The European Handball Federation (EHF) has invited its member federations to the first European Handball Convention, scheduled to take place in Vienna from 17 to 20 September. The core topic of the convention is the near and mid-term future of European handball, after the COVID-19 pandemic halted activities across the continent. 

“Over the coming months, we will see a changed landscape in sport, media, and marketing. Some sports will be more challenged than others especially on the field of global activities; potential partners demand a clear picture and stable structures,” EHF President Michael Wiederer told the official website of the EHF. 

“Handball has managed to give a unified picture to the outside world during the last years and, through internal dialogues, the different challenges were overcome. We see this as essential and, out of the experience of the previous two months with many video conferences on a technical, strategic and business level, it became visible that the personal component plays an important role for creating a common understanding.”

Following the decision of the EHF Executive Committee to postpone or cancel all competitions and matches organised by the EHF scheduled up until August, the EHF have been actively preparing for the 2020/21 season. Wiederer says the EHF fully intends to secure a fruitful start to the next season. 

“We must find a way to play – at the earliest possible date but taking the conditions into consideration. We have to continue to move forward and prepare the upcoming season as it is not only about contracts and our obligations to deliver, it is also about motivating people to take a ball in their hands and play,” said the EHF President. 

Wiederer explained how the EHF and its stakeholders must also examine the possibilities for the future, taking into account crowd-related restrictions and therefore fan attendance at matches. 

In April, the EHF was forced to cancel the Conference for Secretaries General due to restrictions resulting from COVID-19, and thereby missed the chance to meet representatives of European federations in person. The European Handball Convention serves as something of a substitute event, although potentially with greater attendance. 

Wiederer said the goal is now to apply a more individual approach, clustering federations according to activities and defining support measures that precisely fit each nation. 

More information on the EHF can be found on the EHF’s official website.