The grand finale of the most thrilling major competition in handball history will take place at the sport’s European hub, the “Lanskes Arena” in Cologne.

During the 16th European Championship held in Germany, unprecedented records were shattered in terms of viewership on television and attendance in the arenas, seeing over a million fans!

Tickets for the final weekend sold out well in advance, achieving an impressive occupancy rate of 98 percent throughout the tournament. Notably, the semi-final match between Denmark and Germany garnered an audience of 9.7 million viewers on TV.

Today promises to set even more records, as two crucial matches unfold, with stakes not just for medals but also for a coveted spot at the Olympic Games in Paris.

In a direct showdown for third place (3 p.m.), Sweden and Germany will compete under the watchful eyes of top Montenegrin referees, Ivan Pavićević and Miloš Raznatović.

The Swedes have previously faced refereeing issues in this championship, having a legitimate goal disallowed in their draw with Denmark, followed by an irregular goal counting for France that allowed them to secure extra time and advance in the semi-finals.

The appeal from the Swedish Handball Association was dismissed, with the officials including Glenn Solberg clarifying that they had requested video analysis from Macedonian referees Nachevski and Nikolova, who noted an irregularity in Eloim Prandi‘s movement before scoring from a free kick.

“If we had protested, one of us would have faced expulsion. The EHF clearly warned us after the Denmark match that red cards would be issued for such actions. We asked the referees to review the video of Prandi’s goal, but they declined,” reported Jim Gottfriedson.

In the final showdown, two of the world’s top national teams, France and Denmark, will clash (5:45 p.m.).

This will mark their fourth consecutive tournament where their match determines medal placements. The French claimed victory in the Tokyo Olympic final with a score of 25:23, while the Danes sought revenge in the bronze medal match at EHF Euro 2022 (35:32 after extra time) and the final of last year’s World Championship in Sweden (34:29).

While the French had a mandatory briefing yesterday, only Nikola Karabatic addressed the media, which lasted a mere 25 seconds.

“We are trying to stay relaxed, especially with just one day off leading up to the biggest game of the season. My focus is solely on the match against Denmark,” stated the all-time great in handball.

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