Handball Mastermind series features Jakob Vestergaard

If Jakob Vestergaard had to summarise his vision of handball in one or two lines, it would probably be: "For me, it is very important to play attractive handball. But first and foremost, smart handball and as a fighting team."

Fighting, in the sense of working hard, is certainly a term that characterises the Danish coach, who took over from Ole Gustav Gjekstad at the helm of Odense in the summer of 2025.

Vestergaard won back-to-back EHF Champions League titles with Viborg HK in 2009 and 2010, reached
the semi-finals with CS Oltchim Râmnicu Vâlcea in 2013, and another final with SG BBM Bietigheim in 2024.

In the latest instalment of EHF's "Handball Masterminds" — a series with in-depth interviews with some of the greatest coaches of the game — Vestergaard explains that hard work has always been the foundation of his success.

DEVELOPING STYLE

Vestergaard talks about his route in coaching at the age of just 20, and how he learned early on to trust his instinct and work with players.

"When I speak with young coaches, I always say: you have to take what is best from the top coaches, and then you have to create your own style. And actually, I did the same when I started coaching. I had a little from the beginning, and then I took the best things I could get from all the top coaches," he says.

Also key to Vestergaard's coaching philosophy is interacting with the entire roster of players.

"When it comes to team-building, I like to speak with my players. I spend time with them, discussing what they are doing well, what they are doing poorly, and what they need to improve.

"Because, of course, if you are one of the first seven players who are always going to start, it is easy. But if you are number 10, 11 or 12, then you need to know what you should do better," he adds.

SHAKING THINGS UP

Vestergaard's approach to creating a strong team from a squad including some of the best players in the world gave Viborg success, but he says after a while he needed a change.

"I needed to do something different. I needed to test myself outside Denmark," he says, of his move to Romania. 

"I believed the potential was big. I thought I could work with the Romanian players and the international players to create a culture in which we could win the Champions League."

He explains it is easier to get player buy-in for a new project after achieving previous success as a coach, but the process of goal-setting and starting out is key. The same applied when he returned to Viborg, when the goal was to return to the top-tier and develop players like Anna Kristensen, Kristina Jørgensen and Line Haugsted. 

BACK TO THE TOP

Vestergaard returned to the EHF Champions League Women when he took on the job of head coach at SG BBM Bietigheim (now HB Ludwigsburg). He has a soft spot for the competition.

"The Champions League is something special. You know, when we hear the music, when we prepare, when we travel around Europe, playing against different cultures, different styles, coaches and players, that is something amazing," Vestergaard says.

Now at Odense Håndbold, the expectations are high, but this is also something Vestergaard is relishing.

"If there is no pressure, there are no ambitions. And of course, I could take another team where there is not this kind of pressure, but that also means maybe we are not able to reach the EHF FINAL4," he says.

And he is now part of a shared dream with his players of the next step, after Odense reached the Champions League final last year.

Many players enjoy playing for Odense, and for them it is not simply work; it is a dream. Therefore, that is something special. We are trying to protect that way of thinking," says Vestergaard.

"I am not here to work; I am here to fulfil my dream of winning the Champions League and playing in finals again. And therefore, every morning when I wake up, I think: OK, how can I improve? How can I make us even better?"

The full episode provides a real insight into Vestergaard's way of thinking and how he has achieved continued success. Watch it now on EHFTV and on the Home of Handball YouTube channel.

Main photo © Lau Nielsen