2023–24 EHF European League

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This article is about the men's competition. For the women's competition, see 2023–24 Women's EHF European League.
2024–25
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The 2023–24 EHF European League is the 43rd season of Europe's secondary club handball tournament organised by European Handball Federation (EHF), and the 4th season since it was renamed from the EHF Cup to the EHF European League. This is the first season under the new revamped format. The defending champions are Füchse Berlin.

Format

The tournament is divided in the following phases:[1]

  • Qualification round: 10 teams will be drawn into 5 different home and away ties. The 5 winners will advance to the group stage.
  • Group stage: The 27 teams already qualified along with the 5 winners of the qualification round will be drawn into 8 groups of 4 teams each, where they will play in a double round-robin format. The top 2 teams in each group will progress to the main round. Teams from the same country can't be drawn into the same group.
  • Main round: The 16 group winners and runners-up will be placed in 4 groups of 4 teams each where they will play a single round-robin. The winners will advance directly to the quarterfinals, while 2nd and 3rd placed teams will qualify for the play-offs.
  • Play-offs: The 2nd and 3rd placed teams from each group in the main round will play in 4 different home and away ties. The winners will progress to the quarterfinals.
  • Quarter-finals: The main round group winners will face a play-off winner to determine who makes it to the European League finals.
  • EL finals: They will be played in a Final 4 format similar to the Champions League.

Rankings

This season, the EHF decided to make separate rankings for each club competition.[2]

  • Associations 1–2 can have four clubs qualify.
  • Associations 3–9 can have three clubs qualify.
  • Associations 10–18 can have two clubs qualify.
  • Associations below the top 18 are allowed to enter apply one club for a potential wildcard.

Qualified teams

The full list of teams qualified for each stage of the 2023–24 EHF European League was announced on 10 July 2023.[4]

The labels in the parentheses show how each team qualified for the place of its starting round:

  • EL: European League title holders
  • EC: European Cup title holders
  • CW: Cup winners
  • CR: Cup runners-up
  • 4th, 5th, etc.: League position of the previous season
Group stage
Germany Füchse Berlin (3rd)EL
2nd
) 		France HBC Nantes (3rd) Spain REBI BM Cuenca (2nd)
Poland Górnik Zabrze (3rd) Croatia RK Nexe (2nd) Denmark Bjerringbro-Silkeborg (3rd) Switzerland Kadetten Schaffhausen (1st)
Sweden IFK Kristianstad (1st) North Macedonia HC Alkaloid (2nd) Hungary MOL-Tatabánya KC (3rd) Slovenia RK Gorenje Velenje (2nd)
Slovakia MŠK Považská Bystrica (1st) Romania Dinamo București (1st) Greece AEK Athens (1st) Norway Elverum Håndball (2nd)
Germany SG Flensburg-Handewitt (4th)
3rd
) 		France Chambéry Savoie MBH (4th) Spain Logroño La Rioja (CR)
Poland Chrobry Głogów (4th) Denmark Skjern Håndbold (4th) Switzerland HC Kriens-Luzern (2nd) Sweden IK Sävehof (2nd)
Serbia RK Vojvodina (1st)EC WC Bosnia and Herzegovina RK Izviđač (1st) WC Montenegro RK Lovćen (1st) WC
Qualification round
Germany Rhein-Neckar Löwen (5th)
4th
) 		Spain Fraikin BM Granollers (3rd) Switzerland Pfadi Winterthur (3rd)
Sweden Ystads IF (3rd) North Macedonia Vardar 1961 (3rd) Slovenia RK Trimo Trebnje (3rd)
CSM Constanța
(CW)
Germany TSV Hannover-Burgdorf (6th)
5th
)
  • WC Accepted Wildcard

Draw

The Draw took place on the 21 July 2023.[5][6] The only restriction was that clubs from the same country cannot be in the same group.

