50 Fun Facts About Handball

How many players does each handball team have on the court at once?

That is six court players plus a goalkeeper, with seven more substitutes waiting on the bench.

How long is each half of a standard senior handball match?

Youth halves are shorter, dropping to 25 minutes for ages 12 to 15 and 20 minutes for ages 8 to 11.

What are the dimensions of a handball court?

That is a bit longer and wider than a basketball court, with a goal set into the middle of each end line.

How far from the goal is the line that marks the goalkeeper-only zone, or crease?

Attackers may still score from inside it by jumping in and releasing the ball before they land.

From what distance is handball's equivalent of a penalty kick taken?

Unlike a football penalty it happens several times a match, so teams keep specialist takers for it.

How many steps may a handball player take while holding the ball without dribbling?

The player also gets only three seconds, and picking up a dribble grants another three steps or seconds before a pass or shot is required.

How many referees officiate a handball match?

They stand diagonally so each watches a sideline, and swap the court and goal roles on every turnover.

How wide is a handball goal?

The goal is two metres high, and its posts must be painted in alternating contrasting colours.

How long is a standard suspension for a serious foul in handball?

Three of them in one game earn a red card and ejection.

How many team timeouts per game has each handball team been allowed since 2012?

A team official signals it with a green card marked with a black T, and only the team in possession may call one.

How far from the goal is the dashed free-throw line on a handball court?

Free throws are handball's free kicks and carry no great penalty, but a shot taken directly from one at the final buzzer occasionally goes in.

Which card do handball referees show for a disqualification with a written report?

It follows the red card, and the IHF also defines 18 hand signals for referees.

What is the handball position that plays on the six-metre line among the defenders commonly called?

Also known as the line player, it needs strength and ball control more than jumping ability.

Which handball defensive formation is sometimes known as the "flat defense"?

All six defenders form a wall between the six- and nine-metre lines; every other shape is called an offensive defence.

Which handball referee signal, introduced in 1995, warns an attacking team that it must shoot soon?

The passive-play warning stops teams from stalling; a shot on goal takes the hand back down.

A goalkeeper deflects the ball over the outer goal line. Who gets possession?

It is the opposite of football's corner rule, and play restarts with a goalkeeper throw from inside the zone.

Which Danish gym teacher published the first written set of team handball rules in 1906?

Nielsen, an Olympic medalist and lieutenant, taught at Ordrup grammar school north of Copenhagen.

In which city were the modern handball rules published on 29 October 1917, the sport's accepted birthday?

Karl Schelenz, Max Heiser and Erich Konigh wrote them, and Schelenz revised them again in 1919.

At which Olympics was men's field handball first played?

It was played outdoors and then vanished from the programme, returning as the indoor game only in 1972.

Women's handball joined the Olympic programme at which Games?

Eastern European teams that had refined the indoor game dominated the early Olympic tournaments.

In which year was the International Handball Federation founded?

Its founding congress met at the Palace Hotel in Copenhagen with eight national federations, and Sweden's Gösta Björk became first president.

In which Swiss city is the International Handball Federation headquartered?

The IHF is a federation under Swiss law and now counts 209 national member federations.

Hassan Moustafa, who became IHF president in 2000, comes from which country?

He was appointed at the 28th Ordinary IHF Congress in 2000 and was still in office in 2025, a quarter of a century later.

Which country hosted the first indoor men's Handball World Championship in 1938?

Only four European teams took part, and the second edition was not held until sixteen years later in Sweden.

Which nation has won the most men's Handball World Championships?

France has six titles; Sweden, Denmark and Romania have four each.

Which team won its fourth consecutive men's Handball World Championship in 2025?

The 2025 tournament was spread across Croatia, Denmark and Norway.

Which was the first non-European country to medal at the men's Handball World Championship, in 2015?

Qatar hosted that tournament and took silver, ending 77 years of all-European podiums.

