Official EHF statement following GER vs CRO semi-final press conference

The European Handball Federation issues the following statement after Croatia head coach Dagur Sigurdsson openly criticised the organisational circumstances at the Men’s EHF EURO 2026 at the semi-final press conference on Thursday.

The European Handball Federation acknowledges the criticism of the schedule for the championship. The schedule for the EHF EURO is decided between the organisers and the EHF way ahead of the start of the championship.

In this decision process all relevant stakeholder bodies, i.e. the Nations Board that represents the national federations, are included. The schedule is known to all teams at the very latest with the final tournament draw more than six months prior to the tournament.

It is acknowledged that the teams coming from Malmö face a more challenging situation. However, it must be noted that at previous championships teams faced similar schedules, for example in 2018 at the EHF EURO hosted by Croatia.

For the team hotel in Silkeborg, the EHF and the organising committee have so far only received positive feedback. Silkeborg was chosen as team hotel for the Croatian delegation to offer identical conditions for the two semi-finalists facing each other, Germany and Croatia. The Croatian delegation was subsequently informed on Wednesday evening.

Slightly longer travels at international championships are not uncommon. At the IHF Men’s World Championship 2025, Croatia stayed at Karlovac to eventually travel to Zagreb for their matches.

The media schedule for all teams as it is laid out by the European Handball Federation is communicated to all teams well in advance.
 
After the EHF EURO 2026, the European Handball Federation together with the organisers will carefully evaluate the organisation of the championship and draw the corresponding conclusions.