Ebner: “A huge sense of pride”

“It feels like family”

“It is a huge sense of pride that reignites in these people. They are really happy for Italy to be part of these tournaments again,” Italy goalkeeper Ebner says of the staff surrounding the Italy men’s national team.

Head coach Hanning says that “the passion of the people who work for the national team could not be greater. It feels like family.” With Hanning and the Italian Federation wanting to take the next steps, it has impressed him that “the willingness to change things and make the national team much more professional is really palpable.”

Italy are taking part in the Men’s EHF EURO for the first time in 28 years. In 1998, Italy were hosts and therefore directly qualified. They finished the tournament ranked 11th out of 12 teams, winning two matches. 

So, what has happened since then? Reviving Italian handball was no easy task and is closely linked to the actions of two men with a vision.

The reviving of Italian men's handball

In 2017, Riccardo Trillini was appointed head coach of Italy. One of his first actions was to ban a rule that prohibited Italian players who played club handball outside Italy from being nominated for the national team. Trillini quickly formed an idea to scout players with Italian roots throughout Europe, asking them if they could imagine playing for his team. Domenico Ebner was one of those players.

Ebner was born in Freiburg, Germany and played for second-division side SG BBM Bietigheim at that time. The goalkeeper was impressed by Trillini’s willingness to pursue him, which involved visiting Ebner in Bietigheim twice, watching him train and talking to his consultant.

“He believed in this project and wanted to re-establish Italian handball,” Ebner recalls. As a result, more players took the chance to play in top European leagues. The Mengon brothers, Thomas Bortoli Andrea Parisini and Davide Bulzamini gained important experiences abroad. “It felt like a movement” to Ebner. 

This movement paid off, as the team inched closer and closer to qualification for major tournaments. Everything aligned ahead of the 2025 IHF World Championship, for which the team secured their first participation in the global event since 1997. At the tournament in January, Italy finished a remarkable 16th, beating Tunisia and Algeria, two sides with much more experience at that level, as well as European counterparts Czechia. However, the development should not stop there. To achieve the next steps, another man with a vision had an idea.

Further development under Bob Hanning 

Stefano Podini was elected as President of the Italian Handball Federation in 2024. 

“Podini is a real stroke of luck for the Federation. He is an entrepreneur and knows how to build brands,” says Hanning. It is no wonder that Hanning, who knows how to build handball teams and has experienced working within the German Federation, and Podini have found common ground to further develop Italian handball.

Another factor for Hanning to commit to the project? Ebner. 

“After speaking with the president, I talked to Domenico. He was so enthusiastic about what we could achieve together that he really won me over. They could not have had a better ambassador,” Hanning recalls. 

Hanning has been the side’s head coach since February. In November, he invited the team to “Füchsetown,” reigning German champions Füchse Berlin’s training facilities, for a camp. Ebner describes this opportunity as “the best conditions a national team could have.” Every training session was filmed by “seven or eight cameras, showing the guys where to attack the defence exactly to a few centimetres. I do not believe that many national teams work like this.”

This detail-oriented approach has already been internalised by the players: “Nowadays, you see players sitting together in groups of three or four during training camps, discussing tactics and how to solve problems. I hadn't seen that before. That's certainly also thanks to Bob,” says Ebner. 

Developing his team’s playing style is one side of Hanning’s appointment. The Federation are also hoping to profit from Hanning’s connections across Europe, helping more Italian players to play abroad, as well as further professionalisation of the surroundings of the national team. 

If Hanning sees room for improvement, he initiates direct change. “I remember during a qualification match, we were supposed to eat with 400 pensioners in the dining room. Now, we put up posters, and everyone knows who is staying at the hotels when we are in Italy. It's about trying to get this mindset into people's heads and not making ourselves smaller than what we are.”

What is impressive about the development is that Hanning integrated only one of his own staff members, assistant coach Per Oke Krohnagel, into the national team. “Otherwise, I have embraced everyone who was already there. And I must say that everyone is truly willing to give a little more now and is also genuinely willing to understand what it takes to make success a little more likely in the long term.” It is about developing people and allowing them to grow.

“We aim for the main round!”

There are no easy groups or opponents at an EHF EURO — something Hanning knows very well. Nevertheless, he has set ambitious goals for his side: “You can lose against Iceland, Hungary and Poland — there is no question about that. But we are going there to win all three games.”

Hanning embraces the mindset change he wants to implement at the federation. “We are not going to say that we are this ‘little Italy.’ No — we aim for the main round!”

Ebner echoes these goals: “We can be an uncomfortable team to play against. We have got some options in offence, playing one-on-ones with four back-court players, but also having taller players on the team to shoot from distance.”

These attributes, combined with the Italian mentality, the Italian heart that never stops fighting and the team's family spirit, should ensure success in the tournament, according to Ebner. 

The head coach and goalkeeper have similar mindsets when it comes to describing what would be considered a success for the team. 

“When we leave the matches, feeling that we gave it our all, we have achieved what we wanted,” Ebner says. Hanning adds: “I can tell you that I want to win every game, no matter when or where. For me, the tournament is a success when we can achieve what we set out to do over many games and inspire people with beautiful, attractive handball.”

Photos: Italian Handball Federation / Luigi Canu; Dace Eihvalde / Latvian Handball Federation; Serbian Handball Federation; kolektiff images/Uros Hocevar