The format of the Champions League in men's handball is changing! What will happen in the women's competition
Article by Adrian Jitea – Published Tuesday, 21 October 2025, 20:36 / Updated Tuesday, 21 October 2025 20:41
The Executive Committee of the European Handball Federation decided to change the format in the two most important men's competitions, the Champions League and the European League. The system will come into force starting from the 2026/2027 season.
At the moment, the Men's Handball Champions League involves two groups of 8 teams each. The top two in each group qualify directly for the quarter-finals, the next 4 go to a play-off.
The Champions League is changing its format
From next season, the number of teams will increase to 24. They will be divided into 6 groups of 4 teams each. The first two will advance to the main stage, while the holders of positions 3 and 4 will be relegated to the European League.
The 12 qualified teams in the next phase will be divided into two groups. Round-trip matches will be played again. The best 4 fighters from each urn will advance directly to the quarter finals.
The winner of the trophy will be decided in the same way as before, in a Final Four held in Cologne.
- In the current edition of the Champions League in men's handball, Romania is represented by Dinamo
- For girls, Romania has two representatives: CSM Bucharest champion and Gloria Bistrița.
A new European League
We have already mentioned that 14 teams will drop from the League to the European League. Under these conditions, it is clear that it will be a new format.
At the start, 32 teams will be divided into 8 groups. There will be no more preliminaries. The first two placed in each group will advance to the play-off, a double elimination leg where they will also join the 12 relegated from the first phase of the Champions League groups. 28 remain in the competition.
There will be 14 qualified teams in the “optimum”. This includes the two teams ranked 5th in the main phase of the Champions League. It will be played in an elimination system until the Final Four.
The reform of the EHF Champions League and the EHF European League is the result of an extensive discussion process carried out over several months, involving European handball stakeholders such as clubs, leagues and federations. Our goal was to improve the competition while retaining the best elements of the existing formats. We are increasing participation, top clubs keep the same number of home games against other top clubs, there is one less round to play in an already busy spring and we are further strengthening the EHF European League with teams from the EHF Champions League
– Michael Wiederer, President of the EHF
How the additional seats will be allocated has not yet been announced. There is a meeting in December. Then all the details will be worked out.
As for the women's competitions, a new format is to be implemented from the 2027/2028 season.
