Live blog: Melsungen and Flensburg close in Hamburg

• semi-finals day at the Maschinensucher EHF Finals 2025
• at 15:00 CEST, MT Melsungen vs SG Flensburg-Handewitt
• at 18:00 CEST, THW Kiel vs Montpellier Handball
• watch live on EHFTV (subject to geo-restrictions and subscription) and find out how to follow the weekend
• follow the official EHF European League social media channels for clips, photos and more: Instagram, Facebook, X, and TikTok and the Home of Handball YouTube channel for highlights
• read the semi-finals preview here
• photos © Kolektiff Images

14:45

It's time to tune into EHFTV or your local broadcaster as the first semi-final will throw off shortly after the opening show. You can read more about that here.

14:30

Ian Barrufet of Melsungen (on loan from Barça) is currently the third top scorer in the competition, with 86 goals scored across 16 matches. But the two players ahead of him - Limoges' Ihor Turchenko (89 goals) and HC Kriens-Luzern's Luca Sigrist (87) are no longer in the running, so Barrufet just needs to score four times today to take the top scorer title. Given that his average since the start of the group matches is 5.4 goals per game, it seems entirely likely he will seal top spot today.

14:20

We're less than 45 minutes from throw-off and Melsungen and Flensburg are on court warming up. We've just been introduced to the four club mascots - Melsungen's Henner (a red dragon), Flensburg's Sigi (a seagull), Kiel's Hein Daddel (a zebra) and Montpellier's Foxy (a blue fox). They made a colourful quartet! The arena is also filling up nicely now: over 10,000 fans are expected for what will definitely be a great afternoon of handball.

14:10

Last but not least in our build-up features, EHF journalist Danijela Vekić spoke to Montpellier Handball line player Veron Nacinovic. Montpellier are the only non-German side in the final weekend and are hoping to prevent an all-German final by beating Kiel this evening – the club which Nacinovic is joining next season.

Nacinovic reveals Montpellier wanted this draw and believe they can defeat Kiel, as they ride high on their victory over Paris Saint-Germain to claim the French Cup.

Discover his feelings ahead of the crunch game, and about his decision to leave Montpellier for Kiel, here.

13:50

One of the younger players in Hamburg this weekend is THW Kiel wing Bence Imre, who has been making an impact since moving to Germany from his home in Hungary last summer. Imre is Kiel’s top scorer in the competition this season.

Kiel have just beaten MT Melsungen to the German Cup and are wanting to build on that momentum in Hamburg, but face a tricky semi-final against Montpellier later on – a side who they know well from past EHF Champions League encounters. Imre and his teammates are relishing the challenge ahead. Find out more about his hopes in our feature.

13:30

We previewed the EHF Finals on ‘The Spin’ podcast this week, with hosts Víctor Tomàs and Bengt Kunkel asking who the favourites are for the trophy. Do you agree? Watch and find out!

13:00

Defending champions SG Flensburg-Handewitt come to Hamburg this year with a new coach in the shape of Slovenian Aleš Pajovič, taking over from Nicolej Krickau at the start of 2025. After leading Austria to the Men’s EHF EURO 2026 Pajovič is now fully focused on Flensburg. They have had a slightly disappointing season in the Bundesliga, and the EHF Finals are Flensburg’s last chance to win a trophy this season. And as Pajovič explains in our feature, that is the club’s main goal here in Hamburg.

Read more!

12:45

Of course our social media team have been having a bit of fun before the semi-finals - make sure you're following the official EHF European League channels on Instagram, Facebook, X, and TikTok for lots of behind-the-scenes content, memes and more.

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12:30

There’s lots to share before the matches start, so let’s get going with some of the great features that we’ve been running over the last couple of weeks in the build-up to the event.

First up, it’s MT Melsungen’s right back Dainis Kristopans. Kristopans always stands out on the court – he is the tallest player at the EHF Finals at 2.15m – but his play is not just about his height. As an EHF Champions League winner with Vardar in 2019 plus years at Paris Saint-Germain, Kristopans has huge experience of big-game events, and he thinks Melsungen have just as good a chance as anyone else in the semi-finals.

Read Björn Pazen’s feature here.

12:00

Welcome to the live blog for the Maschinensucher EHF Finals 2025! Across the weekend in Hamburg we'll bring you build-up, features, comprehensive match action and of course match reviews as the four semi-finalists clash in the hunt for the coveted trophy. 

The first semi-final throws off at 15:00 CEST, when debutants MT Melsungen take on defending champions SG Flensburg-Handewitt. Before then, check out all you need to know about today's games in the semi-final preview.