With the EHF Men’s and Women’s U17 (Youth) Beach Handball European Championships finishing on Sunday (6 July) Alanya, Türkiye wastes no time in relaxing as it prepares to host the senior events this week (8 to 13 July).

Officially called the ‘EHF Beach Handball EURO 2025’, the 2025 EHF Men’s and Women’s European Beach Handball Championships is the 14th edition of the continental event with Germany’s invincible women looking to defend their 2023 titles, won in Portugal.

10 teams who have qualified for The World Games Chengdu 2025 will be on the sand in Türkiye as they look to win continental medals and arrive in China next month in the best possible condition, with the men’s and women’s teams of Spain, Germany, Denmark, Croatia and Portugal all with a busy two months ahead of them.

Competition format

Each men’s and women’s competition features 16 teams each (32 in total) split into an initial four preliminary groups of four teams each.

The top three in each group then go through to the main round stage which features two groups of six teams each. The top four in both groups then play off in the quarter-finals, ahead of the semi-finals and then medal matches.

Can Germany make it a treble?

Preliminary group highlights include the last three winners of the continental event – Germany (2021, 2023) and Denmark (2019) – who will face off in group A, with the two set to also meet in the preliminary group of Chengdu 2025 next month.

A mixed group B sees Portugal, Norway, France and hosts Türkiye do battle, while having impressed on a continental and global youth level, the Dutch women will be looking to get their first continental gold medal, going one better than their 2023 final, shoot-out defeat to Germany. 

Their group C also features 2018 world champions Greece along with fellow global gold medallists Croatia (2008) and Sweden, who are once again on the European stage, for the first time in eight years. Group D features European championship ever-presents Ukraine and Spain, who won the 2016 world championship.

Malta making their debut, another beach handball nation emerges

Group A presents a real extreme of experience with the current The World Games and IHF World Championship title-holders Croatia facing debutants Malta. The four-time European champions will also relish the chance of taking on Denmark once again – the two meeting last year in the global final in China with Croatia taking the win.

After silver in Alanya in 2004, Germany – in group B – disappeared from view on the beach handball stage, but that all changed last year when they once again took continental silver in Portugal, home of the Portuguese national team who won bronze at China 2024. As debutants, Czechia men join the international stage but will be in for a tough group challenge.

Another ever-present at the EURO, Spain’s men lead group C into battle hoping to once again lift the title, last experienced back in 2017, but looking to stop that dream will be Sweden who hope to convert their youth team potential into senior success. Title-holders Hungary face off against Hungary, Norway, Ukraine and Italy in group D – Ukraine the only other men’s competition side to have appeared in all 13 previous editions of the event.

EHF Beach Handball EURO 2025 – Preliminary Groups

Men’s competition
Group A: Croatia, Poland, Denmark, Malta
Group B: Germany, Czechia, Portugal, Türkiye
Group C: Spain, Sweden, France, Bulgaria
Group D: Hungary, Norway, Ukraine, Italy

Women’s competition
Group A:Germany, Denmark, Poland, Bulgaria
Group B: Portugal, Norway, France, Türkiye
Group C: Netherlands, Greece, Croatia, Sweden
Group D: Spain, Hungary, Ukraine, Slovakia