Pot 1 Pot 2 Pot 3 Pot 4

Germany Füchse Berlin
Portugal Sporting CP
France HBC Nantes
Spain REBI BM Cuenca
Poland Górnik Zabrze
Croatia RK Nexe
Denmark Bjerringbro-Silkeborg
Switzerland Kadetten Schaffhausen

Sweden IFK Kristianstad
North Macedonia HC Alkaloid
Hungary MOL-Tatabánya KC
Slovenia RK Gorenje Velenje
Slovakia MŠK Považská Bystrica
Romania Dinamo București
Greece AEK Athens
Norway Elverum Håndball

Germany SG Flensburg-Handewitt
Portugal SL Benfica
France Chambéry Savoie MBH
Spain Logroño La Rioja
Poland Chrobry Głogów
Denmark Skjern Håndbold
Switzerland HC Kriens-Luzern
Sweden IK Sävehof

N/A Play Off Winner 1[a]
N/A Play Off Winner 2[b]
N/A Play Off Winner 3[c]
N/A Play Off Winner 4[d]
N/A Play Off Winner 5[e]
Serbia RK Vojvodina
Bosnia and Herzegovina RK Izviđač
Montenegro RK Lovćen

  1. ^ The eventual team in this slot was TSV Hannover-Burgdorf.
  2. ^ The eventual team in this slot was ABC Braga
  3. ^ The eventual team in this slot was Pfadi Winterthur
  4. ^ The eventual team in this slot was Rhein-Neckar Löwen
  5. CSM Constanța

Qualification round

Main article: 2023–24 EHF European League Qualification Round

The draw for the qualification round was conducted on 18 July 2023. The first legs will be held on 26–27 August 2023 while the second legs will be held on 2–3 September 2023.[7]

Team 1
Agg.
Tooltip Aggregate score 		Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
Ystads IF Sweden 49–63 Germany TSV Hannover-Burgdorf 28–33 21–30
RK Trimo Trebnje Slovenia 57–58 Portugal ABC Braga 31–29 26–29
Águas Santas Milaneza Portugal 43–44 Switzerland Pfadi Winterthur 24–22 19–22
Vardar 1961 North Macedonia 58–71 Germany Rhein-Neckar Löwen 25–34 33–37
CSM Constanța Romania
 52–51 Spain Fraikin BM Granollers 27–29 25–22 PS

Group stage

CSM Constanța
Lisbon teams SL Benfica Sporting CP
Lisbon teams
SL Benfica
Sporting CP

class=notpageimage|
Location of teams of the 2023–24 EHF European League group stage
Brown: Group A; Red: Group B; Orange: Group C; Yellow: Group D;
Green: Group E; Blue: Group F; Purple: Group G;
Pink: Group H

The draw for the group stage was conducted on 21 July 2023 at the EHF office in Vienna.[5][8]

In the group stage, teams were ranked according to points (2 points for a win, 1 point for a draw, 0 points for a loss). After completion of the group stage, if two or more teams have scored the same number of points, the ranking will be determined as follows:

Tiebreakers
  1. Highest number of points in matches between the teams directly involved;
  2. Superior goal difference in matches between the teams directly involved;
  3. Highest number of goals scored in matches between the teams directly involved;
  4. Superior goal difference in all matches of the group;
  5. Highest number of plus goals in all matches of the group;
  6. Drawing of Lots

Group A

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification NAN RHE BEN KRI
1 France HBC Nantes 6 5 0 1 201 177 +24 10[a] Main round — 32–25 37–28 31–27
2 Germany Rhein-Neckar Löwen 6 5 0 1 198 177 +21 10[a] 36–32 — 39–30 36–28
3 Portugal SL Benfica 6 2 0 4 194 210 −16 4 34–38 35–36 — 36–33
4 Sweden IFK Kristianstad 6 0 0 6 162 191 −29 0 27–31 20–26 27–31 —
Source: EHF
Notes:
  1. ^ a b HBC Nantes 64–61 Rhein-Neckar Löwen

Group B

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification HAN GOZ LUZ AEK
1 Germany TSV Hannover-Burgdorf 6 5 1 0 192 164 +28 11 Main round — 34–28 30–30 31–25
2 Poland Górnik Zabrze 6 3 1 2 179 171 +8 7 29–32 — 32–28 30–21
3 Switzerland HC Kriens-Luzern 6 1 2 3 179 180 −1 4 23–31 30–30 — 39–27
4 Greece AEK Athens 6 1 0 5 158 193 −35 2 29–34 26–30 30–29 —
Source: EHF

