2024–25 EHF European League

EHF European League
2024–25
Tournament information
SportHandball
Dates31 August 202425 May 2025
TeamsCompetition proper: 32
Total: 42 (from 19 countries)
Websiteehfel.com

The 2024–25 EHF European League is the 44th season of Europe's secondary club handball tournament organised by European Handball Federation (EHF), and the 5th season since it was renamed from the EHF Cup to the EHF European League. The defending champions are SG Flensburg-Handewitt.

Format

  • Qualification Round: 20 teams will be drawn into 10 different home and away ties. The 10 winners will advance to the group stage.
  • Group Stage: The 22 teams already qualified along with the 10 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

The rankings are based on the performances of each club from a respective country from a three year period.

  • 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 2024–25 EHF European League was announced on 9 July 2024.[2][3]

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 SG Flensburg-Handewitt (3rd) EL Portugal FC Porto (2nd) France Montpellier Handball (3rd) Croatia RK Nexe (2nd)
Denmark GOG Håndbold (3rd, CW) Switzerland Kadetten Schaffhausen (1st) Spain CD Bidasoa Irun (2nd) Sweden IK Sävehof (1st)
Poland Górnik Zabrze (3rd) Romania CSM Constanța (2nd) Slovenia RK Gorenje Velenje (1st) North Macedonia Vardar 1961 (2nd)
Hungary MOL-Tatabánya KC (3rd) Iceland FH Hafnarfjarðar (1st) Slovakia HT Tatran Prešov (1st) Germany THW Kiel (4th)
Portugal SL Benfica (3rd) Croatia MRK Sesvete (3rd) France Fenix Toulouse Handball (4th) Spain Bathco BM Torrelavega (11th, CR)
Poland KGHM Chrobry Głogów (4th) Serbia RK Vojvodina WC (1st)
Qualification round
Germany MT Melsungen (5th) Portugal ABC Braga (4th) Denmark Bjerringbro-Silkeborg (4th) Switzerland HC Kriens-Luzern (2nd)
Spain Fraikin BM Granollers (3rd) Sweden Ystads IF (2nd) Slovenia RK Trimo Trebnje (3rd) Iceland Valur (3rd, CW)
Germany VfL Gummersbach (6th) Portugal Maritimo da Madeira Andebol SAD (5th) Switzerland GC Amicitia Zürich (3rd) Sweden IFK Kristianstad (3rd)
France Limoges Handball (5th) Denmark Mors-Thy Håndbold (5th) Spain Abanca Ademar León (5th) Croatia RK Spačva Vinkovci (5th)
Hungary FTC-Green Collect (4th) Norway Elverum Håndball (2nd) Bosnia and Herzegovina RK Izviđač (1st) Czech Republic HCB Karviná (1st)
  • WC Accepted Wildcard

Schedule

All draws were held at the EHF headquarters in Vienna, Austria.

Phase Round Draw date Round date[3]
Qualification round First leg 16 July 2024 31 August–1 September 2024
Second leg 6–8 September 2024
Group stage Matchday 1 19 July 2024 8 October 2024
Matchday 2 15 October 2024
Matchday 3 22 October 2024
Matchday 4 29 October 2024
Matchday 5 19 November 2024
Matchday 6 26 November 2024
Main Round Matchday 7 11 February 2025
Matchday 8 18 February 2025
Matchday 9 25 February 2025
Matchday 10 4 March 2025
Play offs First leg no draw 25 March 2025
Second leg 1 April 2025
Quarterfinals First leg no draw 22 April 2025
Second leg 29 April 2025
Final four Semi-finals TBD 24 May 2025
Final and Third place game 25 May 2025

Draw

The draw took place on the at 11:00 CET in Vienna on 19 July 2024.[4][5] The only restriction was that no clubs from the same country cannot be in the same group.

Pot 1 Pot 2 Pot 3 Pot 4

Germany SG Flensburg-Handewitt
Portugal FC Porto
France Montpellier Handball
Croatia RK Nexe
Denmark GOG Håndbold
Switzerland Kadetten Schaffhausen
Spain CD Bidasoa Irun
Sweden IK Sävehof

Poland Górnik Zabrze
Romania CSM Constanța
Slovenia RK Gorenje Velenje
North Macedonia Vardar 1961
Hungary MOL-Tatabánya KC
Iceland FH Hafnarfjarðar
Slovakia HT Tatran Prešov
Germany THW Kiel

Portugal SL Benfica
Croatia MRK Sesvete
France Fenix Toulouse Handball
Spain Bathco BM Torrelavega
Poland KGHM Chrobry Głogów
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]
N/A Play Off Winner 6[F]
N/A Play Off Winner 7[G]
N/A Play Off Winner 8[H]
N/A Play Off Winner 9[I]
Serbia RK Vojvodina
N/A Special play off winner[J]

Qualification round

The draw for the qualification round was conducted on 16 July 2024.[2][6] The first legs will be held on 31 August to 1 September 2024 while the second legs will be held on 6–7 September 2024.

