Romanian men’s handball teams, back into the game
The latest from men's handball
Radio România Internațional, 02.10.2024, 13:45
Romanian handball in recent years has been better represented in international competition by women’s teams rather than men’s teams. CSM Bucharest and Rapid Bucharest women’s handball clubs have constantly been among Europe’s top-flight teams. In 2024, joining the two teams in their Champions league participation has been a third team, Gloria Bistriţa-Năsăud.
In men’s handball, Dinamo Bucharest has been the only Romanian team to have taken part in the Champions League, in recent years. Dinamo Bucharest has clearly dominated the domestic championship, so much so that in the ongoing season Dinamo have a win-all record. Furthermore, in European competitions, in 2024, Dinamo have had a flawless trail.
We recall that in the previous season Dinamo proved their mettle in Europe’; second-tier competition, the EHF European League, reaching as far as the semi-finals. In 2024, Dinamo Bucharest have received a wild card for the Champions League, Dinamo have been distributed to Group A, rubbing shoulders with top-notch teams, among which Paris Saint-Germain, Füchse Berlin or Hungarian team Veszprém. After three rounds in the League, only Dinamo and Sporting Lisbon have a win-all record so far.
Dinamo Bucharest from the very first round impressed everybody when on September 12 they grabbed a 37 to 28 home win against Danish opponents Fredericia. Then on September 18, Dinamo grabbed a hard-fought 28-26 away win against Poland’s Wisla Plock. On September 26, Dinamo thrashed North Macedonia’s Pelister Bitolia, 34-25 on home turf.
On Thursday, Dinamo play an away match against one of Europe’s best teams, Veszprem. Hungarian title holders Veszprem’s head coach is Dinamo’s former coach, the Spaniard Xavier Pascual, which is a plus for Vezprem. In the League’s ongoing season, Veszprém have so far won two matches and lost one. In the first round, away from home, Veszprem won the match against Füchse Berlin, by the narrowest of margins, 32 to 31. Then on home turf, Veszprem thrashed PSG, 41 to 28. However, In Lisbon, Veszprem suffered a severe defeat by Sporting Lisbon, 39 to 30, so in this coming Thursday’s fixture, Veszprem will have to prove the defeat in Portugal was a mere accident.
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