for the host country. The choice is between:

1. Wales
2. Hungary
3. Czech Republic

All NT coaches should submit their vote in this thread until 13 December 23:00 CET, when we're going to close the signup as well.

Good luck to all applied host countries

8.12.2017 Apply for host!

We're opening the applications for host country of this season's EHF Euro.

As usual every nation can apply to become the host and if more than one nations have applied the NT coaches will vote for their favourite. The host nation will have to nominate 16 stadiums from the country and that nation will have home advantage in all games.

If a low ranked nation becomes host, they won't play qualifications and they'll get straight to the group phase.

Applications will be accepted until 11 December at 23:00 CET. After that we'll launch a voting competition until 13 December and on 14 December we'll announce the host country.

So far 40 nations have signed up for the EHF Euro which means there will be 8 qualifying matches where the 16 lowest ranked teams will compete in a two legged qualifying rounds.

We'll be announcing the teams who will play qualifications on 15 December after the last WC qualifier. The qualifying round draw will be held then as well.

Signup closes on 13 December 23:00 CET

26.11.2017 Signup is now open!

Today we're opening the signup for the third edition of the EHF Euro!

So far Switzerland have won the title and Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina have shared the title in the second season. Now we're about to see if another nation will enter the list of winners of the competition played right after the Qualifications for the World Cup!

Qualifications draw will be held on 15 December.

17.11.2017 Dates for the 3rd EHF Euro have been announced

Today the official dates for the 3rd EHF European Championship have been announced.

If there are more than 32 national teams who would like to participate there will be 2 legged qualifications played on 22 and 29 December.

The group stage will be played on 3, 12 and 19 January followed by the knockout stage on 26 January, 2 and 23 February and the final will be played on 2 March.

The sign up will open a few days after the EHF Under 20 Championship has finished (final will be played on 17 November)

CALENDAR

Group stage

Matchday 1 - 29 January
Matchday 2 - 5 February
Matchday 3 - 12 February

Knockout phase

Round of 16 - 19 February
Quarter-finals - 26 February
Semi-finals - 19 March

Final

Final - 26 March

EHF Competitions
Club	National
EHF Pseudo Champions League	EHF Euro
EHF Europa Cup	Under-20
EHF Youth Championship

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