Which player scored a record 92 goals at a single men's Handball World Championship, in 2009?

He did it in nine matches for Macedonia and is also the all-time top scorer of the EHF Champions League.

Which was the first country outside Europe to win the women's Handball World Championship, in 1995?

Brazil became the second non-European champion in 2013.

Which Norwegian goalkeeper is the only player with seven women's World Championship medals?

She first appeared at the Worlds in 2003 and was also MVP of the women's tournament at the 2024 Olympics.

How many times was Nikola Karabatić named IHF World Player of the Year, tying the men's record?

He won it in 2007, 2014 and 2016 and retired in 2024 with three Olympic golds.

Which Danish left back scored a then-record 61 goals at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics?

His own father Flemming played 120 matches for Denmark and went to the 1984 Olympics; Mathias Gidsel topped the mark with 62 at Paris 2024.

Which Croatian playmaker earned the nickname "Handball Mozart"?

Born in Split to two handball players, he was voted the best player in history in a 2010 IHF online poll.

French goalkeeper Thierry Omeyer was known at THW Kiel by which nickname?

He was only the third goalkeeper ever voted IHF World Player of the Year, in 2008.

Which Romanian is the only woman to win four IHF World Player of the Year awards?

She is also the European Championship's all-time top scorer with 303 goals and was made an honorary citizen of Bucharest.

Anja Andersen's national women's team of the 1990s earned which nickname after their 1994 European gold?

Andersen's temper got her banned briefly by coach Ulrik Wilbek during the 1996 Olympics, which Denmark still won.

Which German club is the record Handball-Bundesliga champion with 23 titles?

Nicknamed the zebras, the club was founded in 1904 as a gymnastics association and won its first indoor title in 1957.

THW Kiel's fierce "Nordderby" is played against which fellow Schleswig-Holstein club?

By March 2025 the sides had met 114 times, with Kiel winning 67.

In 2012 THW Kiel achieved what first for any top-flight German team sport?

That same year the club also completed the treble of league, cup and Champions League.

Which German club won the 2025 EHF Champions League?

The title was worth €300,000 in prize money plus a shot at more at the IHF Super Globe in Saudi Arabia.

Which German club made Domagoj Duvnjak the most expensive handball player in history in 2009?

The three-year deal was worth €2.25 million with a €1.1 million transfer fee; he later captained Kiel and Croatia.

Which nation had won the most men's European Handball Championships, five, before 2026?

Sweden won the first edition in Portugal in 1994 by beating Russia 34–21, then added titles in 1998, 2000, 2002 and 2022.

Which stadium, converted from football use in three hours, hosted the 2024 Olympic handball finals?

Its centre floor slides under the stands on hydraulic lifts, and the women's final drew a record 26,664 spectators.

Which Dane scored a record 62 goals in the Paris 2024 Olympic handball tournament?

He was named men's MVP as Denmark won gold with a clean sweep, beating Germany in the final.

How long is each set in a beach handball match?

A goal by the goalkeeper or a spectacular 360-degree shot counts double, and tied sets go to a golden goal.

Norway's women's beach handball team was fined €1,500 in 2021 for wearing what?

The backlash at a European championship match in Bulgaria led to the rule being widely derided and later changed.

In which German city is the Handball-Bundesliga headquartered?

The league began in 1966–67 with north and south sections and has been a single 18-club division since 1977.

What was the effect of a rule, first used at the 2015 women's World Championship, letting any player replace the keeper?

The rule resembles ice hockey's pulled goalie and was adopted for both genders at the 2016 Olympics.

After its 1936 debut, men's handball returned to the Olympics indoors at which Games?

Field handball appeared in Berlin in 1936; indoor team handball rejoined the programme at Munich 1972 and has stayed since.

Which 19th-century Czech game is counted among the ancestors of modern team handball?

Házená in the Czech lands, håndbold in Denmark and torball in Germany were all handball-like games of the 1800s.