European Women's Handball Championship facts for kids
| Sport | Handball |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1994 |
| No. of teams | 16 (finals) |
| Continent | Europe (EHF) |
| Most recent champion(s) |
 Norway (10th title) |
| Most titles | Norway (10 titles) |
The European Women's Handball Championship is a big competition for national women's handball teams in Europe. It happens every two years. This tournament is not just about finding the best European team; it also helps teams qualify for major events like the Olympic Games and the World Championship. As of December 2024, only a few teams have won this championship. Norway has won it ten times, which is a lot! Denmark has won three times. Hungary, Montenegro, and France have each won once.
Contents
History of the Championship
How it Started
The International Handball Federation was created in 1946 by eight European countries. Even though teams from outside Europe played in the World Championships, European teams always won the medals. Because of this, the European Handball Federation (EHF) was formed in 1991.
Around the same time, in 1995, the World Championship changed from happening every four years to every two years. The EHF then decided to start its own European Championship. This new tournament also helped teams qualify for the World Championship.
Growing Bigger
The tournament has grown over the years. For example, in the 2024 championship, which took place in Austria, Hungary, and Switzerland, the number of teams was increased to 24.
Tournament Results
This table shows the winners and top teams from each European Women's Handball Championship.
| Year | Host | Final | Third place match | Teams | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Champions | Score | Runners-up | Third place | Score | Fourth place | ||||||
| 1994 Details |
 Germany |
 Denmark |
27–23 |  Germany |
 Norway |
24–19 |  Hungary |
12 | |||
| 1996 Details |
 Denmark |
Denmark |
25–23 | Norway |
 Austria |
30–23 | Germany |
12 | |||
| 1998 Details |
 Netherlands |
Norway |
24–16 | Denmark |
Hungary |
30–24 | Austria |
12 | |||
| 2000 Details |
 Romania |
Hungary |
32–30 (ET) |  Ukraine |
 Russia |
21–16 |  Romania |
12 | |||
| 2002 Details |
Denmark |
Denmark |
25–22 | Norway |
 France |
27–22 | Russia |
16 | |||
| 2004 Details |
 Hungary |
Norway |
27–25 | Denmark |
Hungary |
29–25 | Russia |
16 | |||
| 2006 Details |
 Sweden |
Norway |
27–24 | Russia |
France |
29–25 | Germany |
16 | |||
| 2008 Details |
 Macedonia |
Norway |
34–21 |  Spain |
Russia |
24–21 | Germany |
16 | |||
| 2010 Details |
Denmark / Norway |
Norway |
25–20 |  Sweden |
Romania |
16–15 | Denmark |
16 | |||
| 2012 Details |
 Serbia |
 Montenegro |
34–31 (2ET) | Norway |
Hungary |
41–38 (ET) |  Serbia |
16 | |||
| 2014 Details |
 Croatia / Hungary |
Norway |
28–25 | Spain |
Sweden |
25–23 | Montenegro |
16 | |||
| 2016 Details |
Sweden |
Norway |
30–29 |  Netherlands |
France |
25–22 | Denmark |
16 | |||
| 2018 Details |
 France |
France |
24–21 | Russia |
Netherlands |
24–20 | Romania |
16 | |||
| 2020 Details |
Denmark |
Norway |
22–20 | France |
 Croatia |
25–19 | Denmark |
16 | |||
| 2022 Details |
  Montenegro / North Macedonia / Slovenia |
Norway |
27–25 | Denmark |
Montenegro |
27–25 (ET) | France |
16 | |||
| 2024 Details |
  Austria / Hungary / Switzerland |
Norway |
31–23 | Denmark |
Hungary |
25–24 | France |
24 | |||
| 2026 Details |
    Czech Republic / Poland / Romania / Slovakia / Turkey |
24 | |||||||||
| 2028 Details |
Denmark / Norway / Sweden |
24 | |||||||||
| 2030 Details |
 TBD |
24 | |||||||||
| 2032 Details |
Denmark / Germany / Poland |
24 | |||||||||
Medal Table
This table shows which countries have won the most medals (gold, silver, and bronze) in the championship.
