The 2019–20 EHF Cup was the 39th edition of the EHF Cup, the second most important European handball club competition organised by the European Handball Federation (EHF), and the seventh edition since the merger with the EHF Cup Winners' Cup.[1] On 24 April 2020 EHF announced that EHF Cup would be cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic.[2]

EHF Cup
2019–20
Tournament information
SportHandball
Dates31 August 201924 May 2020
Teams64 (qualification stage)
16 (group stage)
Websiteeurohandball.com
Final positions
ChampionsCancelled
Tournament statistics
Top scorer(s)Egypt Mohammad Sanad
(49 goals)

Team allocation

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Teams

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Third qualifying round
  SC Magdeburg   Rhein-Neckar Löwen   Chambéry Savoie Mont-Blanc   MT Melsungen
  HBC Nantes   Bjerringbro-Silkeborg   Liberbank Cuenca   Grundfos Tatabánya KC
  Gwardia Opole   Metalurg Skopje   Füchse Berlin   USAM Nîmes Gard
  TTH Holstebro   BM Logroño La Rioja   Balatonfüredi KSE   RK Nexe
Second qualifying round
  NMC Górnik Zabrze   RK Gorenje Velenje   SCM Politehnica Timișoara   Wacker Thun
  SKA Minsk   Hapoel Ashdod   ØIF Arendal Elite   Selfoss
  HC Butel Skopje   PAUC Handball   Skjern Håndbold   CB Ademar León
  Csurgói KK   KS Azoty-Puławy   RK Pelister   SL Benfica
First qualifying round
  RK Dubrava   RD Ribnica   HC Dobrogea Sud Constanța   Maccabi Rishon LeZion
  FH Hafnarfjordur   Spartak Moscow   SSK Talent M.A.T.Plzeň   ZTR Zaporizhia
  RK Vojvodina   HC Achilles Bocholt   Olympiacos S.F.P.   Alpla HC Hard
  KRAS/Volendam   KH BESA Famgas   Handball Esch   Beşiktaş Aygaz
  Põlva Serviti   Dragūnas Klaipėda   SSV Bozen Loacker   London GD
  B.S.B. Batumi   RK Lovćen   RK Borac m:tel   Swieqi Phoenix Handball Club
  RK Metaloplastika   HC Visé BM   CIP Travel Antalyaspo A.Ş.   RK Poreč
  HK Malmö   Pfadi Winterthur   Haukar Handball   SG Handball West Wien

Round and draw dates

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The schedule of the competition was as follows (all draws were held at the EHF headquarters in Vienna, Austria).[3][4]

Phase Round Draw date First leg Second leg
Qualification First qualifying round 16 July 2019 31 August-1 September 2019 7-8 September 2019
Second qualifying round 5–6 October 2019 12–13 October 2019
Third qualifying round 15 October 2019 16–17 November 2019 23–24 November 2019
Group stage Matchday 1 28 November 2019 8–9 February 2020
Matchday 2 15–16 February 2020
Matchday 3 22–23 February 2019
Matchday 4 29 February–1 March 2020
Matchday 5 21–22 March 2020
Matchday 6 28–29 March 2020
Knockout phase Quarter-finals 31 March 2020 25–26 April 2020 2–3 May 2020
Final four 5 May 2020 23–24 May 2020

Qualification stage

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The qualification stage consists of three rounds, which will be played as two-legged ties using a home-and-away system. In the draws for each round, teams are allocated into two pots, with teams from Pot 1 facing teams from Pot 2. The winners of each pairing (highlighted in bold) will qualify for the following round.

For each round, teams listed first will play the first leg at home. In some cases, teams agree to play both matches at the same venue.

