Veszprém HC secured back-to-back appearances in the final of the IHF Men’s Club World Championship, with a fantastic comeback win against SC Magdeburg, 23:20, in the rematch of the previous edition’s final.

SEMI-FINAL
Veszprém HC (HUN) vs SC Magdeburg (GER) 23:20 (9:11)

The first semi-final of the 2025 IHF Men’s Club World Championship, coincidentally last edition’s final, opposed two European heavyweights, which always vie for trophies. Title holders Veszprém HC met last edition’s runners-up, SC Magdeburg, which won the previous three titles.

Therefore, the teams which secured the title between 2021 and 2024 were on display and it was a back-and-forth battle in the first half, with Magdeburg always holding the keys to the lead and Veszprém trying to bounce back.

But despite having a better depth overall and Xavi Pascual constantly rotating his line-up, Veszprém were down two goals at the break, with two 3:0 unanswered runs throughout the first half not being enough to stop Magdeburg.

Goalkeeper Sergey Hernandez saved three of the first four shots to give his team a 3:1 lead, but Veszprém repaid the favour, as Mikael Appelgren and Rodrigo Corrales each saved a penalty against Magdeburg to see their team tie the score, 3:3, after Magdeburg failed to score for almost seven minutes.

Despite failing to score a goal, right back Omar Ingi Magnusson provided three assists in the first half, amending his three missed shots, as the baton for the top scorer was taken by fellow Icelandic back Gisli Kristjansson, who scored three goals and delivered one assist.

Nevertheless, this was a low-scoring first half, as the two teams lowered the tempo, with defences running strong, yet Magdeburg were still ahead by two goals, 11:9, with Veszprém needing much more impetus in attack to bounce back, with only two of their players – Ivan Martinovic and Luka Cindric – scoring two goals.

But that soon changed after the break, as left back Ali Zein, inspired probably by the return to his home country to play, scored four of Veszprém’s first six goals in the second half, to lift this side to its maiden two-goal lead of the match,16:14, prompting Wiegert to take his first team time-out in the second half, after 42 minutes.

Magdeburg seemed unable to produce anything in attack, as they could only score five goals in the first 20 minutes of the second half, as Veszprém’s defence really took its toll on the German attack.

The usual suspects in attack missed easy chances, most of them one-on-one, as Coralles improved his overall efficiency, with the Hungarian side, the title holders, being up four goals, 20:16, with 10 minutes left on the clock, leaving Magdeburg in search of a miracle to complete a comeback.

And while Magdeburg did cut the gap to a single goal, 22:21, with a late outburst in attack, Veszprém held the fort, after the German side was sanctioned with an offensive foul by Kristjansson and then Coralles saved a crucial shot.

Remili converted a shot, then his fellow Frenchman Hugo Descat took a penalty, lifting Veszprém to their second consecutive final of the IHF Men’s Club World Championship, with a 23:20 win over Magdeburg.

For the first time in the last five editions of the IHF Men’s Club World Championship, SC Magdeburg will not play in the final, as Veszprém made it three out of three, featuring in the battle for the title in each of the three editions they played so far.

Player of the Match: Luka Cindric (Veszprém HC)