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2026 European Women's Handball Championship

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2026 EHF European Women's Handball Championship
Tournament details
Host countries Czech Republic
 Poland
 Romania
 Slovakia
 Turkey
Venue(s)6 (in 6 host cities)
Dates3–20 December
Teams24 (from 1 confederation)
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The 2026 EHF European Women's Handball Championship, commonly referred to as the EHF EURO 2026, will be the 17th edition of the EHF European Women's Handball Championship.

The championship was originally scheduled to be held in Russia, but due to the invasion of Ukraine, they were stripped of the hosting rights.[1] On 8 March 2024, the EHF announced Czech Republic, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Turkey as co-hosts.[2]

Bid process

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Main article: 2026 European Women's Handball Championship bidding process

First bidding process

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Bids

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On 11 May 2021 it was announced that the following nations sent in an official expression of interest:[3]

On 20 October the final bids were presented. The Scandinavian bid was withdrawn, leaving Russia unopposed.[4][5]

Host selection

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As only the Russian bid remained it was unanimously selected at the 14th EHF Extraordinary Congress on 20 November 2021.[6][7]

Second bidding process

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On 4 July 2023, the EHF confirmed that Russia would not host the event due to the war in Ukraine,[8] and thus reopened the bidding process. On 25 October, the EHF announced the official bids.

The hosts were originally going to be announced on 28 January 2024 in Cologne, but the EHF decided to delay the announcement to April while also inviting every bidding nation to a meeting in mid-February.[9]

During the meeting in mid-February, Romanian media reported that a possible five-country co-hosting plan was being negotiated by all five bidding countries and the EHF after it was reported that none of the three bids fulfilled all the requirements.[10]

On 8 March 2024, the EHF announced all five countries, Czech Republic, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Turkey, as co-hosts.[2] This marks the second time a sports tournament has been held in more than four countries, after UEFA Euro 2020.

Venues

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Katowice
Oradea
Spodek
Capacity: 11,036		 Oradea Arena
Capacity: 5,500
Brno Cluj-Napoca
Winning Group Arena
Capacity: 12,000		 BTarena
Capacity: 10,000
Bratislava Antalya
Ondrej Nepela Arena
Capacity: 10,000		 Antalya Arena
Capacity: 10,000
Katowice will host preliminary round, main round and knockout stage.
Cluj-Napoca will host preliminary round and main round.
Brno, Bratislava, Oradea and Antalya will host preliminary round only.

Qualification

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Main article: 2026 European Women's Handball Championship qualification

Qualified teams

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Country Qualified as Date qualification was secured Previous appearances in tournament1
 Czech Republic 00Co-hosts 8 March 2024 8 (1994, 2002, 2004, 2012, 2016, 2018, 2020, 2024)
 Poland 9 (1996, 1998, 2006, 2014, 2016, 2018, 2020, 2022, 2024)
 Romania 15 (1994, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2018, 2020, 2022, 2024)
 Slovakia 3 (1994, 2014, 2024)
 Turkey 1 (2024)
1 Bold indicates champion for that year.

References

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  1. ^ Mackay, Duncan (4 July 2023). "Russia stripped of 2026 European Women's Handball Championships". Inside the Games. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
  2. ^ a b "Organisers for Women's EHF EURO 2026 confirmed". EHF. European Handball Federation. 8 March 2024.
  3. ^ "Seven nations bid for EHF Euros in 2026 and 2028". European Handball Federation. 11 May 2021. Archived from the original on 13 May 2021. Retrieved 13 May 2021.
  4. ^ "Россия – единственный кандидат на проведение женского Евро-2026". Handball Federation of Russia. 20 October 2021.
  5. ^ "Schweiz bündelt Kräfte mit Spanien und Portugal: Ausrichter für Handball-Europameisterschaften zeichnen sich ab". handball world (in German). 20 October 2021. Archived from the original on 20 October 2021. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
  6. ^ "EHF EURO hosts for 2026 & 2028 confirmed". European Handball Federation. 20 November 2021. Archived from the original on 21 November 2021. Retrieved 21 November 2021.
  7. ^ "The 14th EHF Extraordinary Congress". European Handball Federation. 20 November 2021. Archived from the original on 21 November 2021. Retrieved 21 November 2021.
  8. ^ "EHF seeks alternative host for Women's EHF EURO 2026". EHF. 4 July 2023.
  9. ^ Popovici, Marian (27 January 2024). "România, în pole position pentru a organiza Euro 2026 la handbal feminin! Ce decizie a luat EHF". Fanatik.ro.
  10. ^ "Campionatul European din 2026 la handbal feminin ar putea fi organizat în cinci țări". GSP.ro. 12 February 2024.
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