Reigning champions FC Barcelona opened their account with a big win at the 2026 IHF Men’s Club World Championship, putting 44 goals past Brazilian side E.C. Pinheiros.

GROUP A
E.C. Pinheiros (BRA) vs FC Barcelona (ESP) 33:44 (16:23)

While resting some players, like Blaz Janc and Luis Frade, FC Barcelona still took their opener in the New Administrative Capital seriously, providing a fantastic attacking performance and scoring at free will against the South and Central American champions, E.C. Pinheiros.

Five of the first six Barcelona goals were scored by right wing Daniel Fernandez, who turned balls won in defence by Barcelona into clear-cut chances on the fast break, as Barcelona used a 5:0 unanswered run into a 5:1 lead.

Then, the gap grew even further, 12:4, but Pinheiros mustered a comeback in their own shape, as Barcelona started slowing things down. But as coach Antonio Carlos Ortega spurred his team to go faster and creating a large advantage as possible, Barcelona continued pushing on.

The top scorer of the IHF Men’s Club World Championship who is still active, Dika Mem, then took over the match and scored 11 goals throughout the match, with a series which made him look unstoppable, as the French right back missed only two shots.

Mem now scored 130 goals in his career at the IHF Men’s Club World Championship, still somewhat far of the record goal scorer, Egypt right back Ahmed Elahmar, who has 182 goals.

And despite Barcelona rotating their players as much as possible, with plenty of them getting on the scoresheet, the pressure on Pinheiros did not ease. The start of the second half saw Barcelona’s lead grow into double digits, 28:18, as Pinheiros could simply not contest as the Spanish side pushed the pedal to the metal.

Fast throw-offs, fast breaks and great plays featuring pivots Ludovic Fabregas and Oscar Grau were all on the menu, as Barcelona improved their lead to 13 goals, 40:27, after 50 minutes, with a possibility that the Spanish side hits 50 goals in their opener.

Eventually, Barcelona scored only 44 goals, with Mem as the top scorer, with 11 goals, and Oscar Grau following with eight goals, as the reigning champions secured a clear 44:33 win in their opener.

Player of the Match: Dika Mem (FC Barcelona)