Live blog: EHF EURO throws off on Thursday with six exciting games

• the Women's EHF EURO 2024 throws off in Basel, Debrecen and Innsbruck on Thursday 28 November
• in group A: Hungary vs Türkiye at 18:00 CET, Sweden vs North Macedonia at 20:30 CET
• in group C: Spain vs Portugal at 18:00 CET, France vs Poland at 20:30 CET
• in group E: Austria vs Slovakia at 18:00 CET, Norway vs Slovenia at 20:30 CET
• read the previews of Thursday's games here
• follow the official social media channels for exclusive clips and behind-the-scenes content: X, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok
• find out more on how to follow the tournament
• all photos © EHF/kolektiff

16:50

We have arrived in the Olympiahalle in Innsbruck and a handful of Austrian players are coming on court to start their warm-up. It's happening!

16:25

Where were you in 2004, when Katrine Lunde won her first EHF EURO? Her teammates were in school, or not even there yet, but many of them remember being inspired by the legendary goalkeeper. She starts the hunt for her seventh title tonight.

16:00

We're expecting plenty of fans in Debrecen tonight, especially for Hungary's game against Sweden. Swedish captain Jamina Roberts is looking forward to playing in front of the Hungarian fans!

15:30

Our social media channels will be sharing lots of good content throughout the tournament, and keep an eye out for giveaways. Thanks to Hummel, you could be part of the EHF EURO final weekend - see below or visit Instagram for details!

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15:00

Another experienced coach on the bench tonight is Ambros Martin, for Spain. Martin took over the team in 2023 and the EHF EURO will be his third major tournament with the team, but this squad is a new-look group of younger players. EHF journalist Courtney Gahan found out about the rebuilding process when she met Martin earlier this week - read more here.

14:30

Norway are record EHF EURO champions, and their coach, Thorir Hergeirsson, has been in charge for five of those victories. But Hergeirsson is stepping down at the end of this calendar year, to be replaced by Ole Gustav Gjekstad. While his team were having their photoshoot on Tuesday we took the opportunity for a good chat with Hergeirsson, about his coaching philosophy and why he's choosing to step away after 30 years' involvement with the Norwegian national team.

14:10

Want to stay in touch with everything that's going on at the EHF EURO? Make sure you sign up to the newsletter, which will land in your inbox and give you an easy way of following our coverage. 

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13:43

Several teams playing today have not featured at the EHF EURO for a while - or ever. We featured three of them in our build-up features: Portugal, North Macedonia and Türkiye. Portuguese right back Beatriz Sousa and Macedonian left back Andrea Sedloska told us how excited they were to be at the EHF EURO, while Türkiye coach, Costica Buceschi, spoke about his ambitions for the debutants. 

13:00

Spain vs Portugal in Basel is one of the first games to throw off - here's what key players Jennifer Gutiérrez and Bebiana Sabino had to say about being in the EHF EURO when we spoke to them in the last couple of days.

12:30

Back in 2022 we ran a superb series focusing on some amazing women in handball. We're restarting that now, beginning with the one and only Katrine Lunde - six-time EHF EURO champion. Follow EHF Activities on Instagram to find out who else will feature this year!

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12:00

After months of preparation, the Women's EHF EURO 2024 is finally here! The first three games throw off at 18:00 CET in group A in Debrecen, group C in Basel and group E in Innsbruck, with co-hosts Austria and Hungary both in action. 

A month ago, we put together a power ranking of the top eight teams at the tournament. Tonight's games will start to show whether that list is right, or whether someone has come along to upset the status quo.