1 EHF EUROPEAN LEAGUE MEN SEASON 2025/26 Foreword EHF President Time to decide the semi-finalists in a competitive EHF European League season! Dear handball fans, The end of the 2025/26 season is fast approaching, and the major club competitions are reaching the last stages of the trophy race. In the EHF European League Men, the quarterfinals await after an exciting play-off stage concluded early in April. All four of last season’s semi-finalists, including the back-to-back title winners SG FlensburgHandewitt, will play the quarter-finals. But, highlighting the level of competition, THW Kiel were the only 2024/25 semi-finalists who earnt the right to skip the play-off phase as the winners of their main round group. Flensburg, Montpellier Handball and MT Melsungen all made their way to the quarter-final stage via wins in the two-leg play-offs. Flensburg overthrew SAH - Aarhus thanks to a clear away win in the first leg, after which the Danish club kept the title holders to a draw. Flensburg will take on group IV winners Recken - TSV Hannover-Burgdorf in an all-German tie as they aim to return to the EHF Finals Men for the third consecutive time — and raise the trophy again. Hannover, on the other hand, are debuting in the EHF European League quarter-finals. Montpellier, who played Flensburg in the trophy match in 2024/25, will meet group III wines HC Vardar 1961 in the quarter-finals — a battle between two past EHF Champions League winners. While Montpellier lost their second-leg play-off to Elverum Håndball, they secured the quarter-final berth with a dominant win in the first leg, setting course to progress. A powerful comeback in the second leg saw Melsungen eliminate Fredericia Håndboldklub in the play-offs, after a defeat in the first game in Denmark. Both Melsungen and their quarterfinal opponents, group II winners FC Porto, are contesting this stage of the EHF European League for the second time. Croatian club RK Nexe round out the EHF European League Men 2025/26 quarter-finalists, after two wins in the play-offs against IFK Kristianstad. Both aim to reach the EHF Finals Men for the second time, with Kiel targeting a second straight participation — and even third consecutive final weekend appearance, having played the EHF FINAL4 in their last EHF Champions League season, in 2023/24. It has been a long road full of excitement to reach this point in the season, and now we can look forward with anticipation to seeing who will reach the Winamax EHF Finals 2026. I wish all participating teams good luck! Yours in sport, Michael Wiederer EHF President 2
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