EHF, University of Castilla-La Mancha join forces to build AI-powered "Player Index"

MEDIA RELEASE: The new "Player Index," jointly developed by the European Handball Federation and the University of Castilla-La Mancha, is set to become a modern reference tool for player assessment, talent development and the continued overall development of handball in Europe.

The European Handball Federation (EHF) and the University of Castilla-La Mancha’s (UCLM) School of Computer Science have entered a groundbreaking partnership set to lift the evaluation of players’ performances at EHF European Championships to the next level.

The five-year agreement enables the development of a data-driven, artificial intelligence-based "Player Index" that will help inform the selection of the best male and female players, i.e., the tournament’s All-star Team, at EHF EURO’s, the EHF’s flagship national team competition.

Currently, the selection of the All-star Team is based on the assessments of expert panels with extensive experience and in-depth knowledge of international handball. The challenge lies in supplementing the expert knowledge with tools capable of translating parts of the evaluation process into explainable and reproducible criteria that help to better understand the factors associated with sporting performance.

The new Player Index will integrate advanced techniques in artificial intelligence, machine learning and sports data analysis capable of evaluating the performance of professional players, taking into account the competitive context and performance patterns observed during the competition.

One of the most significant aspects will be the system’s ability to explain its recommendations. In addition to identifying which players have performed best during a tournament, the tool will be able to pinpoint which factors have influenced that assessment and the weight assigned to each one.

That way, everyone will be able to better understand the factors that support the selection of a particular player, strengthening the understanding of and confidence in the evaluation process.

The collaboration’s first milestone is the Women's EHF EURO 2026, played from 3 to 20 December in Poland, Romania, Czechia, Slovakia and Türkiye, with the Player Index expected to be in use internally for the championship. A public interface is planned to be in place for the Men’s EHF EURO 2028.

For the EHF, the project is led by the federation’s Sports & Game Services department and the EHF Methods Commission. For UCLM, researchers Eusebio Angulo, Julio Alberto López, and Francisco Pascual Romero are in the lead.

Pedro Sequeira, Chairman of the EHF Methods Commission, said: "The Player Index will provide a scientifically validated, data-driven, and objective methodology for evaluating and ranking handball players. It will transform performance data into clear, reliable, and interpretable information that supports coaches, analysts, players, and federations in understanding the real impact of individual actions within the game.

"Through the collaboration between the EHF and UCLM, the project is ensured of methodological integrity, expert validation, transparency, and practical applicability across EHF competitions. The Player Index will become a modern reference tool for player assessment, talent development, and the continued overall development of handball in Europe."