Group C

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification SAV GOR CUE WIN
1 Sweden IK Sävehof 6 5 1 0 207 160 +47 11 Main round — 36–34 40–27 41–20
2 Slovenia RK Gorenje Velenje 6 2 1 3 182 170 +12 5 28–28 — 28–20 34–26
3 Spain REBI BM Cuenca 6 2 0 4 153 181 −28 4[a] 22–30 28–27 — 28–24
4 Switzerland Pfadi Winterthur 6 2 0 4 163 194 −31 4[a] 29–32 32–31 32–28 —
Source: EHF
Notes:
  1. ^ a b REBI BM Cuenca 56–56 Pfadi Winterthur. Placement decided on goal difference.

Group D

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification NEX SKJ BRA POV
1 Croatia RK Nexe 6 5 0 1 215 172 +43 10 Main round — 39–25 38–28 35–28
2 Denmark Skjern Håndbold 6 4 0 2 191 172 +19 8 33–30 — 32–25 42–22
3 Portugal ABC Braga 6 2 0 4 173 188 −15 4 30–34 25–32 — 31–26
4 Slovakia MŠK Považská Bystrica 6 1 0 5 161 208 −47 2 28–39 31–27 26–34 —
Source: EHF

Group E

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification FLE KAD ELV LOV
1 Germany SG Flensburg-Handewitt 6 5 0 1 218 162 +56 10 Main round — 46–32 38–35 42–19
2 Switzerland Kadetten Schaffhausen 6 4 0 2 181 183 −2 8 25–24 — 32–30 36–26
3 Norway Elverum Håndball 6 3 0 3 192 181 +11 6 32–33 31–27 — 37–25
4 Montenegro RK Lovćen 6 0 0 6 141 206 −65 0 19–35 26–29 26–27 —
Source: EHF

Group F

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification SIL VOJ ALK LOG
1 Denmark Bjerringbro-Silkeborg 6 5 0 1 183 158 +25 10 Main round — 26–22 35–31 34–25
2 Serbia RK Vojvodina 6 4 0 2 172 163 +9 8 29–28 — 34–29 24–25
3 North Macedonia HC Alkaloid 6 1 1 4 166 187 −21 3[a] 23–31 26–31 — 28–27
4 Spain Logroño La Rioja 6 1 1 4 163 176 −13 3[a] 28–29 29–32 29–29 —
Source: EHF
Notes:
  1. ^ a b Head to head points: HC Alkaloid 3–1 Logroño La Rioja

Group G

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification FUC BUC CHA IZV
1 Germany Füchse Berlin 6 6 0 0 194 160 +34 12 Main round — 33–30 24–22 34–23
2 Romania Dinamo București 6 4 0 2 218 168 +50 8 32–33 — 36–33 52–24
3 France Chambéry Savoie MBH 6 2 0 4 181 181 0 4 31–36 21–28 — 34–30
4 Bosnia and Herzegovina RK Izviđač 6 0 0 6 150 234 −84 0 22–34 24–40 27–40 —
Source: EHF

Group H

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
CON
 SPO TAT CHR
1
CSM Constanța
 6 4 1 1 172 158 +14 9 Main round — 29–28 28–25 29–18
2 Portugal Sporting CP 6 4 0 2 199 158 +41 8 34–28 — 36–28 37–20
3 Hungary MOL-Tatabánya KC 6 3 0 3 175 171 +4 6 24–29 31–29 — 37–24
4 Poland Chrobry Głogów 6 0 1 5 138 197 −59 1 29–29 22–35 25–30 —
Source: EHF

Main round

In the main round, the remaining sixteen teams merge into four groups of four, where they play the teams they didn't play in the group stage. Points from the group stage against the teams that advanced with each other are carried over. At the end of the main round, The four group winners advance to the quarter-finals, while the 2nd and 3rd place teams qualify for the play-offs.

