Defending champion dethroned
SG Flensburg-Handewitt triumphs in the German European Cup final
26.05.2024, 19:42
The Füchse Berlin cannot defend their title in the European League: In the duel between the handball Bundesliga teams, the SG Flensburg-Handewitt wins the title. 18 of the last 20 title holders come from Germany.
Defending champion dethroned, dry spell ended: SG Flensburg-Handewitt has won the European League for the first time. The third-placed team in the Bundesliga defeated last year’s winners Füchse Berlin 36:31 (15:14) in the final in Hamburg and won its first international title since its Champions League triumph ten years ago.
In addition, with their well-deserved victory in a high-class final in front of 10,050 spectators in the Hanseatic city, the SG continued a proud German series: 18 of 20 titles in Europe’s second most important club competition went to clubs from the Bundesliga in the past two decades. Berlin, on the other hand, missed out on its fourth title win in the former EHF Cup after 2015, 2018 and 2023.
Two red cards
The best scorer for Flensburg, who beat Dinamo Bucharest 38:32 in the semi-finals on Saturday, was left winger Emil Jakobsen with seven goals. Goalkeeper Kevin Möller also put in a strong performance. Jerry Tollbring also scored seven goals for the Füchse, who qualified for the final with a 33:24 win against Rhein-Neckar Löwen.
Berlin’s defense chief Mijajlo Marsenic was shown the red card for a serious foul (32nd minute), as was Flensburg’s playmaker Jim Gottfridsson five minutes later. Both decisions were made after video evidence. The Lions secured third place at the Final Four in the Hanseatic city on Sunday with a 32:31 (18:15) win against Bucharest.
Heated duels, tremendous speed, spectacular goals: Flensburg and Berlin fought an intense duel on equal terms for over 60 minutes. While the Füchse benefited above all from the individual class of the Danish world handball player Mathias Gidsel, the SG impressed as a collective – and was not discouraged by a weak start. Just as six weeks ago at the Final Four of the DHB Cup (31:28), when they secured third place after a weak start, national team captain Johannes Golla and co. remained cool.
At first it was Berlin that made its mark with its mobile defense. Berlin were leading 6:3 after 13 minutes before Flensburg – driven on by its loud supporters – gradually got going.
In goal, goalkeeper Möller was getting hotter by the minute, and up front the wider bench was becoming more and more noticeable as the game went on. When Golla scored twice to make it 17:14 (34th minute), Flensburg were three goals ahead for the first time – and they didn’t let the lead slip away. The game was decided by 31:26 (52nd minute).