Handball Mastermind Nikolaj Jacobsen: "We always have the chance to win"

Winning the Men's EHF EURO is not easy. There is perhaps no better proof of that statement than the fact that Nikolaj Jacobsen, the two-time IHF World Coach of the Year who has guided a star-studded Denmark team to four World Championship crowns and an Olympic gold medal, is yet to guide the Danes to a European championship title.

Jacobsen and his squad will be aiming to end their EURO hoodoo on home soil on 1 February, when the EHF EURO 2026 final takes place at Herning's Jyske Bank Boxen. Whether or not Denmark win the upcoming tournament, there is no denying that Jacobsen is one of the greatest coaches to stand on the sidelines.

The 54-year-old sat down with us at the home of his first club, GOG, to talk about what makes him one of handball's true masterminds. 

After a decade as a player with the national team, Jacobsen took over as national team coach in 2017 and has worked with some of the sport's top players since day one. But coaching such an elite national team is not as simple as throwing the seven best players on court together.

"It's not easy. Of course, there are a lot of good players, but there are also players that are a little bit better than the rest of them. There are a lot of players where I have to look at how I can use them, how they can come in, in this team. Can we use them with players like (Simon) Pytlick, with players like (Mathias) Gidsel, with players like (Rasmus) Lauge? Where do they fit in? How do I fit them in? So, that's of course difficult."

Having to make decisions about which players he takes to tournaments like the Men's EHF EURO, or to use in certain situations in a match, creates a selection headache for Jacobsen that few other coaches have to deal with.

"You have to make a call. It's difficult to call someone who is maybe one of the best players in the world in his position and tell him there are two others who are better."

Having been in the role so long, and having built a stellar coaching career at Aalborg Håndbold and Rhein-Neckar Löwen before taking on national team duties, Jacobsen has formed countless strong personal relationships with those around him. However, not allowing those relationships to impact his decision making has helped him stay on top for so long.

"The most difficult thing was to call Mads Mensah (Larsen) and say: 'Mads, you are not going to participate in the Olympics.' Because of, also, the history we have. But I always say, that day where I take a personal decision before a professional decision, then I stop as a coach, because then I'm not fit anymore."

"So, I always remind myself, that I have to do the best for the national team, not the best for me."

As for the upcoming Men's EHF EURO 2026, which Denmark will co-host alongside Norway and Sweden, Jacobsen believes his side is ready for the challenge.

"I think we prepare really well. We are going through the attacks and defence really detailed, so everybody knows what they have to do."

"I don't think they are nervous because they know what the plan is. They have to do it in those terms, but they also know that they have the quality, the individual quality to do those things. I think that's a big part, that we have a lot of confidence in ourselves and a lot of confidence in the things that we have to do."

And can Denmark finally go all the way and win the EHF EURO crown, 14 years on from their last triumph?

"The good thing about training the Danish handball team is always the moment. We always have the chance to win. We are not going to win every time, because there are a lot of other good teams, but we will always have the chance to win."

To watch the Handball Mastermind episode with Nikolaj Jacobsen in full, click the video embedded below or head over to the EHF Home of Handball YouTube channel.

Photos © Simon Hastegård / BILDBYRÅN, Dejan Obretkovic; kolektiff images/Anze Malovrh