Round 1

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A total of 32 teams entered the draw for the first qualification round, which was held on Tuesday, 16 July 2019.[5] The draw seeding pots were composed as follows:

Pot 1 Pot 2

The first legs were played on 31 August–1 September and the second legs were played on 7–8 September 2019. Some teams agreed to play both matches in the same venue.[6]

Team 1 Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
KH BESA Famgas   54–67 1   Pfadi Winterthur 24–33 30–34
Olympiacos S.F.P.   60–46   RK Borac m:tel 30–21 30–25
HK Malmö   61–52   HC Spartak Moscow 31–23 30–29
Maccabi Rishon LeZion   57–48 2   Dragūnas Klaipėda 34–28 23–20
RK Poreč   60–51   KRAS/Volendam 29–23 31–28
HC Visé BM   48–56   FH Hafnarfjordur 27–27 21–29
RD Riko Ribnica   59–48   Põlva Serviti 32–22 27–26
ZTR Zaporizhia   78–34 3   London GD 39–20 39–14
CIP Travel Antalyaspor A.Ş.   40–53   HC Dobrogea Sud Constanța 24–24 16–29
SSV Bozen Loacker   50–51   Alpla HC Hard 24–23 26–28
Beşiktaş Aygaz   49–49 (a)4   RK Metaloplastika 25–25 24–24
Haukar Handball   45–51   SSK Talent M.A.T. Plzeň 20–25 25–26
HC Achilles Bocholt   48–47   SG Handball West Wien 26–22 22–25
Handball Esch   80–38 5   B.S.B. Batumi 38–16 42–22
RK Vojvodina   79–52 6   RK Lovćen 38–23 41–29
RK Dubrava   81–43 7   Swieqi Phoenix Handball Club 45–22 36–21
Notes
1 Both legs were hosted by KH BESA Famgas.
2 Both legs were hosted by Maccabi Rishon LeZion.
3 Both legs were hosted by ZTR Zaporizhia.
4 Both legs were hosted by Beşiktaş Aygaz.
5 Both legs were hosted by Handball Esch.
6 Both legs were hosted by RK Vojvodina.
7 Both legs were hosted by RK Dubrava.

Round 2

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The first legs were played on 5–6 October and the second legs were played on 12–13 October 2019. Some teams agreed to play both matches in the same venue.[7]

Team 1 Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
SCM Politehnica Timișoara   57–58   Olympiacos S.F.P. 31–29 26–29
PAUC Handball   64–46   RK Poreč 38–26 26–20
SSK Talent M.A.T. Plzeň   58–44 1   Hapoel Ashdod 32–23 26–21
RD Riko Ribnica   56–61   SKA Minsk 33–33 23–28
HK Malmö   64–56   Selfoss 33–27 31–29
Alpla HC Hard   60–59 (p)3   Skjern Håndbold 25–26 26–25
RK Vojvodina   43–58   CB Ademar León 20–28 23–30
SL Benfica   63–44 2   RK Dubrava 29–28 34–16
RK Metaloplastika   53–64   RK Gorenje Velenje 24–32 29–32
HC Butel Skopje   42–43   ZTR Zaporizhia 18–14 24–29
KS Azoty-Puławy   57–53   Handball Esch 31–28 26–25
HC Dobrogea Sud Constanța   43–43 (a)   Csurgói KK 22–24 21–19
NMC Górnik Zabrze   50–48   Maccabi Rishon LeZion 29–26 21–22
HC Achilles Bocholt   59–52   Wacker Thun 34–33 25–19
FH Hafnarfjordur   52–58   ØIF Arendal Elite 25–30 27–28
Pfadi Winterthur   72–37   RK Pelister 39–16 33–21
Notes
1 Both legs were hosted by Talent M.A.T. Plzeň.
2 Both legs were hosted by SL Benfica.
3 A penalty shootout – which lasted nine shots for each team – was necessary to determine the winner of the tie between ALPLA HC Hard and Skjern Handbold. ALPLA HC Hard won 9–8.

Round 3

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A total of 32 teams entered the draw for the third qualification round, which was held on Tuesday, 15 October 2019.[8] The draw seeding pots were composed as follows: [9]

Pot 1 Pot 2

The first legs were played on 16–17 November and the second legs were played on 23–24 November 2019.[10]

Team 1 Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
Balatonfüredi KSE   51–56   CB Ademar León 30–27 21–29
SKA Minsk   45–61   Rhein-Neckar Löwen 28–32 17–29
NMC Górnik Zabrze   51–74   SC Magdeburg 25–37 26–37
Pfadi Winterthur   63–70   Bjerringbro-Silkeborg 33–36 30–34
Chambéry Savoie Mont-Blanc   43–44   PAUC Handball 20–25 23–19
Liberbank Cuenca   59–50   Alpla HC Hard 34–18 25–32
Grundfos Tatabánya KC   53–51   ZTR Zaporizhia 27–24 26–27
HBC Nantes   60–59   ØIF Arendal Elite 30–29 30–30
RK Nexe   54–54 (a)   SL Benfica 30–26 24–28
RK Gorenje Velenje   47–42   Metalurg Skopje 24–19 23–23
HK Malmö   53–61   Füchse Berlin 27–34 26–27
MT Melsungen   52–47   Olympiacos S.F.P. 32–28 20–19
SSK Talent M.A.T. Plzeň   46–67   TTH Holstebro 25–30 21–37
BM Logroño La Rioja   73–57   HC Achilles Bocholt 37–26 36–31
Gwardia Opole   54–53   KS Azoty-Puławy 26–24 28–29
Csurgói KK   48–54   USAM Nîmes Gard 28–25 20–29

Group stage

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The draw of the EHF Cup group stage will take place on Thursday, 28 November 2019. The 16 teams allocated into four pots will be drawn into four groups of four teams.

In each group, teams play against each other home-and-away in a round-robin format. The matchdays are 8–9 February, 15–16 February, 22–23 February, 29 February–1 March, 21–22 March and 28–29 March 2020.

On 25 March 2020, the EHF announced that no matches will be played before June due to the coronavirus pandemic.[11]

In the group stage, teams are 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:

  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 (or in the away match in case of a two-team tie);
  4. Superior goal difference in all matches of the group;
  5. Highest number of plus goals in all matches of the group;

If the ranking of one of these teams is determined, the above criteria are consecutively followed until the ranking of all teams is determined. If no ranking can be determined, a decision shall be obtained by EHF through drawing of lots.

During the group stage, only criteria 4–5 apply to determine the provisional ranking of teams.

Group A

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Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification BEN MEL BJE GWA
1   SL Benfica 4 4 0 0 121 97 +24 8 Knockout stage 29–26 Cancelled 29–24
2   MT Melsungen 4 2 0 2 118 118 0 4 Ranking of the second-placed teams Cancelled 35–33 26–21
3   Bjerringbro-Silkeborg 4 2 0 2 124 128 −4 4 Eliminated 24–33 35–31 Cancelled
4   Gwardia Opole 4 0 0 4 97 117 −20 0 23–30 Cancelled 29–32
Updated to match(es) played on 29 February 2020. Source: EHF

Group B

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Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification RNL NIM LIB HOL
1   Rhein-Neckar Löwen 4 4 0 0 136 111 +25 8 Knockout stage 32–31 36–25 Cancelled
2   USAM Nîmes Gard 4 2 1 1 123 117 +6 5 Ranking of the second-placed teams Cancelled 29–29 33–28
3   Liberbank Cuenca 4 1 1 2 111 125 −14 3 Eliminated 28–33 Cancelled 29–27
4   TTH Holstebro (E) 4 0 0 4 110 127 −17 0 27–35 28–30 Cancelled
Updated to match(es) played on 29 February 2020. Source: EHF
(E) Eliminated

Group C

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Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification MAG NAN GOR ADE
1   SC Magdeburg 4 4 0 0 123 109 +14 8 Knockout stage 29–28 32–26 Cancelled
2   HBC Nantes 4 2 0 2 125 116 +9 4 Ranking of the second-placed teams 28–31 Cancelled 34–28
3   Gorenje Velenje 4 2 0 2 110 115 −5 4 Eliminated Cancelled 28–35 30–25
4   Abanca Ademar León 4 0 0 4 103 121 −18 0 27–31 Cancelled 23–26
Updated to match(es) played on 1 March 2020. Source: EHF

Group D

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Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification FUC PAU TAT LOG
1   Füchse Berlin 4 2 1 1 110 102 +8 5 Knockout stage Cancelled 27–27 33–26
2   PAUC Handball 4 1 2 1 102 100 +2 4 Ranking of the second-placed teams 23–25 26–22 Cancelled
3   Grundfos Tatabánya KC 4 1 2 1 99 102 −3 4 Eliminated Cancelled 24–24 26–25
4   BM Logroño La Rioja 4 1 1 2 106 113 −7 3 26–25 29–29 Cancelled
Updated to match(es) played on 1 March 2020. Source: EHF

Ranking of the second-placed teams

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The top three second-placed teams will qualify to the quarter-finals. The ranking of the second-placed teams will be determined on the basis of the team's results in the group stage.

