Five things to know about the EHF EURO Cup Finals

1. A tournament first

The EHF EURO Cup is a competition running alongside the EHF EURO Qualifiers, featuring the pre-qualified teams for the upcoming EHF EURO — including the defending champions, and the hosts of the final tournament. The concept debuted with the EHF EURO Cup 2020 for men, and the first women's EHF EURO Cup was played ahead of the EHF EURO 2022.

However, this year's EHF EURO Cup featured eight teams — the 2024 medallists Norway, Denmark and Hungary, and EHF EURO 2026 hosts Czechia, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Türkiye. As a result, they played a group phase with two groups and Norway, Denmark, Hungary and Romania advanced to the first-ever EHF EURO Cup finals. 

2. A legendary venue

The Polyvalent Hall in Bucharest is the home arena for EHF Champions League Women side CSM Bucuresti, and also the venue for international matches featuring CS Rapid Bucuresti. It hosted group matches, the semi-finals and finals for the Women's EHF EURO 2000 — the first European championships hosted by Romania — and the Champions League final in 2010 between SC Oltchim Ramnicu Valcea and Viborg HK, among other games. 

The hall seats 5,300 people and the atmosphere is always electric, especially when a Romanian team are on court. Look out for giant flags and passionate fans and expect lots of noise. 

3. Teams with pedigree

The EHF EURO Cup Finals will reunite three of the four sides that reached the EHF EURO 2024 final weekend: champions Norway, silver medallists Denmark, and bronze medallists Hungary. France, who finished fourth, are not part of the EHF EURO Cup as they had to go through the Qualifiers to reach the EHF EURO 2026.

The upcoming weekend will replay the semi-final between Norway and Hungary from two years ago, when Norway won 30:22 before defeating Denmark 31:23 for their third successive EHF EURO victory. Meanwhile Denmark will play hosts Romania, who were 11th at the EHF EURO 2024. A replay of the EHF EURO 2024 final is a strong possibility.

4. The only female coach

Of the four EHF EURO Cup finalists, Denmark are the only side to be led by a woman. Helle Thomsen took over from Jesper Jensen at the Danish helm last year and her first major championships in charge was the 2025 IHF Women's World Championship, where Denmark finished fifth after missing the semi-finals. 

Thomsen knows the Polyvalent Hall well, as she coached CSM Bucuresti for the first part of the 2024/25 season before taking on the job in Denmark. 

5. The head-to-head records

Norway and Hungary have met 28 times in the past, including their EHF EURO 2024 semi-final; Norway have 20 wins to Hungary's seven and there has been one draw. They have played just one game since the EHF EURO 2024, in a friendly ahead of the 2025 World Championship, when Norway won 33:27. 

Denmark and Romania have played each other 13 times in major championships since 2004, with each side taking six victories and one game ending in a draw. However, Denmark have the edge in recent encounters, most recently winning 39:31 at last year's World Championship in the preliminary round. It is a decade since Romania beat Denmark: they won 32:25 at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.

Photos © Romanian Handball Federation, Hungarian Handball Federation, kolektiff images