All-Danish final to crown new EHF European League champion

Ikast extended their winning streak to nine games after a convincing 31:26 win against Thüringer HC in the first semi-final. After a second-half comeback, Nykøbing Falster Håndbold took BV Borussia 09 Dortmund to penalties and eventually celebrated a 35:33 win.

Before the final Dortmund will try to get back on their feet after a physically and mentally tough match and take on their Bundesliga rivals from Thüringer HC for third place.

FINAL

Nykøbing Falster Håndbold (DEN) vs Ikast Handbold (DEN)
Sunday 14 May, 18:00 CEST, live on EHFTV

• after two years of semi-final defeats, Ikast finally secured their first final by beating Thüringer 31:26 and extended their winning streak to nine matches this season
• Nykøbing Falster Håndbold progressed after a penalties drama against BVB, winning 35:33
• both sides had their goalkeepers in the spotlight on the first day in Graz – Ikast's Jessica Ryde added 13 more saves to her 73 tally; Cecilie Greve stopped three penalties to reach the final
• Nykøbing are writing club history in their maiden EHF European League season which they started all the way back in the first qualification round; the final will mark Ikast's 30th match in the competition
• this will be the fifth time these two Danish sides meet in European competition – they played the EHF Champions League group phase in the 2017/18 season and the third qualification round of the former EHF Cup in 2019/20
• they last met in the Danish league in January, with Ikast winning 34:33 in Nykøbing 
• left wing Elma Halilcevic is at 56 goals this season, now trailing by five behind leader Annika Lott

3/4 PLACEMENT MATCH

BV Borussia 09 Dortmund (GER) vs Thüringer HC (GER)
Sunday 14 May, 15:30 CEST, live on EHFTV

• Thüringer struggled in attack against Ikast in the semi-final and will hope to overcome the problem in the placement match against a well-known opponent
• BVB did not manage to keep their hold on to the five-goal lead and could not break Nykøbing's defence in the crucial moments of the semi-final
• THC's Annika Lott took over the lead on the top scorer board, surpassing SCM Ramnicu Valcea’s Iryna Glibko by one goal (61)
• even though they had more than 15 mutual meetings in the past - including a Bundesliga draw (30:30) in January - these two clubs have never met in European competition
• left back Dana Bleckmann scored seven goals in the first semi-final, and Nathalie Hendrikse was even more convincing for Ikast with 10, making them their respective sides’ top scorers
• while THC have the second-best attack in the competition (276 goals scored), BVB are the second most efficient defence (231 goals conceded)

Photos © Uros Hocevar / kolektiff