Home teams dominate as Qualifiers open with goal records

• Croatia’s previous best mark was 40 goals, from a 40:26 win against Türkiye in a Qualifier in June 2015

• until Wednesday night, Iceland had never scored more than the 44 goals from their 44:29 win over Austria in June 2011

• the Faroe Island improved their old record by two, having scored 35 goals against Ukraine (35:27) in May 2025

• just like Croatia, North Macedonia recorded an 18-goal victory, downing Luxembourg 41:23 in their group 8 opener

• the closest match happened in group 5, where Czechia nearly squandered a substantial half-time lead but ultimately defeated Israel 27:26

• also in group 5, Slovenia recorded a convincing 38:28 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina, while Austria (37:30 against Türkiye) and Poland (33:24 against Latvia) had solid starts in group 2 and 6, respectively

• The eight remaining matches in round 1 of the Qualifiers are scheduled for Thursday

GROUP 1

Croatia vs Lithuania 46:28 (23:11)

H2H: 3-0-0
Top scorers: Ivan Martinović 10/13 (Croatia); Arturas Budraitis 6/13 (Lithuania)

Croatia had a slow start in front of their home crowd in Split, finding the net for the first time only after three minutes and still stuck at 2:2 after seven minutes. However, a quickfire 5:1 run set the tone for the rest of the first half, in which Ivan Martinović already netted eight of his 10-goal tally for the match. The margin reached double-digit figures for the first time when Mario Šoštarić converted a seven-metre penalty for 19:9 in the 26th minute. In the second half, Croatia came close to beating the record for their biggest ever win in an EHF EURO Qualifier — 34:14 against Finland in 2009 — when they led by 21 goals (38:17) going into the final 10 minutes. However, the 46 goals at the end still set a new best mark for the 2026 bronze medallists, as Croatia had never scored more than 40 goals in a Qualifier before.

GROUP 2

Austria vs Türkiye 37:30 (19:15)

H2H: 6-3-2
Top scorers: Sebastian Frimmel 11/14 (Austria); Baran Nalbantoglu 5/6 (Türkiye)

The Austrian fans in Graz had a lot to cheer about early on — even before throw-off, when goalkeeper Constantin Möstl received the trophy for his Austrian Player of the Year award. Austria then kept the good spirits on the stands going as they rushed into a 4:0 lead, with key players Mykola Bilyk and Sebastian Frimmel both among the goal scorers. However, Türkiye quickly bounced back to make it 4:3. Austria remained ahead, led by as many as six goals (16:10, 18:12), but could never really shake off their opponents. Some sloppy play by the hosts in the second half allowed Türkiye to claw back to within one goal (21:20) after Ediz Aktas had netted three times in a short time span for a Turkish 4:0 run. That prompted Austria to step up a gear again and, in the end, claim a convincing eight-goal win. Goalkeeper Sergej Novakovic made his debut for Austria in the final minutes and impressed with four saves from five attempts.

GROUP 3

Iceland vs Ukraine 48:26 (23:9)

H2H: 3-0-2
Top scorers: Bjarki Már Elisson 6/6, Ómar Ingi Magnússon 6/7 (Iceland); Dmytro Artemenko 8/9 (Ukraine)

The semi-finalists from the Men's EHF EURO 2026 got their campaign off to a convincing start against Ukraine, recording the biggest win of the opening night of the Qualifiers. The tone was set when Iceland, playing without suspended Viggó Kristjánsson, had already opened a 10-goal advantage (14:4) in less than 17 minutes. The gap grew to 14 at the break, as the only remaining question for the second half was which goal records the hosts could break this night in Reykjavik. Bjarki Már Elisson and Ómar Ingi Magnússon each contributed six goals to Iceland's new best mark for most goals scored. However, the 22-goal difference wasn't their biggest Qualifier win ever, as Iceland had once beaten Cyprus 42:11 back in 1999.

