Sweden are the first Men's 20 EHF EURO 2026 finalists

• Sweden and Denmark met in the final of the Men's 18 EHF EURO 2024, when Sweden took a close 37:36 win in overtime. Many of the players on both sides are still a part of the team, including both goalkeepers, Swede Viggo Håkansson and Dane Frederik Møller
• Interestingly enough, back in the 2024 final, Håkansson saved 17 shots. Adding 22 saves from this year's quarter-final against France and 17 again in the semi-final against Denmark, he is establishing himself as one of the biggest stars of his generation
• The clash of the young titans was closely followed from the stands by some of the biggest names in the game, Danish national team head coach and world, European and Olympic champion Nikolaj Jacobsen, as well as Hungarian legend and two-time EHF Champions League winner with Barça, László Nagy
• Swedish centre back Liam Hultberg and Danish left back Hjalte Langmack were the top scorers for their teams and have both earned the Player of the Match award

SEMI-FINAL

Sweden vs Denmark 38:35 (17:14)

Top scorers: Liam Hultberg 10/16 (SWE), Hjalte Langmack 7/11 (DEN)
Players of the Match: Liam Hultberg (SWE), Hjalte Langmack (DEN)

The Scandinavian derby lived up to its expectations! From the very start of the match, it was a levelled game, especially as the goalies of both teams were on top of their game. Swede Viggo Håkansson and Dane Frederik Møller made it difficult for the other side to score — if one saved, the other one made sure he did the same. By the 28th minute, they both were on seven saves and over 30 per cent save efficiency. Just a minute later, Swedish centre back Liam Hultberg scored for a three-goal lead (16:13), and after a mistake on the Danish side, Sweden scored one more from a counterattack for 17:13, but Hjalte Langmack's goal a few seconds before the buzzer set the score to 17:14 at half-time.

With the start of the second half, the Swedes made sure that the three-goal lead they created shortly before the break stayed on the scoreboard. Håkansson continued stopping Danish attacks, but tough defence on both sides saw a few two-minute suspensions. Denmark tried to close the gap and come closer, but they simply couldn't find the solution for the motivated Sweden, which ended the game with a three-goal lead (38:35). 

Main image: Flaviu Buboi / FRH