May will be a fully-packed month in handball, with several crucial European club competitions drawing to an end, the Men's and Women's African Club Cup Winners Championships scheduled, just as well as the Deaflympics, where, after 21 years, both the men’s and women’s handball tournaments will feature once again. 

The Men’s and Women’s EHF European League, the second-tier competition of the European club pyramid, will determine their winners in May, with the EHF Finals Women scheduled in Viborg, Denmark, for the weekend of 14 and 15 May, as hosts Viborg HK, fellow Danish side Herning-Ikast Håndbold, Romanian side CS Minaur Baia Mare and German powerhouse SG BBM Bietigheim clash for the title.

In the men’s competition, the EHF Finals are scheduled for 28 and 29 May, with the final line-up to be confirmed on Tuesday 3 May, when the second leg of the quarter-finals is played. Reigning champions and the Men’s IHF Super Globe winners, SC Magdeburg, are primed to earn their tickets for the business end of the competition, after securing a 28:25 win against HBC Nantes in the first leg.

The EHF Champions League Men and the EHF Champions League Women will also complete their quarter-finals in May, sending four teams each to the EHF FINAL4, which is scheduled for June – in Cologne for the men’s tournament and Budapest for the women’s tournament.

The all-Spanish final in the EHF European Cup Women, the third-tier competition in the European club pyramid system, between Rocasa Gran Canaria and Costa del Sol Malaga will take place on 8 an 14 May, while the EHF European Cup Men also finds its recipient after the final scheduled for 21 and 28 May.

The 38th edition of the Men's and Women's African Club Cup Winners Championships will also take place this month, being scheduled between 10 and 19 May in Niamey, Niger, with 11 teams from nine countries fighting in the men’s competition and six teams from five countries vying for the women’s title. 

Fans can also look forward to the 31st Southeast Asian Games in Hanoi, Vietnam as the programme features beach handball in the first part of the event from 6 to 11 May and then indoor handball from 15 to 21 May. 
 
Handball is once again on display at the Deaflympics, with 15 teams taking part in the discipline, as the women’s tournament will make a comeback for the first time since Rome 2001. 

The preparations for the Masters Handball World Cup, where men’s and women’s teams in  age categories from 30+ to 50+ will take part, are also well underway, as the tournament throws off in Croatia on 19 May. 

The IHF Men’s and Women’s Senior and Youth Beach Handball World Championships are due to take place between 14 and 26 June on the island of Crete, in Greece, four years after the last edition, as Pescara 2020 was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The wait is almost over, with the teams learning their fate at draw event to be held this month. 

Photo: Johnny Pedersen