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Norway |
10 | 3 | 1 | 14 |
| 2 | Denmark |
3 | 4 | 0 | 7 |
| 3 | France |
1 | 1 | 3 | 5 |
| 4 | Hungary |
1 | 0 | 4 | 5 |
| 5 | Montenegro |
1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 6 |  Russia |
0 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| 7 |  Spain |
0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| 8 | Netherlands |
0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Sweden |
0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| 10 | Germany |
0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
 Ukraine |
0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
| 12 | Austria |
0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Croatia |
0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
| Romania |
0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
| Totals (14 entries) | 16 | 16 | 16 | 48 | |
Championship Statistics
Summary of Teams (1994–2024)
This table shows how different teams have performed from 1994 to 2024. It includes how many tournaments they played, games won, lost, and total points.
| Rank | Team | Part | M | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Norway |
16 | 123 | 103 | 6 | 14 | 3532 | 2725 | +807 | 212 |
| 2 | Denmark |
16 | 115 | 76 | 4 | 35 | 3020 | 2787 | +233 | 156 |
| 3 | Hungary |
16 | 109 | 59 | 5 | 45 | 2908 | 2816 | +92 | 123 |
| 4 | France |
13 | 92 | 59 | 3 | 30 | 2331 | 2118 | +213 | 121 |
| 5 | Germany |
16 | 102 | 53 | 5 | 44 | 2596 | 2557 | +39 | 111 |
| 6 | Russia |
14 | 94 | 49 | 11 | 34 | 2480 | 2284 | +196 | 109 |
| 7 | Romania |
15 | 100 | 49 | 4 | 47 | 2519 | 2530 | -11 | 102 |
| 8 | Sweden |
14 | 87 | 39 | 7 | 41 | 2238 | 2229 | +9 | 85 |
| 9 | Montenegro |
8 | 53 | 31 | 1 | 21 | 1345 | 1334 | +11 | 63 |
| 10 | Netherlands |
10 | 62 | 28 | 2 | 32 | 1639 | 1624 | +15 | 58 |
| 11 | Spain |
13 | 77 | 24 | 10 | 43 | 1896 | 1973 | -77 | 58 |
| 12 | Croatia |
13 | 63 | 26 | 2 | 34 | 1505 | 1632 | -127 | 54 |
| 13 | Ukraine |
12 | 62 | 18 | 7 | 40 | 1489 | 1627 | -138 | 40 |
| 14 | Serbia |
13 | 60 | 17 | 3 | 40 | 1604 | 1731 | -127 | 37 |
| 15 | Austria |
9 | 50 | 19 | 0 | 31 | 1202 | 1327 | -125 | 38 |
| 16 | Poland |
9 | 43 | 16 | 1 | 29 | 1017 | 1161 | -144 | 27 |
| 17 | Slovenia |
9 | 40 | 12 | 0 | 28 | 1010 | 1165 | -155 | 24 |
| 18 | Macedonia |
7 | 33 | 7 | 3 | 23 | 756 | 934 | -178 | 17 |
| 19 | Czech Republic |
8 | 37 | 8 | 0 | 29 | 863 | 951 | -88 | 16 |
| 20 |  Belarus |
4 | 18 | 2 | 5 | 11 | 460 | 509 | -49 | 9 |
| 21 |  Switzerland |
2 | 10 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 264 | 326 | -62 | 5 |
| 22 | Slovakia |
3 | 15 | 1 | 1 | 13 | 303 | 427 | -124 | 3 |
| 23 |  Iceland |
3 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 196 | 250 | -54 | 2 |
| 24 |  Faroe Islands |
1 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 66 | 78 | -12 | 1 |
| 25 | Turkey |
1 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 68 | 102 | -34 | 1 |
| 26 |  Portugal |
2 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 128 | 181 | -53 | 0 |
| 27 |  Lithuania |
1 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 124 | 183 | -59 | 0 |
Host Nations
This table shows which countries have hosted the European Women's Handball Championship. Some countries have hosted multiple times!
| Rank | Nation | Hosts | Year(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Denmark |
6 | 1996, 2002, 2010, 2020, (2028), (2032) |
| 2 |  Hungary |
3 | 2004, 2014, 2024 |
 Sweden |
2006, 2016, (2028) | ||
| 4 |  Germany |
2 | 1994, (2032) |
 North Macedonia |
2008, 2022 | ||
 Poland |
(2026), (2032) | ||
 Romania |
2000, (2026) | ||
 Norway |
2010, (2028) | ||
| 9 |  Austria |
1 | 2024 |
 Croatia |
2014 | ||
 Czech Republic |
(2026) | ||
 France |
2018 | ||
 Montenegro |
2022 | ||
 Netherlands |
1998 | ||
 Serbia |
2012 | ||
 Slovakia |
(2026) | ||
 Slovenia |
2022 | ||
 Switzerland |
2024 | ||
 Turkey |
(2026) |
Top Scorers by Tournament
Bojana Radulović holds the record for most goals scored in one Euro Championship. She scored 72 goals for Hungary at the 2004 European Women's Handball Championship.
| Year | Player | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Ágnes Farkas |
48 |
| 1996 | Kjersti Grini |
48 |
| 1998 | Ausra Fridrikas |
68 |
| 2000 | Simona Gogîrlă |
68 |
| 2002 | Ágnes Farkas |
58 |
| 2004 | Bojana Radulović |
72 |
| 2006 | Nadine Krause |
58 |
| 2008 | Linn-Kristin Riegelhuth |
51 |
| 2010 | Cristina Neagu |
53 |
| 2012 | Katarina Bulatović |
56 |
| 2014 | Isabelle Gulldén |
58 |
| 2016 | Nora Mørk |
53 |
| 2018 | Katarina Krpež Slezak |
50 |
| 2020 | Nora Mørk |
52 |
| 2022 | Nora Mørk |
50 |
| 2024 | Katrin Klujber |
60 |
Best Players by Tournament
This table lists the players who were chosen as the best player of each tournament.
| Year | Player |
|---|---|
| 1994 | Not awarded |
| 1996 | Anja Andersen |
| 1998 | Trine Haltvik |
| 2000 | Beáta Siti |
| 2002 | Karin Mortensen |
| 2004 | Gro Hammerseng |
| 2006 | Gro Hammerseng |
| 2008 | Kristine Lunde |
| 2010 | Linnea Torstenson |
| 2012 | Anja Edin |
| 2014 | Isabelle Gulldén |
| 2016 | Nycke Groot |
| 2018 | Anna Vyakhireva |
| 2020 | Estelle Nze Minko |
| 2022 | Henny Reistad |
| 2024 | Anna Kristensen |
Participating Nations
National team appearances in the European Women's Handball Championship
Most Successful Players
This table highlights the players who have won the most medals in the European Women's Handball Championship. Players whose names are in bold are still active in handball.
| Rank | Player | Country | From | To | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Katrine Lunde (Haraldsen) | Norway |
2002 | 2024 | 7 | 2 | – | 9 |
| 2 | Camilla Herrem | Norway |
2008 | 2024 | 6 | 1 | – | 7 |
| 3 | Karoline Dyhre Breivang | Norway |
2004 | 2014 | 5 | 1 | – | 6 |
| Marit Malm Frafjord | Norway |
2006 | 2020 | 5 | 1 | – | 6 | |
| Stine Bredal Oftedal | Norway |
2010 | 2022 | 5 | 1 | – | 6 | |
| Linn-Kristin Riegelhuth Koren | Norway |
2004 | 2014 | 5 | 1 | – | 6 | |
| Silje Solberg-Østhassel | Norway |
2012 | 2024 | 5 | 1 | – | 6 | |
| 8 | Kari Aalvik Grimsbø | Norway |
2006 | 2016 | 5 | – | – | 5 |
| Nora Mørk | Norway |
2010 | 2022 | 5 | – | – | 5 | |
| 10 | Heidi Løke | Norway |
2008 | 2020 | 4 | 1 | – | 5 |
See also
In Spanish: Campeonato Europeo de Balonmano Femenino para niños
