What can we expect from Norway at the Men's EHF EURO 2026?

The following year, Norway played the final of the IHF Men’s World Championship, losing to hosts France; two years later, they won another silver at the 2019 World Championship in Germany and Denmark. At the EHF EURO 2020 they took bronze, just missing out on the final after a breathless overtime game against Croatia.

But then results started to drop off, and the Scandinavian team could not reach a better result than main round participations at the last World Championship and EHF EURO.

Two generations to mix

The golden Norwegian generation took some years to develop, and most of the players who won silver in 2017 and 2019 are now over 30 years old. Sander Sagosen, Torbjørn Bergerud, Sebastian Barthold and Harald Reinkind are all stalwarts of the national team and their clubs.

The new generation has yet to shine at an international level, even though some signs appear to be promising. Left back Simen Lyse, centre back Tobias Grøndahl and left-wing Alexandre Blonz now represent the future of Norway. They play major roles in the Machineseeker EHF Champions League, but they now have to take over in the national team.

Coach Jonas Wille faces the challenge of mixing both generations and coming up with something good; especially since the expectations are heavy, especially for a tournament played partly in Norway.

Home support that will count

Regardless of the result, Norwegian fans always come out to support their national team, both women’s and men’s. And this edition of the EHF EURO will surely be no different, as they will play the preliminary round in the 15,000 capacity Baerum Arena in Oslo.

Norway also played in the Baerum Arena in January 2025 at the IHF Men’s World Championship. And while they lost two of their first three games, Sagosen and his teammates were able to defeat the likes of Spain and Sweden in the main round.

With a full house expected throughout the EHF EURO preliminary round, Norway will try to head to the main round with three wins under their belt.

Sense of optimism in the air

Norway took part in the EHF EURO Cup 2026, alongside fellow EHF EURO hosts Denmark and Sweden and reigning champions France. But things did not go well for Jonas Wille and his men, as Norway ended up last with zero points and six defeats and as many games.

Even though recent results seem disappointing, it should be noted that many key players missed some of the games due to injuries. This was the opportunity for Wille to try out young players —goalkeeper Andrè Bergsholm Kristensen, left wing Sindre Heldal and line player Thomas Alfred Solstad all had the opportunity to show what they are capable of.

In some of the games, Norway were actually very close to their opponents. They only lost by one at home against Sweden, delivering a very good second half, and they led for half of the game played in France, before falling short by one goal in the end.

These results could well turn into motivation for Norway to turn things around in front of their fans at the EHF EURO, in addition to showing the players that they may be closer to returning to the top than some experts and pundits have claimed.

Photos © Emma Wallskog / BILDBYRÅN;  Fredrik Varfjell / NTB; Kolektiff Images