The M20 EHF EURO is heading into its 13th edition, with the previous 12 tournaments producing just six different winners.
Denmark lead the way with four titles, but the Scandinavian side have not won another medal since their last golden triumph in 2010. Germany with three titles and Spain with two are the other multiple winners.
Now, Europe’s brightest talents are ready to provide a glimpse of the sport’s future at the M20 EHF EURO 2022 in Portugal.
- the previous edition, in 2018, had a first-time winner, as hosts Slovenia pleased the home crowd and went all the way in Celje, beating France in the final
- Slovenia’s success will serve as an encouraging example to 2022 hosts Portugal, who were in the semi-finals in 2018 and even reached the final once – in 2010 against Denmark
- a good indicator for the tournament in Portugal might be the M19 EHF EURO 2021 played by the same generation of players in August last year, when Germany earned the gold medal and hosts Croatia the silver, followed by Spain taking the bronze
- at the recent Airport Trophy in Switzerland, victory went to unbeaten Spain ahead of Germany, hinting that those teams will be regarded by many as potential semi-finalists again – if not more than that
- Spain share group A with neighbours and hosts Portugal, Norway, and Poland, while Germany take on Iceland, Italy, and Serbia in group D, meaning that Spain and Germany cannot meet each other before the semi-finals
- also, 2018 winners Slovenia face record champions Denmark, Hungary, and Faroe Islands in group B; and group C consists of Croatia, Sweden, France, and Montenegro
How to follow the M20 EHF EURO 2022
The preliminary round (playing schedule) will be played on Thursday, Friday and Sunday, with the top two teams from all four group advancing to the main round on 12/13 July. Again, the best two teams of each main round group go on to the semi-finals, scheduled for 15 July. The medal matches take place on Sunday 17 July.
The M20 EHF EURO 2022 will be broadcast in 15 territories across Europe – a new milestone for a YAC event – with worldwide coverage guaranteed through EHF’s own streaming platform EHFTV. Online coverage also includes EHF’s dedicated social media channels and the daily live blog on eurohandball.com.
photo © 2021 Jozo Cebraja / kolektiff