Team 1 Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
ABC Braga Portugal 50–52 Spain Abanca Ademar León 23–21 27–31
MT Melsungen Germany 64–54 Norway Elverum Håndball 28–23 36–31
RK Trimo Trebnje Slovenia 56–63 France Limoges Handball 32–28 24–35
HC Kriens-Luzern Switzerland 71–69 Switzerland GC Amicitia Zürich 37–31 34–38
Mors-Thy Håndbold Denmark 52–74 Germany VfL Gummersbach 22–35 30–39
Valur Iceland 58–57 Croatia RK Spačva Vinkovci 34–25 24–32
IFK Kristianstad Sweden 57–62 Spain Fraikin BM Granollers 29–32 28–30
Bjerringbro-Silkeborg Denmark 77–61 Hungary FTC-Green Collect 45–27 32–34
Ystads IF Sweden 72–66 Portugal Maritimo da Madeira Andebol SAD 39–31 33–35
Special Qualification Play off

Unlike the other Play offs, the losers of this tie will drop down to the European Cup.

Team 1 Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
HCB Karviná Czech Republic 59–54 Bosnia and Herzegovina RK Izviđač 33–22 26–32

Group stage

The draw for the group stage was conducted on 19 July 2024 at the EHF office in Vienna.

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 LUZ GOG GOR ADE
1 Switzerland HC Kriens-Luzern 6 5 0 1 196 181 +15 10 Main Round 32–30 30–25 34–30
2 Denmark GOG Håndbold 6 4 1 1 198 168 +30 9 39–36 31–21 36–23
3 Slovenia RK Gorenje Velenje 6 1 1 4 160 186 −26 3 27–33 35–35 28–25
4 Spain Abanca Ademar León 6 1 0 5 161 180 −19 2 30–31 21–27 32–24
Source: EHF

Group B

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification MON GRA SIL ZAB
1 France Montpellier Handball 6 6 0 0 193 145 +48 12 Main Round 34–25 40–26 30–25
2 Spain Fraikin BM Granollers 6 3 0 3 194 186 +8 6 24–28 36–27 41–30
3 Denmark Bjerringbro-Silkeborg 6 2 1 3 165 193 −28 5 22–34 35–32 30–26
4 Poland Górnik Zabrze 6 0 1 5 161 189 −28 1 23–27 32–36 25–25
Source: EHF

Group C

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification BEN LIM KAD TAT
1 Portugal SL Benfica 6 5 0 1 190 163 +27 10 Main Round 37–31 39–32 36–23
2 France Limoges Handball 6 4 0 2 198 170 +28 8 36–28 27–31 31–24
3 Switzerland Kadetten Schaffhausen 6 3 0 3 195 187 +8 6 25–26 29–39 39–26
4 Slovakia HT Tatran Prešov 6 0 0 6 140 203 −63 0 16–24 21–34 30–39
Source: EHF

Group D

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification BID YST CON GLO
1 Spain CD Bidasoa Irun 6 4 1 1 199 176 +23 9 Main Round 35–32 37–25 33–33
2 Sweden Ystads IF 6 3 1 2 196 179 +17 7 23–29 38–29 36–30
3 Romania CSM Constanța 6 2 1 3 177 203 −26 5 35–30 29–29 26–32
4 Poland KGHM Chrobry Głogów 6 1 1 4 187 201 −14 3 28–35 27–38 37–33
Source: EHF

Group E

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification KIE VOJ TOR NEX
1 Germany THW Kiel 6 6 0 0 200 174 +26 12 Main Round 37–35 32–27 31–28
2 Serbia RK Vojvodina 6 4 0 2 194 186 +8 8 28–32 31–30 31–26
3 Spain Bathco BM Torrelavega 6 0 2 4 172 188 −16 2 30–33 26–33 32–32
4 Croatia RK Nexe 6 0 2 4 174 192 −18 2 26–35 35–36 27–27
Source: EHF

Group F

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification MEL POR VAR VAL
1 Germany MT Melsungen 6 5 0 1 194 150 +44 10 Main Round 32–27 34–18 36–21
2 Portugal FC Porto 6 3 1 2 178 163 +15 7 24–29 37–24 37–29
3 North Macedonia RK Vardar 6 2 1 3 163 187 −24 5 32–30 22–26 33–26
4 Iceland Valur 6 0 2 4 165 200 −35 2 28–33 27–27 34–34
Source: EHF

