In 2003, ES Besançon Féminin became the first French team to win a European club competition as they lifted the Cup Winners’ Cup trophy. Since then, the club has been delivering some of the most promising individual talents in French handball but failed to shine as a team across the continent again.
The latest in our series of countdowns looks at a side in their second group phase participation in four years.
Main facts
- Besançon qualified for the EHF European League by finishing third in the French league last season
- they defeated Spanish side Atlético Guardes twice in round 3 (34:23, 30:24) to advance to the group phase
- Besançon return to a European group phase after three years, having previously played in the EHF Cup group phase in 2018/19
- led by new coach Sébastien Mizoule, the team is in a rebuilding process, having lost Chloe Valentini, Aissatou Kouyate and Lara Gonzalez last summer
Most important question: Can Besançon rediscover their former glory?
It was 18 years since Besançon won a European trophy and things have changed since then as the club from the east of the country was relegated twice, down to the second division. But relying heavily on the youngsters it produced, the club came back into the spotlight again.
And this season’s participation in the European League, the fourth in five years, might well be the one where Besançon will find some of their former glory.
“We are very happy to qualify for the group phase, it confirms that the good results we have in the domestic competitions are not coming out of the blue,” says new coach Sébastien Mizoule.
Under the spotlight: Lucie Granier
Valérie Nicolas, Raphaëlle Tervel and more recently Chloé Valentini and Catherine Gabrielle, the list of players who started their professional careers in Besançon before moving on to bigger fates is endless. Lucie Granier is the latest on the list. At 22, the young right wing experienced her first international competition with France at the 2021 World Championship in Spain.
Alongside other young players such as Marine Dupuis, Alizée Frecon, Clarisse Mairot and Pauline Robert, Granier is one of the symbols that Besançon remains one of the strongest places for women handball in France. Now it is time for her, and the others, to show Europe what they are all about.
How they rate themselves
In a group where they will face Sola, Zagreb and Motherson Mosonmagyarovari, Besançon might even start to look like favourites, thanks to their collective and individual experiences. In the past, they were able to come back victorious from strong handball places such as Krasnodar.
“We train to have the possibility to play every three days, and these European games will allow us to progress even more and to experience different emotions than the ones we are used to in the French league. Our motivation is high to carry on the competition” says captain Pauline Robert.