Pos Grp Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 B   USAM Nîmes Gard 4 2 1 1 123 117 +6 5 Knockout stage
2 C   HBC Nantes 4 2 0 2 125 116 +9 4
3 D   PAUC Handball 4 1 2 1 102 100 +2 4
4 A   MT Melsungen 4 2 0 2 118 118 0 4 Eliminated
Updated to match(es) played on 1 March 2020. Source: EHF
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers

Knockout stage

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Quarter-finals

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The draw for the quarter-final pairings was scheduled to be held on Tuesday, 31 March, in the EHF headquarters in Vienna, but due to the postponed matches of the group stage, EHF will announce any further updates accordingly. On 24 April 2020 the matches were cancelled.[2]

Team 1 Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg

Final four

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The eighth edition of the EHF Cup Finals in 2020 will be hosted by Füchse Berlin after the EHF Executive Committee decided to award the hosting rights to the German club at its meeting on 22 November 2019. The tournament was scheduled to take place at Max-Schmeling-Halle in Berlin, on 23 and 24 May 2020, but was rescheduled to 29 and 30 August 2020.[12][13][11] On 24 April 2020 EHF announced that in agreement with the organizers, Füchse Berlin, the MEN’S EHF Cup Finals scheduled for 29 and 30 August are cancelled. The tournament will not be carried out.[2]

Bracket

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SemifinalsFinal
 
      
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Third place
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Semifinals

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TBD Cancelled TBD

TBD Cancelled TBD

Third place game

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LSF1 Cancelled LSF2

Final

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WSF1 Cancelled WFF2

Top goalscorers

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As of 29 February 2020
Rank Player Club Goals[14]
1   Mohammad Sanad   USAM Nîmes Gard 49
2   Magnus Bramming   TTH Holstebro 44
  Petar Đorđić   S.L. Benfica

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Almost 50 clubs to learn their opponents in the EHF cup". European Handball Federation. Retrieved 9 July 2019.
  2. ^ a b c "Information on the future of the European handball season 2019/20". eurohandball.com. 24 April 2020.
  3. ^ "European Cup draw to take place on 16 July". EHF European cup. Retrieved 9 July 2019.
  4. ^ "Season overview" (PDF). European Handball Federation. Retrieved 9 July 2019.
  5. ^ "Besiktas face Sabac in the Men's EHF Cup qualification". European Handball Federation. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
  6. ^ "EHF Cup round 1". Archived from the original on 2019-07-12. Retrieved 2019-07-12.
  7. ^ "EHF Cup round 2". Archived from the original on 2019-07-12. Retrieved 2019-07-12.
  8. ^ "Füchse handed tough draw in round 3". European Handball Federation. Retrieved 15 October 2019.
  9. ^ "Füchse and Holstebro in pot 1 for last qualification draw". European Handball Federation. Archived from the original on 14 October 2019. Retrieved 14 October 2019.
  10. ^ "EHF Cup round 3". Archived from the original on 2019-07-12. Retrieved 2019-07-12.
  11. ^ a b "EHF presents feasibility study for potential re-start of European handball". eurohandball.com. 25 March 2020.
  12. ^ "Two clubs bid to host the EHF Cup Finals 2020". European Handball Federation. Retrieved 13 November 2019.
  13. ^ "EXEC awards the EHF Cup Finals 2020 to Berlin". European Handball Federation. 22 November 2019.
  14. ^ "Goalscorers". Archived from the original on 2019-11-23. Retrieved 2019-11-16.
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