From 0 to 2,569: the numbers before the EHF Finals Women

The first champions of the EHF European League Women will be crowned on Sunday 9 May when the inaugural 2020/21 season comes to an end at the EHF Finals Women 2021 in Baia Mare.

After 68 EHF European League matches played, Nantes Atlantique Handball and CS Minaur Baia Mare (14:45 CEST), followed by Siófok KC and Herning-Ikast Håndbold (18:00 CEST) will contest the semi-finals on Saturday 8 May.

Here is an overview of facts and figures:

0 teams at the EHF Finals started the season in the first qualification round; Nantes are the only team to play qualification before the group phase.

1 team will play their first European semi-final: Nantes. For both Siófok and Baia Mare this is the second semi-final, while Herning-Ikast have even won five trophies in three different EHF competitions.

1 former EHF Champions League top scorer is part of the EHF Finals: Siófok’s Andrea Kobetic (Penezic) scored 102 times for Vardar in 2014/15 and shared the top-scorer title that season with Cristina Neagu.

2 of the four semi-finalists were also in the semi-final of the EHF Cup last season, which was cancelled due to the coronavirus outbreak: Siófok and Herning-Ikast. The other semi-finalists were Odense Håndbold and HC Podravka Vegeta.

2 of the four semi-finalists have won EHF competitions before: Herning-Ikast (City Cup 1997/98, EHF Cup 2000/01 and Cup Winners Cup 2003/04, and EHF Cup 2010/11 and CWC 2014/15 as FC Midtjylland) and Siófok (EHF Cup 2018/19).

3 Russian teams were in the quarter-final – but all failed to make it to the EHF Finals.

3 of the 38 group matches played and none of the eight quarter-final matches ended in a draw.

4 EHF EURO 2020 medallists have made it to the EHF Finals with their respective clubs: Norway’s gold medallist Stine Skogrand with Herning-Ikast, French silver medallists Gnonsiane Niombla and Tamara Horacek as well as Croatian bronze medallist Katarina Jezic with Siófok.

4 matches - two semi-finals, the 3/4 placement match and the final - are still ahead.

4 - which means all - teams at the EHF Finals won their respective group, and also won both legs of their quarter-final.

4 nations are represented at the EHF FINALS: Denmark, France, Hungary, and Romania.

5 is the number of EHF club competitions in which Herning-Ikast goalkeeper Sabine Englert has reached (at least) the semi-final, after winning the Challenge Cup with Bayer Leverkusen and the EHF Cup and Cup Winners’ Cup with FC Midtjylland, and playing the EHF Champions League final with Hypo Niederösterreich.

5 of the 38 group matches played but none of the eight quarter-final matches ended with a difference of 10 or more goals.

7 straight matches is the current winning streak from Siófok.

9 goals was the biggest aggregate margin in the quarter-final: Baia Mare vs Dunarea Braila 58:49.

15 points in eight matches have been gathered by Siófok, the only team that remained unbeaten in the group phase; Baia Mare and Herning-Ikast both lost one match.

17 times in 38 group and eight quarter-finals matches, 60 or more goals were scored.

17 European matches in a row Siófok have been unbeaten, including eight (seven wins, one draw) in the current EHF European League season.

17 goals were the most by a single player in the quarter-final: Helene Fauske (Herning-Ikast) scored eight goals in the first leg and nine in the second against Handball Club Lada.

25 of the 38 group matches and four of the eight quarter-finals were won by the home team.

51 goals make Herning-Ikast’s Helene Fauske the top scorer in the competition since the start of the group phase. Nantes’ Bruna De Paula and Kastamonu’s Amanda Kurtovic follow with 46.

63 was the highest number of goals by a team in the quarter-final: Nantes vs HC Zvezda 63:57.

68 matches been played so far in the European League: 22 in the two qualification rounds, 38 in the group phase, and eight in the quarter-final.

77 was the highest number of goals in a group phase match, when Thüringer HC (GER) beat Storhamar HE (NOR) 41:36.

83 was the highest number of goals in any EHF European League Women match this season, when Vaci NKSE (HUN) beat Banik Most (CZE) 42:41 in qualification round 3.

257 is the highest number of goals scored this season by one team: Herning-Ikast; followed by Siófok with 242 and Braila with 219.

455 goals were scored in the quarter-final for an average of 56.87 goals per game; in the group phase the average was 58.0 goals per game.

2,659 goals have been scored in 38 group matches and eight quarter-final matches of the inaugural EHF European League Women season.

Most goals (since start of group phase):
77 - Thüringer HC vs Storhamar 41:36 (GP)
70 - Zvezda vs Herning-Ikast 31:39 (GP)
68 - Herning-Ikast vs Vac 39:29 (GP)
68 - Braila vs Kuban 36:32 (GP)
...
62 - Zvezda vs Nantes 29:33 (QF)

Fewest goals:
40 - Kastamonu vs Lublin 20:20 (GP)
46 - Nants vs Lublin 25:21 (GP)
48 - Herning-Ikast vs Paris 25:23 (GP)
…
52 - Baia Mare vs Braila 27:25 (QF)

Biggest winning margins:
+13 - Storhamar vs Baia Mare (27:40)
+12 - Vac vs Herning-Ikast (26:38)
+11 - Fleury vs Siófok 24:35
…
+7: Braila vs Baia Mare 24:31

Most points:
15 - Siófok
14 - Baia Mare
14 - Herning-Ikast

Most goals:
257 - Herning-Ikast
242 - Siófok
219 - Dunarea Braila

Top scorers (since the start of the group phase):
51 - Helene Fause (Herning-Ikast)
46 - Bruna De Paula (Nantes)
46 - Amanda Kurtovic (Kastamonu)
42 - Jovana Kovacevic (Baia Mare)
41 - Maria Kanaval (Dunarea Braila)

Top scorers (still in competition):
51 - Helene Fauske (Herning-Ikast)
46 - Bruna De Paula (Nantes)
42 - Jovana Kovacevic (Baia Mare)
39 - Tamara Horacek (Siófok)
38 - Katarina Jezic (Siófok)