In their maiden match at the IHF Men’s Club World Championship since losing the final in 2023, Füchse Berlin provided a fantastic attacking display to beat debutants Burgan, 38:18.

GROUP B
Burgan SC (KUW) vs Füchse Berlin (GER) 18:38 (11:20)

Füchse were one of the favourites for the title when the line-up of the 2026 IHF Men’s Club World Championship was announced and they confirmed their credentials with a stellar attacking performance against debutants Burgan, despite resting the IHF Male World Player of the Year in 2023, 2024 and 2025, Mathias Gidsel, after only 15 minutes in the match.

Gidsel still scored four goals, while left wing Tim Freihofer added five goals in a span of only 10 minutes, when Füchse went on and scored 12 goals, more than one goal per minute, delivering a pitch perfect performance, with pacy fast breaks and fast throw-offs dazzling Burgan.

The Danish star also dished four assists before he was called back on the bench, as Füchse tried to rotate their players as much as possible, with the match already decided, as Burgan had simply no answer.

The gap went to eight goals, 12:4, but after Füchse lifted a bit the foot from the pedal, the Kuwaiti side, still stopped in their tracks, managed to stabilise the gap, with eight players getting on the scoresheet in the first half.

Goalkeeper Ali Safar, one of the most experienced players from Burgan, also managed some key saves, but his team was still down nine goals at the break, 20:11, as Füchse continued to provide a healthy output in attack.

The second half had more or less the same scenario, as Freihofer and Aymeric Zaepfel reached the seven-goal mark early in the second half, after 41 minutes, when Füchse were leading by 16 goals, 28:12.

With goal difference being crucial in a tied head-to-head situation, Füchse continued to press and debutant goalkeeper Frederik Moritz Höler, who is replacing Andreas Palicka in this competition, after the Swedish stalwart suffered a hand injury, saved seven of his first nine shots in the second half, to limit Burgan to only two goals scored in the first 19 minutes on the second part.

Eventually, Freihofer and Zaepfel finished with nine and 10 goals respectively, right wing Leo Prantner added seven more goals and Füchse secured a clear 20-goal win, 38:18, to open up their account before facing Veszprem HC on Sunday in the second match.

Player of the Match: Frederik Moritz Höler (Füchse Berlin)