As the third-ranked club in their domestic league, Gloria did not qualify directly for Europe’s top flight, but the club successfully applied for an upgrade.
It will be the first season of the EHF Champions League with three Romanian teams at the start, as Gloria are joined by perennial contenders CSM Bucuresti and last season’s runners-up, CS Rapid Bucuresti.
All three teams compete in the Romanian Super Cup these days, with Gloria beating Rapid 36:28 to set up a final against CSM, who defeated Dunarea Braila 31:28. The final is scheduled for Friday afternoon (23 August) at 16:30 CEST.
Gloria will meet CSM again in the EHF Champions League, and will face further challenges from more experienced sides, like FTC-Rail Cargo Hungaria, Krim Mercator Ljubljana, or Metz Handball.
They will also face Storhamar Handball Elite, the team which delivered Gloria the painful loss in the final of the EHF European League Women, which makes it an interesting and well-balanced group.
“Of course, it will be a challenge for us, but we are ready for that challenge,” de Arruda says. “We have seen that the arena is full even in the Romanian league, it was full in the European League and I believe there will be no change for the Champions League, of course, everybody is excited about this challenge.”