Five young players to watch at the Men’s EHF EURO 2026

Some of those young talents are already so well-established on the international stage that it is hard to believe their ages. Others are coming into their national teams aiming to make themselves regulars — and dreaming of much more.

Here, we highlight five players to watch. Considering how many young players are performing at the top level, most are well-known, and that means hopes for them to put on a great show at the EHF EURO 2026 can be even higher. 

They will not be fringe players. They will be key in shaping how their teams play at what is the 17th edition of the men’s European Championship. 

Francisco Costa — Portugal
Right back

One of the biggest names in Portuguese, and indeed, world handball and still only 20, Francisco “Kiko” Costa made his major tournament debut at the last EHF EURO and is now set for his second appearance at the event. Since the Men’s EHF EURO 2024, where he netted 30 goals and was second top scorer for Portugal behind his brother Martim — the competition’s joint-top scorer with Mathias Gidsel — Costa has continued on the rise.

Costa was a crucial leader as Portugal achieved a historic result of fourth at the 2025 Men’s World Championship, which marked their first semi-final appearance in any tournament. There, Kiko Costa was both Portugal’s top scorer and a member of the All-star Team, being named best young player of the event. 
He made his debut for Portugal at the age of 17 in 2022. That same year he was top scorer and All-star right back at the Men’s 20 EHF EURO 2022, after being All-star right wing at the Men’s 19 EHF EURO 2021.

At club level, Costa is the fourth-highest scorer of the current Machineseeker EHF Champions League season, with 70 goals for Sporting CP — a figure he has now reached in four straight EHF Champions League or EHF European League seasons. 

Óli Mittún — Faroe Islands
Centre back

Another 20-year-old who plays a key role as a back-court leader with his side and is ready to play his second EHF EURO — Óli Mittún is one of the brains of the Faroe Islands’ attack. Mittún’s second major championship comes in his debut EHF Champions League season, which sees him on court with Danish side GOG — a club well-known as a talent mill, having developed the likes of Mathias Gidsel, Mikkel Hansen and Simon Pytlick, among many more.

Mittún was impossible to ignore from the moment he started appearing in Younger Age Cateogory (YAC) events, as he was top scorer of every tournament he played: The M18 EHF EURO 2022, 2023 Youth (U19) World Championship, M20 EHF EURO 2024 and the 2025 Junior (U21) World Championship. He was named MVP of both the 2025 Junior World Championship and M18 EHF EURO 2022, plus All-star centre back at the 2023 Youth World Championship.

But the most important achievement in those YAC events was the Faroe Islands’ first medal at such a level, as they took bronze at the Junior World Championship, with Mittún a key figure.

Prior to joining GOG, Mittún was twice All-star centre back of the Swedish league and once top scorer of the season — all while he was still a teenager. 

Nikola Roganovic — Sweden
Left back

A major championship debutant at this EHF EURO, 19-year-old Nikola Roganovic is a newcomer to the Sweden national team — and hopes are high for the talented back who has impressed greatly in YAC competitions and at club level.

Roganovic grabbed attentions as the MVP of the M18 EHF EURO 2024, where Sweden took the title, and followed that with a place in the All-star Team at the 2025 Youth World Championship, where Sweden finished fourth.

In his first international club matches, the EHF European League qualification round, played at the start of this season, Roganovic scored 13 goals in two games for HK Malmö. He is set to join VfL Gummersbach for 2026/27.  

Roganovic is very much at the start of his national team journey, with fewer than 10 games played so far. But he is certainly one to watch based on, alongside the awards that prove he is a standout, his statistics in other competitions — not only does he regularly rank among the top players for goals and assists, but other areas, such as drawing two-minute suspensions for opponents. 

Marko Grgic — Germany
Left back

22-year-old Marko Grgic is featured on this list ahead of other potential choices from a Germany team driven by a strong core of young players because he is that little bit younger than the likes of 2023 Junior World Championship MVP Nils Lichtlein and 2024 IHF Young Male World Player of the Year Renars Uscins. But it must be noted that Germany mainly rely on young players who are proving rebuilding does not need to take long — they are more than up for the task of competing with the best, and they are ready now.

The Men’s EHF EURO 2026 will mark Grgic’s debut at the event, although it is his third major tournament. Grgic first appeared for Germany in May 2024 and was then part of the team that reached the Paris 2024 Olympics final and secured sixth place at the 2025 Men’s World Championship.

Grgic was quickly integrated as a core player for Germany due to his exceptional potential. By the World Championship, he had become one of the team’s leading scorers, with 21 goals at the event. As of November 2026, he has netted 88 goals in 29 games for the side.

The 2025/26 season also marks Grgic’s breakout at club level, as he moved from Eisenach to top team SG Flensburg-Handewitt. There, he is playing in the EHF European League, having a record of 37 goals in six matches. But he is impressing even more in the Bundesliga — Grgic is the sixth top scorer of the German league, with 115 goals. 

Ian Barrufet — Spain
Left wing

Roughly one year after he debuted for the Spain A team, 21-year-old Ian Barrufet is ready for his second major tournament and first EHF EURO. Developed at Barça, the high-scoring wing, whose loan period to Melsungen for 2024/25 ended up marking a breakout season, Barrufet enters the EHF EURO 2026 just shy of 20 caps for Spain.

In 2025/26, Barrufet is back with Barça and enjoying his first season as a core player for the side. That comes after he was the top scorer of the EHF European League 2024/25, with 90 goals, as Melsungen finished fourth in the competition. His performance was enough to earn him the Rookie of the Season nod at the EHF Excellence Awards 2024/25. 

Barrufet was part of an exceptional Spain YAC generation, winning three titles in a row: the M18 EHF EURO 2022, 2023 Youth World Championship and M20 EHF EURO 2024.

Like three of the others on this list — Costa, Roganovic and Grgic — Barrufet is the son of a former handball player. But Barrufet is carving an entirely new reputation for the name, playing a very different position than his father, who is known as one of the best goalkeepers ever in the game.  

Photos © Uros Hocevar, Jozo Cabraja, Sasa Pahic Szabo / kolektiff; JRECIO