SHERIDAN, WYOMING – Feb. 26, 2025 – With the 2024/25 European handball season in full swing, the European Handball Federation (EHF) is set to introduce a groundbreaking competition: the ‘EHF Youth Club Trophy.’ This marks the EHF's first-ever youth club competition, designed to showcase the talent and passion of under-18 handball players.
Official Name and Logo Reveal
Following the EHF Executive Committee's decision in late 2024 to introduce this youth club handball competition, the official name and logo have been unveiled. The ‘EHF Youth Club Trophy’ logo features four shades of green and four shades of blue, symbolizing the core characteristics of the game: speed, dynamics, toughness, and physicality. Blue, the EHF’s core color, is complemented by green, a color chosen to represent youth, growth, community, and new beginnings.
The logo's design, inspired by a player’s blocking action, captures the excitement of youth handball. It also cleverly integrates the letter ‘Y’ as a hidden element, further emphasizing the youth-centric nature of the event.
The ‘Road to Cologne’ and Qualification Tournaments
In its inaugural year, the ‘EHF Youth Club Trophy’ will feature 16 teams, comprising under-18 sides (players born 1 July 2006 or later) from 13 clubs participating in the Machineseeker EHF Champions League 2024/25, along with youth teams from three clubs in this season's EHF European League Men.
These 16 teams will compete in four qualification tournaments, scheduled for mid-April 2025. Each tournament will consist of semi-finals, a third-place match, and a final. Hosted by one of the participating teams, these tournaments will serve as the ‘Road to Cologne’ events, with the winners from each qualifying for the final tournament.
The final tournament is scheduled to take place on the weekend of the TruckScout24 EHF FINAL4, 14/15 June 2025. The championship match will be held on the morning of Sunday, 15 June, at LANXESS arena, preceding the TruckScout24 EHF FINAL4 third-place match.
Details of the 2025 Qualification Tournaments:
- Qualification Tournament 1:
- Host: Veszprém Handball Academy / HUN
- Venue: Veszprém Arena (HUN)
- Dates: Tuesday 15 & Wednesday 16 April 2025
- Semi-finals:
- Veszprém Handball Academy (HUN) vs Vojvodina (SRB)
- HC Zagreb (CRO) vs OTP Bank – PICK Szeged (HUN)
- Qualification Tournament 2:
- Host: Barça / ESP
- Venue: Ciutat Esportiva Joan Gamper (Barcelona, ESP)
- Dates: Wednesday 16 & Thursday 17 April 2025
- Semi-finals:
- Barça (ESP) vs HBC Nantes (FRA)
- U18 – Paris Saint-Germain Handball (FRA) vs Sporting CP (POR)
- Qualification Tournament 3:
- Host: Füchse Berlin / GER
- Venue: MBS Arena (Potsdam, GER)
- Dates: Thursday 17 & Friday 18 April 2025
- Semi-finals:
- Füchse Berlin (GER) vs IK Sävehof (SWE)
- GOG (DEN) vs SC Magdeburg (GER)
- Qualification Tournament 4:
- Host: CS Dinamo Bucuresti / ROU
- Venue: Dinamo Arena (Bucharest, ROU)
- Dates: Thursday 17 & Friday 18 April 2025
- Semi-finals:
- CS Dinamo Bucuresti (ROU) vs Orlen Wisla Plock (POL)
- KSS Iskra Kielce (POL) vs HC Eurofarm Pelister (MKD)
Building on the experience gained from this inaugural edition, the EHF plans to introduce a similar tournament for women’s club teams starting in 2026.