Alkaloid head to Vienna with a nine-goal lead, while Macedonia lose Jankulovska for the European Championship

Alkaloid head to Vienna nine goals up, Butel will chase three in Skopje

Alkaloid beat Austria's Ferlach 31:22 in the first leg of the second round of the EHF European Cup, a trophy they won two years ago. Kiril Lazarov's side played without the injured Nenad Kosteski and Vuko Borozan, but quickly went 6:2 up, led 16:11 at half-time, and from 25:20 sealed the win with six goals in a row. Marko Mitev scored seven, Nikola Kosteski six, and goalkeeper Ivan Galevski made ten saves. "Nobody lost focus and concentration, that was the key," Mitev said. Butel didn't manage the same in Croatia: they lost 27:24 to Gorica, even though they led in the second half, and conceded a 6:1 run in the last ten minutes. The return legs are on 24 October - for Butel in front of their own fans, with a three-goal deficit that can be overturned, if the defence holds out to the final minute this time.

Macedonia at the European Championship without Angela Jankulovska

The women's national team will play at the upcoming European Championship without Angela Jankulovska, one of head coach Igor Marković's key players. The left-hander for Slovakia's Dunajská Streda injured her knee in the return leg against Salerno in the EHF European Cup, and the club confirmed she has had surgery - a reconstruction of the ligament that stabilises the joint. Recovery from injuries like this usually takes seven to nine months, so we won't see Jankulovska on court until next season. One injury in a club match, and the whole national team feels the consequences. How deep the bench in Macedonian women's handball really is, we'll find out at the championship itself.

Barcelona at 20 straight wins, Gidsel and Freihöfer carry Berlin

Barcelona won away in Bucharest for their 20th straight win in the EHF Champions League, and with it an early place in the main round. Füchse Berlin, finalists in 2025 and 2026, got there too, beating Porto with an incredible 15 goals from Tim Freihöfer. A week earlier Mathias Gidsel equalled the competition's all-time record with 17 goals; this time he managed "only" eight. Sporting also went through, with 14 goals from the Costa brothers against Szeged, and Denmark's Aarhus beat Montpellier for the second time and recorded the first away win in their Champions League history. Twenty straight wins in Europe's strongest league - Barcelona have turned winning into routine, and everyone else is competing for second place.

Reistad puts ten past her future teammates, Krim finally win

In round six of the women's Champions League, Henny Reistad scored ten goals as Esbjerg beat Brest 35:26 - the club she will join in summer 2027. A nice way to introduce yourself to your new teammates. In the Balkan derby, Slovenia's Krim beat Budućnost 24:23 with a goal from Nina Zulić in the final seconds, ending a run of ten straight defeats stretching back to last season. Croatia's Podravka got their second win of the season against Nykøbing, with seven goals from Matea Šošo and 11 saves from Anica Gudelj. The big clubs share the records while the region fights for every point - Krim and Podravka at least have something to celebrate this week.

Vojvodina, Lovćen and Dubočica advance in the EHF European Cup

The Balkans did well in the second round of the EHF European Cup. Serbia's Vojvodina lost the first leg to Israel's Maccabi Rishon LeZion 31:32, but won the return leg, also played in Serbia, 36:32 to go through 67:64 on aggregate. Montenegro's Lovćen from Cetinje knocked out Luxembourg's Berchem 74:64 on aggregate, with 18 goals from Vuk Mrvaljević across the two games, and Serbia's Dubočica gave Latvia's Tenax Dobele no room - 73:61. All three are already in the third round. The region is out in force in the European Cup, and on 24 October it's Alkaloid's and Butel's turn to show that Macedonian handball belongs there too.