Group I

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification NAN RHE HAN GOZ
1 France HBC Nantes 6 5 0 1 197 164 +33 10 Quarter-finals — 32–25 33–26 31–23
2 Germany Rhein-Neckar Löwen 6 4 0 2 173 166 +7 8 Play-offs 36–32 — 27–26 27–23
3 Germany TSV Hannover-Burgdorf 6 2 0 4 174 187 −13 4 32–38 24–32 — 34–28
4 Poland Górnik Zabrze 6 1 0 5 154 181 −27 2 22–31 29–26 29–32 —
Source: EHF

Group II

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification SKJ SAV NEX GOR
1 Denmark Skjern Håndbold 6 4 0 2 194 185 +9 8 Quarter-finals — 33–34 33–30 45–31
2 Sweden IK Sävehof 6 3 1 2 187 181 +6 7[a] Play-offs 27–29 — 34–28 36–34
3 Croatia RK Nexe 6 3 1 2 187 174 +13 7[a] 39–25 29–28 — 34–27
4 Slovenia RK Gorenje Velenje 6 0 2 4 171 199 −28 2 24–29 28–28 27–27 —
Source: EHF
Notes:
  1. ^ a b IK Sävehof 62–57 RK Nexe

Group III

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification FLE SIL KAD VOJ
1 Germany SG Flensburg-Handewitt 6 5 0 1 231 167 +64 10 Quarter-finals — 38–28 46–32 42–30
2 Denmark Bjerringbro-Silkeborg 6 3 0 3 178 197 −19 6 Play-offs 26–45 — 36–30 26–22
3 Switzerland Kadetten Schaffhausen 6 2 0 4 168 188 −20 4[a] 25–24 33–34 — 27–24
4 Serbia RK Vojvodina 6 2 0 4 155 180 −25 4[a] 26–36 29–28 24–21 —
Source: EHF
Notes:
  1. ^ a b Kadetten Schaffhausen 48–48 RK Vojvodina. Placement decided on goal difference.

Group IV

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification SPO FUC BUC
CON
1 Portugal Sporting CP 6 5 0 1 192 176 +16 10 Quarter-finals — 32–28 35–33 34–28
2 Germany Füchse Berlin 6 4 0 2 192 186 +6 8 Play-offs 31–32 — 33–30 35–30
3 Romania Dinamo București 6 2 0 4 188 180 +8 4 27–31 32–33 — 33–23
4
CSM Constanța
 6 1 0 5 165 195 −30 2 29–28 29–32 25–33 —
Source: EHF

Knockout stage

In the playoffs, the eight teams ranked 2nd–3rd in Main round Groups I-IV play against each other in two-legged home-and-away matches. The four winning teams advance to the quarterfinals, where they are joined by the top teams of Main round Groups I-IV for another round of two-legged home-and-away matches. The four quarterfinal winners qualify for the final four tournament at the Barclays Arena in Hamburg, Germany.[9]

