LIVE BLOG: Kiel, Melsungen in the balance in intense final

Winamax EHF Finals 2026 live blog

• +++ FLENSBURG FINISH THIRD +++
• medal matches on Sunday:
  - third place match: Montpellier Handball (FRA) vs SG Flensburg-Handewitt (GER) 30:32 (16:16)
  - final, started at 18:00 CEST: THW Kiel (GER) vs MT Melsungen (GER)
• read the day preview and the third place match review from EHF journalist Björn Pazen
• follow the official EHF European League socials on Instagram, X, and Facebook, and the Home of Handball channels on TikTok and YouTube
• find out where to watch the Winamax EHF Finals 2026...
• ... or get yourself the last day tickets for Sunday; prices range from €125 (Premium) to €95 - 70 - 37,50 (Cat. 1-2-3)
• Eric Willemsen reporting from Hamburg; photos © kolektiff

Sunday 31 May 2026

14:42

And then there is this remarkable comparison between the two head coaches of today's finalists. Both Kiel's Filip Jicha and Melsungen's Roberto Parrondo have won the EHF Champions League as players and as coach.

As coach, they did so in consecutive years: Parrondo in 2019 with HC Vardar, Jicha in 2020 with his current club. As players, though, is where the story gets interesting, as Parrondo won it in 2008 and 2009 with Ciudad Real from his native Spain... both times against Jicha's Kiel. But the Czech player and his German side struck back in 2012, beating Atletico Madrid with Parrondo...

So, both Jicha and Parrondo know a thing or two about winning European trophies.

14:33

Mentioning Andreas Wolff for Kiel, we have to mention Nebojsa Simić for Melsungen, too. Having missed the trip to Hamburg due to injury last year, Simić starred for Melsungen in the semi-final Saturday, as he grew into the match and played a stunning second half, highlighted by back-to-back penalty saves against Emil Jakobsen, which were key moments for his team on the way to their breath-taking 37:30 win over the titleholders.

Will he stand like a wall in the final against Kiel as well?

14:19

So, Kiel are back in a European final five and a half years after they won that unique mid-winter edition of the EHF FINAL4 in December 2020. Andreas Wolff had just left Kiel for Kielce at that time, but he is back between the posts... and how! Wolff's double save in the closing seconds to deny Montpellier a late equaliser in their semi-final Saturday are already an all-time classic.

Wolff himself, though, stays humble:

Legends simply do legendary things. 🌟#ehfel #ehffinals #elm #handball pic.twitter.com/gszj53jOwb

— EHF European League (@ehfel_official) May 31, 2026

14:08

So, let's look beyond the third place match now, as the big final follows after that. Melsungen, playing their first ever European final and therefore eying their maiden trophy, are up against Kiel, the club who have seen it and done it all in European handball before — except for winning the EHF European League, which was only founded in 2020/21 to replace the EHF Cup, which Kiel did win four times. In fact, this is Kiel's first European final since winning the EHF Champions League for the fourth time in 2020.

While Melsungen have not beaten Kiel in their three European meetings so far (two wins for Kiel, one draw), they did come out victorious when they last faced each other in the Bundesliga. Look at this:

Kiel vs Melsungen in 2025/26 — 1-0-1 60:59

• 18.10.2025 — Kiel vs Melsungen 31:29 (17:12)
• 27.03.2026 — Melsungen vs Kiel 30:29 (17:14)

13:55

Some Montpellier players have just arrive on the court here at Barclays Arena and are trying to keep the ball up in the air for fun by using everything but their hands. Those tactics might change in just over an hour from now...

Overall, Flensburg lead the head-to-head comparison after 15 duels with eight wins compared to Montpellier's four; three games ended in a draw. And don't forget that the teams already met twice a few weeks ago, in the main round of the EHF European League: 

Montpellier vs Flensburg in 2025/26 — 1-0-1 70:72

• 24.02.2026 — Flensburg vs Montpellier 40:35 (21:20)
• 03.03.2026 — Montpellier vs Flensburg 35:32 (21:19)

13:43

Like Flensburg with Golla, Montpellier also have a key player appearing at his last international event for the club this weekend: Diego Simonet, who ends his career after the season. The Argentine, though, didn't arrive fully fit in Hamburg and he has decided to sit out the third-place match this afternoon to avoid further risks.

Simonet won a string of gold medals with Argentina in Pan and South American Championships, but will be best remembered in Europe for leading Montpellier to the club's second EHF Champions League triumph, in 2018, when the centre back was named the MVP of the EHF FINAL4 in Cologne.

13:30

We are 90 minutes away from the throw-off of the third place match, which was the big final last year: Montpellier vs Flensburg.

Currently, Flensburg are third in the Bundesliga — above Kiel and Melsungen — but they lost their last two domestic league games, as well as Saturday's semi-final. Still, Flensburg captain Johannes Golla will want to take a some positives from this weekend before leaving the club and returning to... Melsungen next season.

12:58

Not only that beautiful trophy is at stake today, but also a potential starting berth for the EHF Champions League in the 2026/27 season. That applies when Füchse Berlin will not win the TruckScout24 EHF FINAL4 2026 in Cologne in two weeks' time, so then either Kiel or Melsungen will earn that ticket to Europe's top flight. This is according to new regulations explained here.

More than a final. 👀 🇩🇪 THW Kiel vs MT Melsungen 🇩🇪

A #ehffinals trophy 🏆 — and a possible step towards the Machineseeker EHF Champions League. #ehfcl #ehfel #handball pic.twitter.com/eu9U06W1TY

— EHF Champions League (@ehfcl) May 31, 2026

12.24

Before we dive into today's matches, let's have a quick recap of those spectacular semi-finals from yesterday. Here are the highlight videos for you:

12:08

Did I just hear you say: Wow, I don't want to miss a second of today's action?! Well, you don't have to! There are plenty of options to follow the matches live, which we have summarised for you here.

But maybe you even prefer the on-site experience but have not bought your ticket yet? Don't panic, it's not too late. There are still some day tickets left for Sunday and they come with a discount, so if you want to score your seat at Barclays Arena like a buzzer-beater, you can still do so. Find all the relevant ticket sales information here.

See you in Hamburg?!

12:00

Moin! Hello from Hamburg and welcome to the live blog covering the all-decisive closing day of the Winamax EHF Finals 2026!

On 30/31 August 2025, the EHF European League Men 2025/26 started with the first leg of the qualification round. Exactly nine months later, the final curtain comes down on this enthralling season today as we are going to find out who will be our new champions — either THW Kiel or MT Melsungen.

Kiel edged out Montpellier Handball (29:28) and Melsungen downed SG Flensburg-Handewitt (37:30) in Saturday's semi-finals, so let's have a look at what awaits us today in the Sunday preview from EHF journalist Björn Pazen: