Four teams eager to earn greatness in Graz

HSG Blomberg-Lippe take on Danish side Ikast Håndbold — the 2023 champions — in the first semi-final on Saturday, before another German team, Thüringer HC, battle it out with JDA Bourgogne Dijon Handball from France for the second spot in Sunday’s final.

SEMI-FINALS

HSG Blomberg-Lippe (GER) vs Ikast Håndbold (DEN)
Saturday 3 May, 15:00 CEST, live on EHFTV

• Blomberg are the only group winners who advanced from the quarter-finals, where they defeated Super Amara Bera Bera from Spain on a penalty shootout
• the German side is one of two teams, alongside Dijon, that made it to Graz after starting their season in the first qualification round
• Blomberg played in a European semi-final once before — in the Challenge Cup 16 years ago, which was their debut international season
• left back Nieke Kühne is the competition’s second-best scorer, with 60 goals from the start of the group phase
• the semi-final marks the first time that Blomberg meet Ikast, the only EHF Finals 2025 participants who have won European trophies in the past — most recently the EHF European League two seasons ago
• the Danish side eyes the eighth European trophy in the club’s history, having also won both the EHF Cup and the Challenge Cup twice, and the Champions Trophy and City Cup once
• Ikast finished their group as runners-up behind SCM Ramnicu Valcea before edging out another team from Romania, H.C. Dunarea Braila, in the quarter-finals by a single goal on aggregate
• one of their standout performers is Swedish international Jamina Roberts, who joined Ikast from Vipers Kristiansand during the group phase in January

Thüringer HC (GER) vs JDA Bourgogne Dijon Handball (FRA)
Saturday 3 May, 18:00 CEST, live on EHFTV

• no team scored more goals in the quarter-finals than THC, who defeated Ramnicu Valcea 65:61 on aggregate
• the German side also played at the EHF Finals, and finished fourth, when the event was first held in Graz two years ago
• having been runners-up in the Challenge Cup once in the past, THC are striving for the club’s second appearance in a European club competition final
• THC’s Austrian left back Johanna Reichert is the competition’s leading scorer by far, with 81 goals since the start of the group phase
• it will be the first time that THC take on Dijon, who embarked on their road to Graz in the first qualification round
• Dijon hope to become the second club from France to lift the EHF European League trophy, after Nantes Atlantique Handball won the inaugural edition in 2021
• the French side won the only previous European semi-final they played in, but then lost the final — in the Challenge Cup 20 years ago
• Dijon only just made it out of the group phase after three wins and three defeats, but then claimed the biggest victory on aggregate of all quarter-finals when they defeated HSG Bensheim/Auerbach Flames by six goals (59:53)

Photos © Pawel Andrachiewicz/Foto Andrus, Foxaep, Christian Heilwagen