Playoffs

Overview

Team 1
Agg.
Tooltip Aggregate score 		Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
RK Nexe Croatia 48–55 Germany Rhein-Neckar Löwen 19–24 29–31
TSV Hannover-Burgdorf Germany 59–64 Sweden IK Sävehof 34–30 25–34
Dinamo București Romania 64–58 Denmark Bjerringbro-Silkeborg 37–34 27–24
Kadetten Schaffhausen Switzerland 56–66 Germany Füchse Berlin 28–32 28–34
Matches
26 March 2024
20:45 		RK Nexe Croatia 19–24 Germany Rhein-Neckar Löwen Sportska dvorana kralja Tomislava, Našice
Attendance: 2,000
Referees: Andorka, Hucker (HUN)
Marguč 4 (11–13) Reichmann 7
1×Yellow card 1×number 2 in light blue rounded square Report 2×Yellow card
2 April 2024
20:45 		Rhein-Neckar Löwen Germany 31–29 Croatia RK Nexe SNP Dome, Heidelberg
Attendance: 2,974
Referees: Erdoğan, Özdeniz (TUR)
Kohlbacher 8 (16–16) Bezjak, Vejin 7
 3×number 2 in light blue rounded square Report  3×number 2 in light blue rounded square
26 March 2024
20:45 		TSV Hannover-Burgdorf Germany 34–30 Sweden IK Sävehof
Hannover
Attendance: 2,305
Referees: Metalari, Nikolovski (MKD
)
Edvardsson 8 (18–14) Wedberg 12
 3×number 2 in light blue rounded square Report 1×Yellow card 2×number 2 in light blue rounded square
2 April 2024
18:45 		IK Sävehof Sweden 34–25 Germany TSV Hannover-Burgdorf Partille Arena, Partille
Attendance: 2,138
Referees: Bíró, Kiss (HUN)
Möller, Wedberg 7 (18–14) Kulesh 6
1×Yellow card 3×number 2 in light blue rounded square Report  5×number 2 in light blue rounded square
26 March 2024
18:45 		Dinamo București Romania 37–34 Denmark Bjerringbro-Silkeborg Dinamo Polyvalent Hall, Bucharest
Attendance: 2,300
Referees: Cacador, Nicolau (POR)
Rosta 9 (18–16) Bogojevic, Lenbroch 7
 1×number 2 in light blue rounded square Report 1×Yellow card 2×number 2 in light blue rounded square
2 April 2024
18:45 		Bjerringbro-Silkeborg Denmark 24–27 Romania Dinamo București Jysk Arena, Silkeborg
Attendance: 1,811
Referees: Álvarez, Bustamante (ESP)
Hallbäck 6 (8–16) Akimenko 7
1×Yellow card 3×number 2 in light blue rounded square Report  2×number 2 in light blue rounded square
26 March 2024
18:45 		Kadetten Schaffhausen Switzerland 28–32 Germany Füchse Berlin BBC Arena, Schaffhausen
Attendance: 3,500
Referees: Vesovic, Mitrovic (MNE)
Martinović 7 (15–16) Gidsel 9
1×Yellow card 3×number 2 in light blue rounded square Report 1×Yellow card 4×number 2 in light blue rounded square
2 April 2024
20:45 		Füchse Berlin Germany 34–28 Switzerland Kadetten Schaffhausen Max-Schmeling-Halle, Berlin
Attendance: 4,717
Referees: Kull, Tint (EST)
Gidsel, Lichtlein 7 (18–11) Ríkharðsson 8
1×Yellow card 3×number 2 in light blue rounded square Report  3×number 2 in light blue rounded square