GROUP 4

Faroe Islands vs Kosovo 37:30 (20:13)

H2H: 7-0-0
Top scorers: Óli Mittún 8/8 (Faroe Islands); Bujar Ramosaj 6/7 (Kosovo)

The Faroe Islands took an impressive first step on their way to what would be their third straight appearance at a Men's EHF EURO final tournament. The clear win over Kosovo didn't come as a surprise, obviously, as the Nordic team had won all six previous duels as well, including their biggest ever victory in a Qualifier — 32:21 two years ago. On Wednesday, another 11-goal win seemed on the cards when they led 20:13 at half-time, and then 33:21 going into the final quarter, but Kosovo's defence looked stronger near the end than it had done for most of the match. Guided by a perfect eight-from-eight from Óli Mittún, the Faroe Islands were in control throughout and passed the 35-goal mark in a Qualifier for the first time.

GROUP 5

Czechia vs Israel 27:26 (15:10)

H2H: 9-1-1
Top scorers: Tomáš Piroch 9/12 (Czechia); Yoav Lumbroso 10/14 (Israel)

Czechia pleased the home crowd in Zlín with a blistering start. Right back Tomáš Piroch netted in the opening minute and the hosts went on for a quick 4:0 lead. However, once Israel had settled, the visitors closed the gap just as quickly, and the difference was only one goal (5:4) after seven minutes. Czechia kept the upper hand and gradually extended their lead again — to five goals at the break. The second half was pretty much in the balance, as the Czechia stayed a few goals ahead, but never by more than five, leaving the outcome of the match open until the closing minutes. The finish then became really tight, as Czechia were shut out for the last two minutes and Israel came within one when Nadav Cohen netted for 27:26. Piroch then missed a penalty, but Israel failed to convert their final attack.

Slovenia vs Bosnia and Herzegovina 38:28 (22:11)

H2H: 2-0-1
Top scorers: Aleks Vlah 6/9 (Slovenia); Amer Sahinovic 6/9, Danijel Stijovic 6/12 (Bosnia and Herzegovina)

Domen Makuc was in the spotlights in Koper. The Barça star, MVP of the EHF FINAL4 2026, received his EHF Excellence Awards trophy as the Team of the Season's centre back before the match. And it was Makuc who opened the scoring for Slovenia just minutes later. Slovenia had one win and one defeat when they also met Bosnia and Herzegovina in the EHF EURO Qualifiers four years ago, and they showed from the throw-off that they were determined to stamp their authority on the match right from the start this time. Slovenia soon built a substantial lead of six goals (10:4) in less than 14 minutes. Slovenia kept pressing in the first half and reached half-time with a double-digit advantage. However, the Bosnian visitors were more part of the game after the break and even 'won' the second half 17:16, though they never threatened the home team's victory.

Poland vs Latvia 33:24 (21:11)

H2H: 7-0-0
Top scorers: Filip Michałowicz 8/11 (Poland); Leonards Valkovskis 7/8, Janis Pavels Valkovskis 7/12 (Latvia)

Poland had clearly beaten Latvia twice in the European qualification for the 2027 IHF Men's World Championship earlier this year, and the team of head coach Jota González were eager to add another such victory. When Latvia centre back Endijs Kusners finally scored the first goal for his team after eight minutes, Poland had already netted five times. Still, Latvia came back to within two (7:5) before Poland started pressuring again and soon extended their lead to a decisive margin, which grew to 11 at the break. Missing a handful of key players, including Arkadiusz Moryto, Szymon Sićko, Kamil Syprzak, and goalkeeper Miłosz Wałach, Poland were less dominant in the second half. Even though Lithuania reduced the margin to nine goals at the end, a victory for Poland was never in doubt.

GROUP 8

North Macedonia vs Luxembourg 41:23 (20:10)

H2H: 7-0-0
Top scorers: Nikola Kosteski 6 (North Macedonia); Vincent Kreiselmaier 8 (Luxembourg)

North Macedonia aim for their ninth straight participation and 10th overall in a Men's EHF EURO final tournament, and the side from head coach Kiril Lazarov could not have asked for a better start to their Qualifiers campaign in group 8. Strong favourites against Luxembourg, the hosts lived up to that billing and treated their fans in Skopje to a true goal fest, hitting the 20-goal mark even before the half-time buzzer. They netted 21 times in the second half, concluded by a seven-metre penalty from Nikola Kosteski, who led for the hosts with six goals. Vincent Kreiselmaier netted eight times for Luxembourg, which started their third participation in phase 2 of the EHF EURO qualification route with a big defeat, and with the perspective of powerhouse Sweden visiting them in round 2 on Sunday afternoon.