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EHF Champions League
Twenty-four teams will compete in the 67th edition of the EHF Champions League, all chasing the trophy come the end of the tournament. In this EHF Champions League preview, we look ahead to the new season as well as back at the competition's previous winners.
The tournament was created in 1956 and was originally known as the European Champions Cup. The name changed to the EHF Champions League in 1993, and the format has evolved several times since, with a new-look 24-team group stage introduced for the 2026-27 season.
The first eight titles under the new name all went to Spanish clubs, five of those to Barcelona, and they have been in good form of late, winning it in 2021, 2022, 2024 and 2026.
The only side to stop them across the last four completed finals is SC Magdeburg (2023 & 2025). Will Barcelona triumph again this season, or will SC Magdeburg deny them once more?
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EHF Champions League Preview
The 2026-27 EHF Champions League kicks off in September 2026 with a revamped format, and the group stage runs through to the end of October before the competition moves into its later stages.
For this season, the 24 teams are split into six groups of four, with each side playing the others in its group home and away over six rounds. It replaces the two-groups-of-eight system used in recent seasons.
The top two teams from each group advance to the main round, where they are drawn into two groups of six. Sides finishing third in the group stage drop into the EHF European League, while the bottom team in each group is eliminated.
From the main round, the leading sides progress to the quarter-finals, with the competition again building towards the Final Four in June, where the champions are crowned.
Most Successful EHF Champions League Nations
| Nation | Titles | Runners-Up |
|---|---|---|
| Spain | 19 | 13 |
| Germany | 18 | 12 |
Barcelona have made five of the last seven finals and have finished in the top four in all of the last seven seasons. They were beaten finalists in 2020, losing 33-28 to German side THW Kiel, but in 2021 they won their 10th title with a 36-23 victory over Danish side Aalborg Håndbold.
They landed title number eleven in 2022 with a 37-35 win over Polish side Vive Kielce, made it twelve in 2024 by defeating Aalborg 31-30, and then reached number thirteen in 2026 with a 37-34 win over Füchse Berlin.
They are the all-time most successful club in the competition, having won more than twice as many titles as their nearest rivals.
EHF Champions League 2026-27 Groups
The 2026-27 season introduces a new-look group stage. The 24 teams have been drawn into six groups of four, replacing the previous two-groups-of-eight system. Each side plays the other three in its group home and away across six rounds, running from 9 September to 29 October 2026.
The top two teams in each group progress to the main round, while the sides finishing third transfer to the EHF European League and the bottom side is eliminated. Barcelona headline Group E, holders' rivals SC Magdeburg top Group F, and 2026 runners-up Füchse Berlin were drawn alongside One Veszprém in Group A.
| Group A | Group B | Group C | Group D | Group E | Group F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| One Veszprém HC | HBC Nantes | Aalborg Håndbold | Sporting CP | Barça | SC Magdeburg |
| Füchse Berlin | MT Melsungen | Paris Saint-Germain | OTP Bank–Pick Szeged | Montpellier Handball | Industria Kielce |
| FC Porto | Orlen Wisła Płock | HC Zagreb | GOG | CS Dinamo București | Kolstad Håndball |
| RK Partizan AdmiralBet | HC Vardar 1961 | RK Celje Pivovarna Laško | IFK Kristianstad | SAH Aarhus | HC Kriens-Luzern |
With the group draw now confirmed, our tipsters will be picking out their EHF Champions League tips throughout the group stage – head to the Handball Tips page to see their latest selections.
EHF Champions League Winners
Barcelona picked up the trophy in 2026, their thirteenth tournament success, and have now won four of the last six editions.
2021 runners-up Aalborg (also beaten finalists in 2024) were the first Danish side to reach the final since Fredericia in 1976 – though, like Fredericia, they came away as runners-up.
The 2023 & 2025 winners, SC Magdeburg, have now won all five finals they have contested, and the 2025 showpiece was the first all-German final since 2014.
The Last Ten EHF Champions League Champions
| Season | Champions | Score | Runners-Up |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025–26 | Barcelona | 37–34 | Füchse Berlin |
| 2024–25 | SC Magdeburg | 32–26 | Füchse Berlin |
| 2023–24 | Barcelona | 31–30 | Aalborg Håndbold |
| 2022–23 | SC Magdeburg | 30–29 | Vive Kielce |
| 2021–22 | Barcelona | 37–35 | Vive Kielce |
| 2020–21 | Barcelona | 36–23 | Aalborg Håndbold |
| 2019–20 | THW Kiel | 33–28 | Barcelona |
| 2018–19 | RK Vardar | 27–24 | Telekom Veszprém |
| 2017–18 | Montpellier | 32–26 | HBC Nantes |
| 2016–17 | RK Vardar | 24–23 | Paris Saint-Germain |
EHF Champions League Betting Tips
We have some excellent handball tipsters on OLBG making predictions daily – and not only EHF Champions League tips, either. They pick outcomes across other competitions too, such as the Women's EHF Champions League and more. Head over to the Handball Tips page to see what they are backing today.
Alongside that page, we also have a Best Handball Tipsters page, where we only highlight tipsters who have turned a profit over the past year, so you see nothing but the best. Below are some EHF Champions League betting statistics you can also use to help you find a bet.
Five-Year Favourite Statistics
The favourite statistics have been jumping around a fair bit in recent seasons. In 2021-22, 65% of favourites won their games, before that figure improved across the next two campaigns to 72% in 2022-23 and 71% in 2023-24. It then dropped sharply in 2024-25, when only 61% of favourites came out on top, before bouncing back to 72% last season.
| Season | Favourites Won | Strike Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2021-22 | 82 of 127 | 64.57% |
| 2022-23 | 94 of 131 | 71.76% |
| 2023-24 | 94 of 132 | 71.21% |
| 2024-25 | 81 of 132 | 61.36% |
| 2025-26 | 95 of 132 | 71.97% |
| Overall | 446 of 654 | 68.20% |
Five-Year Goal Statistics
Goals in this competition tend to fly in. Over the last five seasons, nearly 88% of matches cleared the Over 52.5 line, but the picture changes quickly as the line rises. By Over 55, we are down to around 75% of games, and once you reach Over 60, it drops to roughly half, with just over 50% of matches clearing that mark. The average across the last five seasons stands at 60.82 goals per game.
| Goals Line | Games Over | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Over 52.5 | 575 | 87.79% |
| Over 55 | 494 | 75.42% |
| Over 57.5 | 441 | 67.33% |
| Over 60 | 331 | 50.53% |
| Over 62.5 | 260 | 39.69% |
| Over 65 | 172 | 26.26% |
EHF Champions League Most Wins
Barcelona had gone a few years without a title before winning in 2021, but they backed that up with further successes in 2022, 2024 and 2026. They have now won more than twice as many titles as the next best, VfL Gummersbach, who have not tasted glory since 1983.
Following their 2025 triumph, SC Magdeburg have joined their fellow Germans on five wins, and it is another German side that sits fourth on the list, with THW Kiel having won four titles.
| Rank | Club | Champions | Runners-Up |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Barcelona | 13 | 5 |
| 2nd | VfL Gummersbach | 5 | 1 |
| 3rd | SC Magdeburg | 5 | 0 |
| 4th | THW Kiel | 4 | 4 |
| 5th | Ciudad Real | 3 | 2 |
Author Information
Our handball content is maintained by Andy, who keeps the EHF Champions League preview up to date with the latest results, records and trends.
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Other Handball Preview Blogs
If you have enjoyed this EHF Champions League preview, take a look at our other handball previews and betting guides covering the major international tournaments:
