FINAL
Györi Audi ETO KC (HUN) vs SG BBM Bietigheim 30:24 (17:12)
- Györ led the match from the first minute until the end, never relinquishing their lead, with a superb show of dominance throughout the 60 minutes in a packed MVM Dome in Budapest
- right back Ana Gros, who scored six goals, was Györ’s top scorer in the match, with one of her most efficient matches of the season
- the Hungarian powerhouse tied the largest margin of win in an EHF FINAL4 final, six goals, set in 2014, when they beat Buducnost, and in 2021, with Vipers’ win against Brest
- playing her last match for Györ before retiring, centre back Stine Oftedal was named the MVP of this edition of the EHF FINAL4
- Györ’s goalkeeper, Silje Solberg-Oesthassel, who replaced Sandra Toft between the posts for this match, had a superb outing, with 16 saves for a 43.2 per cent saving efficiency
- stars including Ana Gros, Sandra Toft and Estelle Nze Minko have won their maiden title in the EHF Champions League Women. Nze Minko has now won every possible title, including the EHF EURO, the World Championship, the Olympic Games with France and the EHF Cup
- this is Györ’s sixth title in the history of the competition, more than any other side, with the closest being Hypo Niederösterreich with four titles and Viborg HK, Slagelse DT and Vipers Kristiansand, with three titles each
Queens of Europe seal title in dominant fashion
A final, especially the one in the EHF Champions League Women, is about control and pace. And that was exactly what Györi Audi ETO KC, the most experienced side in the history of the EHF FINAL4, with nine appearances in Budapest, did on Sunday evening in a packed MVM Dome, in front of 18.500 fans, keeping SG BBM Bietigheim at bay.
Cracks started to appear in the debutants’ armour from the first minutes, as Jakob Vestergaard called a team time-out early, after only four minutes. The German side’s attack could only deliver some passes to their line player and their fundamentals were totally disrupted by Györ’s sturdy defence.
But what really made the experience was the depth and experience. Coach Per Johansson sent Silje Solberg-Oesthassel between the posts, despite Sandra Toft having a fantastic match against Esbjerg on Saturday. There were plenty of changes on the three back positions, as well as on the line player position. And the depth, plus the decisive hours of recovery from Saturday made the whole difference.
Györi Audi ETO KC are once again the queens of Europe and players like Stine Oftedal (three titles) and Kari Brattset Dale (two titles) have delivered once again, while Ana Gros will depart for Krim Mercator Ljubljana next season with her first Champions League title.
Photos © Kolektiff Images
We had a really tough semi-final and today Bietigheim fought so hard. Even if you’re leading the whole game, we never stepped up big time. It was a tough game. We did what we talked about. I’m really happy that we are here with the gold.
We just have to say they were stronger today. We ran behind from the beginning. We did not make this moment that could have turned the game. We may had some chances, but we made a mistake and we missed. So you have never had the confidence going forward during the game. Hard to describe now immediately after the game, but it is like it is.
