North Macedonia’s GRK Ohrid topped the European stage for the first time in the club’s history, sweeping both the first and second games amid overwhelming support from home fans.
Ohrid defeated Hungary’s MOL Tabanya KC 31-25 (12-11, first half) in the second leg of the 2025/26 EHF (European Handball Federation) Men’s Handball European Cup Final at Sportska Sala Biljanini Izvori in Ohrid, North Macedonia, on May 31 (local time).
Ohrid, who had a thrilling 29-28 and one-point win in the first leg away to Hungary last weekend, devoured the second leg at home and won the perfect victory with two wins and no losses in the series.
사진 확대 Photo 2025/26 EHF (European Handball Federation) Men’s Handball European Cup winner Ohrid, photo source = European Handball Federation
With this, North Macedonia has produced the European Cup winners for the second consecutive year following the RK Alkaloid victory last season. Since the launch of the EHF Men’s European Cup in 2020, North Macedonia is the first country to defend the title for the second time in a row.
While fans of both teams filled the stadium and emitted hot heat, Ohrid took the early lead with the support of home fans on his back. Ohrid took a 7-4 lead 14 minutes into the game. While Turbanja was shaken with eight turnovers early in the first half alone, Ohrid played efficiently with just four errors.
The biggest thing to see in the first half was a brilliant defense match between the goalkeepers of both teams. Ohrid’s goalkeeper Christian Pilipovic defended the goal with 10 saves (47.6% defense rate) in the first half of the 30 minutes, while Turbanja’s goalkeeper Arián Andó also responded with 11 saves (47.83% defense rate).
Turbunyeo’s counterattack was also not easy. From the 16th minute to the 22nd minute of the first half, he scored five goals and gave up only one goal, and succeeded in turning the tables for a while. In the process, as soon as Ohrid’s Gianfranco Pribetic returned from a two-minute suspension in the 20th minute of the first half, Ante Ivankovic received a red card and was directly sent off for a foul hitting the opponent in the face. However, Ohrid did not lose his concentration and turned over the score at the end of the first half, finishing the first half with a 12-11, one-point lead.
Ohrid unleashed a terrifying firepower as soon as the second half began. In just two and a half minutes after the start of the second half, he exploded three consecutive goals and turned the stadium into a frenzy, and Turbana, who was embarrassed by this, had to ask for an early operation time.
As the game overheated, a fierce war of nerves erupted between the 41st and 45th minutes of the second half, with a total of four two minutes of suspension, two each from both teams. In the second half alone, Ohrid dominated the game with a cool head despite a rough pattern of eight two-minute exits.
Between the 45th and 50th minutes of the second half, Turbajnyeo chased under the chin by two points with Benedek Erles, but Ohrid immediately scored three goals and gave up only one goal to widen the gap. Ohrid, who solidified his victory at the end of the game, widened the gap to six points with a scary background to end the 31-25 victory.
Re-founded in 2011, Ohrid was an underdog with only three European club competitions before this season. However, in this tournament, he completed the success story of lifting the first European Cup trophy in history by writing a perfect “home undefeated” myth of winning all seven home stadiums.
[Kim Yongpil, MK Sports Reporter]