32 teams hunt trophies at EHF Beach Handball Champions Cup 2026

The 12th edition of the Champions Cup brings together top clubs from across Europe as they compete for one of continental club beach handball's most coveted titles.

The format is the same for the men's and the women's competitions and includes a round-robin preliminary round with four groups of four teams. The top three teams advance to the main round, which will be played in two groups of six teams each.

The best four teams of each group will meet in the quarter-finals on Saturday, before the placement matches, semi-finals, and finals will be played on Sunday.

Men’s EHF Beach Handball Championship 2026

• the last five editions of the competition have been won by five different teams from four countries; Portugal went back-to-back with GRD Leça – SPAR winning in 2024 and Nazaré BHT claiming the title last year

• 11 nations are represented in the field this year: Portugal have three teams in the mix, while Denmark, the Netherlands and Hungary send two teams to Porto Santo

• 2025 champions Nazaré BHT start in group A alongside Aarhus Beach (Denmark), MKS Alba Sphinx Grudziądz (Hungary), and Hiekka Hauskaa (Netherlands); the Portuguese side take part for the third time, having stepped foot on the podium in both of their previous participations, finishing third and first

• Aarhus Beach reached the quarter-finals in the previous two editions and finished in sixth place last year

• group B consists of German champions 12 Monkeys Köln BHC, Kävlinge HK (Sweden), BHC Rappi – Jona (Switzerland), and Alba Fehérvár (Hungary); Kävlinge return to the competition after a nine-year-long wait, while Rappi-Jona and Fehérvár make their debut at the Champions Cup

• Swiss side Rappi-Jona were founded before this season and immediately took the domestic championship in the summer; the team consists mostly of former under-17 national team players who took part in the Men’s 17 EHF Beach Handball EURO 2025

• GRD Leça – SPAR headline group C where they face CBMP Ciudad de Málaga (Spain), Black Lake Beach (Netherlands) and Frenchy’s Beach Handball (France); the Portuguese side claimed the title in 2024 and made it back to the final last year, losing against fellow Portuguese side Nazaré BHT in a shoot-out

• London Beach Handball have taken part in the past five editions, while HIR-Sat BHC from Hungary only missed the 2022 edition, even taking the bronze medal in 2021

• the two teams face VRT/Lemar (Portugal), who finished 14th on debut last year, and newcomers Ry Beach from Denmark, who finished second in the Danish championship this summer

Women’s EHF Beach Handball Championship 2026

• the last five editions were won by four different teams from four countries; The Danish Beachhandball Dream won back-to-back titles in 2023 and 2024

• 10 nations are represented in the field this year; Spain have three teams in the mix, while Portugal, Hungary, Germany and the Netherlands send two teams to Porto Santo

• Beaurepaire Beach Handball and Club Handbol Xàbia replaced Copenhagen Beach and HCB Beach Belin Beliet, who are no longer participating

• 2025 title winners CBMP Ciudad de Málaga start their tournament in group A, where they will face Associação Desportiva – ADG (Portugal), BHT Byczki Kowalewo Pomorskie (Poland), and Tempo Donna Mamma from Hungary

• teams from Spain have won the most titles — four; next in line is Hungary with three titles

• two-time former champions The Danish Beachhandball Dream return after missing a medal as fourth-placed team last year; they face silver medallists GRD Leça - Love Tiles on the final matchday of group B in a must-see match

• Club Balonmano Getasur SF (Spain) and Copaca – Bâlerina (Switzerland) try to play spoiler against their experienced opponents and battle for the final spot in the main round; Getasur return after finishing sixth on debut 10 years ago; the Swiss side finished 12th (2025) and 16th (2023) in their previous participations

• group C consists of Beach Unicorns Hannover (Germany), Hiekka Hauskaa (Netherlands), Beaurepaire Beach Handball (France), and London United Beach Handball (GB); Beach Unicorns and London missed the main round last year and finished the competition in 13th and 14th, as the German side took a 2:0 (24:12, 23:20) win in the consolation round; Hiekka Hauskaa and Beaurepaire take the stage for the first time

• last year’s bronze medallists Red Velvet BHC – Bomba headline group D, where they meet three debutants: Club Handbol Xàbia (Spain), Young Guns Bremen (Germany), and Next Wave (Netherlands); it will be the third participation for Red Velvet, who placed 14th on their debut in 2024

• German side Young Guns Bremen claimed silver at the German championship last summer; the squad consists of players who are only 15 to 21 years old

All matches live on EHFTV

All days, all courts, all matches: The entire EHF Beach Handball Champions Cup 2026 in Porto Santo will be streamed live on EHFTV.

Fans have two options to follow the men's and women's competition on the official EHF platform — either with a tournament pass for the entire event, or with a final day pass for the deciding matches on Sunday (18 October).

all photos © kolektiff | Uros Hocevar (main and first in-text), Saša Pahič Szabó (second and third in-text)