Sports Weekend

Two women's handball teams from Romania are fighting this weekend for a place in the Champions League quarterfinals.

Florin Orban, 17.04.2026, 13:45

The Romanian ice hockey team ACSH Gheorgheni won the regional Erste Liga competition for the second time in a row on Thursday. ACSH won 4-3 in the fifth game of the final against Corona Brașov, which they won with an overall score of 4-1. The last game took place at the Olympic Ice Rink in Brașov. The best teams from Hungary and Romania took part in this year’s edition.

The Romanian tennis player Sorana Cîrstea qualified on Thursday into the quarterfinals of the WTA 250 tournament hosted by the French city of Rouen. Seeded second, the Romanian player moved into the round of 16 after her opponent, Xinyu Wang (China) withdrew in the first set, at 5-3 for Sorana.

In women’s handball, the first leg of the Champions League quarterfinals is scheduled for this weekend. Both teams representing Romania will play on Saturday. Gloria Bistrița will face the French team Brest Bretagne, at home. The Romanians reached the quarterfinals after winning the play-offs against the Danish team Ikast, which they defeated both at home and away. The French team went directly to the quarterfinals after winning Group A. Next comes the match between Esbjerg and CSM București, in Denmark. The Romanian champions have better chances to win, as they reached the quarterfinals directly, after finishing 2nd in Group A. The Scandinavians beat the Croatian team Podravka Koprivnica in the play-offs. In the return leg, both Romanian teams will play on Sunday, April 26. No team from Romania has got past the Champions League quarterfinals since 2018.

In Romania’s Football Super League, the fifth round of the final phase takes place this weekend. In the play-offs, where the fight for the Romanian champion title takes place, only one game on Friday: FC Argeș vs CFR Cluj. On Saturday, Dinamo play against Universitatea Cluj in Bucharest, while on Sunday Universitatea Craiova face Rapid Bucharest on home turf. In the standings, Universitatea Cluj are in the lead, 3 points ahead of Craiova. In the play-out, on Saturday, Csikszereda take on Unirea Slobozia, in Miercurea Ciuc. On Sunday, Petrolul Ploiești play Hermannstadt Sibiu. And the last games are scheduled for Monday: FC Botoșani vs Metaloglobus and Farul Constanța vs FCSB. (AMP)