Quarterfinals

Overview

Team 1
Agg.
Tooltip Aggregate score 		Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
Füchse Berlin Germany 70–63 France HBC Nantes 33–33 37–30
Dinamo București Romania 66–61 Denmark Skjern Håndbold 28–27 38–34
IK Sävehof Sweden 59–69 Germany SG Flensburg-Handewitt 30–41 29–28
Rhein-Neckar Löwen Germany 60–58 Portugal Sporting CP 32–29 28–29
Matches
23 April 2024
20:45 		Füchse Berlin Germany 33–33 France HBC Nantes Max-Schmeling-Halle, Berlin
Attendance: 7,179
Referees: Budzak, Zahradnik (SVK)
Gidsel 9 (17–15) Minne 10
 2×number 2 in light blue rounded square Report  4×number 2 in light blue rounded square
30 April 2024
20:45 		HBC Nantes France 30–37 Germany Füchse Berlin H Arena, Nantes
Attendance: 5,902
Referees: Leszczynski, Piechota (POL)
Rivera 6 (16–18) Andersson 9
 4×number 2 in light blue rounded square 1×Red card Report  2×number 2 in light blue rounded square
23 April 2024
18:45 		Dinamo București Romania 28–27 Denmark Skjern Håndbold Dinamo Polyvalent Hall, Bucharest
Attendance: 2,538
Referees: Thiyagarajah, Thiyagarajah (GER)
Kukić 7 (14–15) Nazaré 6
 4×number 2 in light blue rounded square Report  3×number 2 in light blue rounded square
30 April 2024
18:45 		Skjern Håndbold Denmark 34–38 Romania Dinamo București Skjern Bank Arena, Skjern
Attendance: 3,178
Referees: Bolic, Hurich (AUT)
Gaudin 10 (12–20) Kuduz 8
 3×number 2 in light blue rounded square 1×Red card Report  3×number 2 in light blue rounded square 1×Red card
23 April 2024
18:45 		IK Sävehof Sweden 30–41 Germany SG Flensburg-Handewitt Partille Arena, Partille
Attendance: 4,408
Referees: Cindric, Gonzurek (CRO)
Berlin, Mittún 6 (14–22) Jakobsen 9
2×Yellow card 2×number 2 in light blue rounded square Report 1×Yellow card 2×number 2 in light blue rounded square
30 April 2024
18:45 		SG Flensburg-Handewitt Germany 28–29 Sweden IK Sävehof Flens-Arena, Flensburg
Attendance: 4,825
Referees: Horváth, Marton (HUN)
three players 5 (11–15) Westby 5
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23 April 2024
20:45 		Rhein-Neckar Löwen Germany 32–29 Portugal Sporting CP SNP Dome, Heidelberg
Attendance: 2,773
Referees: Mitrevski, Todorovski (MKD)
Kirkeløkke 10 (19–14) F. Costa 9
 5×number 2 in light blue rounded square Report 2×Yellow card 4×number 2 in light blue rounded square
30 April 2024
20:45 		Sporting CP Portugal 29–28 Germany Rhein-Neckar Löwen Pavilhão João Rocha, Lisbon
Attendance: 2,407
Referees: Tzaferopoulos, Bethmann (GRE)
F. Costa 11 (15–12) Reichmann 7
1×Yellow card 6×number 2 in light blue rounded square Report 1×Yellow card 4×number 2 in light blue rounded square

Final Four

The final four will held at the Barclays Arena in Hamburg, Germany on 25 and 26 May 2024.

Bracket

 
SemifinalsFinal
 
      
 
25 May
 
 
 
 
26 May
 
 
 
 
 
25 May
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Third place
 
 
26 May
 
 
 
 
 
 

Semifinals

25 May 2024 TBD v TBD Barclays Arena, Hamburg
25 May 2024 TBD v TBD Barclays Arena, Hamburg

Third place game

26 May 2024 LSF1 v LSF2 Barclays Arena, Hamburg

Final

26 May 2024 WSF1 v WSF2 Barclays Arena, Hamburg

Top goalscorers

As of 30 April 2024
Rank Player Club Goals[10]
1 Ukraine Andrii Akimenko Romania Dinamo București 83
2 Denmark Niclas Kirkeløkke Germany Rhein-Neckar Löwen 79
3 Portugal Francisco Costa Portugal Sporting CP 73
4 Sweden Gustaf Wedberg Sweden IK Sävehof 72
5 Denmark Mathias Gidsel Germany Füchse Berlin 71
Iceland Óðinn Þór Ríkharðsson Switzerland Kadetten Schaffhausen
7 Germany Juri Knorr Germany Rhein-Neckar Löwen 70
8 Faroe Islands Óli Mittún Sweden IK Sävehof 68
9 Denmark Lasse Andersson Germany Füchse Berlin 66
Denmark Viktor Bergholt Denmark Skjern Håndbold

See also

References

  1. ^ "EHF European League Men 2023/24 Format". EHF. Retrieved 20 July 2023.
  2. ^ "EHF improves club competitions ranking system". eurohandball.com. 27 September 2022. Retrieved 9 January 2023.
  3. ^ Place distribution eurohandball.com
  4. ^ "EHF European League Men 2023/24 Seeding". EHF. Retrieved 20 July 2023.
  5. ^ a b EHF European League Men groups to be revealed EHF 18 July 2023
  6. ^ Group phase draw eurohandball.com
  7. ^ European League Men throws up exciting qualification ties EHF 18 July 2023
  8. ^ Revamped European League taking shape after group stage draw EHF 21 July 2023
  9. ^ Final EXEC meeting in 2023 brings major decisions for 2024 EHF 18 December 2023
  10. ^ Goalscorers