Kostov scored six seconds from the end and toppled Portugal

The Macedonian cadet national team beat Portugal 26:25 at the European championship, with a goal from Kostov five or six seconds from the end. The match was in our hands throughout: 13:9 at half-time, and a six-goal lead at two separate moments. Then the last ten minutes became what every handball coach dreams of as a nightmare - Portuguese goalkeeper Almeida caught fire, the hosts on the scoreboard reached 25:25 and got an attack to win it. The defence held, and Kostov beat Almeida, who finished with 15 saves. Damčevski with seven and Kostov with five goals were the top scorers, and goalkeeper Nikolovski collected 13 saves. With this win, today's match is for ninth place, against the winner of the Austria - Israel tie. The team of Goran Kuzmanoski has put together three straight wins after the group stage looked lost.

Skopje hosts the European cadet championship, the final is today

While Belgrade holds the main stage, Skopje carries the second floor of the same pyramid. The Men's 18 EHF Championship I 2026 began on Monday (3 August) with eight teams split into two groups, and the final is scheduled for today, Sunday 9 August. Running in parallel is the second tier in Telavi, Georgia, with six teams in a round-robin. Every match is live on EHF TV. This is not the championship with the headlines and the advertising, but it is exactly the level at which it gets decided who reaches the top championship in two years' time. Skopje has a hosting role it can build on - the question is whether anyone will mention this tournament again after 9 August.

Slovenia 26:17 Denmark: the Belgrade final is Slovenian-German

Slovenia reached the final of the Men's 18 EHF EURO 2026 with a convincing 26:17 against Denmark at the Aleksandar Nikolić hall in Belgrade. Goalkeeper Maj Miklavčič finished with 14 saves and 47 percent efficiency - a figure that explains the match on its own. Denmark led 6:4 after 14 minutes, but Slovenia answered with a 4:0 run and it was 11:10 at the break. In the second half the Danes fell to just five goals in fifteen minutes. Luka Kresal scored five goals, and Slovenia is on a run of seven wins without defeat. On the other side, Germany turned an 11:10 half-time deficit into a 32:27 win over Spain, with a 7:1 run at the start of the second half and eight goals from Julius Petke. The Balkans are hosting, and the final is between Slovenia and Germany.

Champions League with 24 teams, Partizan returns after 13 years

The new EHF Champions League season starts with 24 teams instead of 16, split into six groups of four. The first round is on 9 September, when Veszprém hosts Porto, Aalborg receives PSG, and Zagreb plays a regional derby with Celje. Barcelona defends its title against debutants Aarhus. The most interesting news for this region comes on the Thursday of that same week: Füchse Berlin travels to Partizan in Serbia - the Serbian club's return to the elite after a 13-year absence. Two teams from each group advance to the main round, which runs from 18 November to 4 March. More teams means more places for the region - but also more matches in which the gap between budgets becomes obvious. Does the expansion really open a door, or just hold it open longer before it closes?

Eurofarm Pelister 36:24 against Qatar in Červar's debut

Macedonian runners-up Eurofarm Pelister began their preparation cycle with a 36:24 win over the Qatar national team, led by Veselin Vujović. By half-time the Bitola side already led 18:12, which foreshadowed the margin. Two more matches against Krka await them in Zreče. At the same time, RK Alkaloid played its first friendly against Prilep and won 44:28, in a match shortened to three periods of 25 minutes at the request of both coaching staffs, so that as many players as possible got minutes. Friendly results in August mean nothing in March - but a squad that starts like this at least is not hiding problems from itself.