Group G

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification FLE TAT KAR SES
1 Germany SG Flensburg-Handewitt 6 6 0 0 234 173 +61 12 Main Round 44–27 36–33 42–25
2 Hungary MOL-Tatabánya KC 6 3 1 2 174 193 −19 7 29–39 28–27 28–25
3 Czech Republic HCB Karviná 6 1 1 4 177 203 −26 3 31–41 31–31 32–29
4 Croatia MRK Sesvete 6 1 0 5 172 188 −16 2 28–32 27–31 38–23
Source: EHF

Group H

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification GUM FEN SAV FH
1 Germany VfL Gummersbach 6 5 0 1 200 162 +38 10 Main Round 33–26 37–35 32–24
2 France Fenix Toulouse Handball 6 4 0 2 190 182 +8 8 31–30 30–33 37–30
3 Sweden IK Sävehof 6 2 0 4 184 192 −8 4 25–28 31–37 30–26
4 Iceland FH Hafnarfjarðar 6 1 0 5 160 198 −38 2 21–40 25–29 34–30
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 Quarterfinals, 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 MON GOG LUZ GRA
1 France Montpellier Handball 2 2 0 0 62 49 +13 4 Quarterfinals 34–25
2 Denmark GOG Håndbold 2 1 0 1 69 68 +1 2 Play Offs 39–36
3 Switzerland HC Kriens-Luzern 2 1 0 1 68 69 −1 2 32–30
4 Spain Fraikin BM Granollers 2 0 0 2 49 62 −13 0 24–28
Source: EHF

Group II

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification BID LIM BEN YST
1 Spain CD Bidasoa Irun 2 2 0 0 64 55 +9 4 Quarterfinals 35–32
2 France Limoges Handball 2 1 0 1 67 65 +2 2 Play Offs 36–28
3 Portugal SL Benfica 2 1 0 1 65 67 −2 2 37–31
4 Sweden Ystads IF 2 0 0 2 55 64 −9 0 23–29
Source: EHF

Group III

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification MEL KIE VOJ POR
1 Germany MT Melsungen 2 2 0 0 61 51 +10 4 Quarterfinals 32–27
2 Germany THW Kiel 2 2 0 0 69 63 +6 4 Play Offs 37–35
3 Serbia RK Vojvodina 2 0 0 2 63 69 −6 0 28–32
4 Portugal FC Porto 2 0 0 2 51 61 −10 0 24–29
Source: EHF

Group IV

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification FLE GUM FEN TAT
1 Germany SG Flensburg-Handewitt 2 2 0 0 83 56 +27 4 Quarterfinals 44–27
2 Germany VfL Gummersbach 2 1 0 1 63 57 +6 2 Play Offs 33–26
3 France Fenix Toulouse Handball 2 1 0 1 57 63 −6 2 31–30
4 Hungary MOL-Tatabánya KC 2 0 0 2 56 83 −27 0 29–39
Source: EHF

Notes

  1. ^ The eventual team in this slot was Spain Abanca Ademar León.
  2. ^ The eventual team in this slot was Germany MT Melsungen.
  3. ^ The eventual team in this slot was France Limoges Handball.
  4. ^ The eventual team in this slot was Switzerland HC Kriens-Luzern.
  5. ^ The eventual team in this slot was Germany VfL Gummersbach.
  6. ^ The eventual team in this slot was Iceland Valur.
  7. ^ The eventual team in this slot was Spain Fraikin BM Granollers.
  8. ^ The eventual team in this slot was Denmark Bjerringbro-Silkeborg.
  9. ^ The eventual team in this slot was Sweden Ystads IF.
  10. ^ The eventual team in this slot was Czech Republic HCB Karviná.

See also

References

  1. ^ https://www.eurohandball.com/media/lf0hvm1g/placedistribution_final_24_25_men.pdf
  2. ^ a b "Seedings set for 2024/25 EHF European League Men draw". ehfel.eurohandball.com.
  3. ^ a b https://www.eurohandball.com/media/2rtiwitv/ehfel_men_system_2024_25.pdf
  4. ^ "Path through European League Men 2024/25 group matches to be set". ehfel.eurohandball.com.
  5. ^ "Elite sides learn EHF European League group matches fate". ehfel.eurohandball.com.
  6. ^ "EHF European League Men qualification picture is complete". ehfel.eurohandball.com.
  7. ^ "Season's first EHF EL draw takes place on Tuesday". www.eurohandball.com.