Ohrid began defending the trophy with a win over Egypt

The fifth edition of the „Krste Andonovski” international tournament in Ohrid began exactly as the hosts wanted - 31-27 against Egypt's under-20 side. Rojević's players held control from the first minute, led 15-12 at half-time, and in the second half stretched the lead to as much as five goals. HC Ohrid are defending the trophy won last year, and the competition is not decorative: the same group contains Croatian champions Zagreb and Serbian runners-up Vojvodina. In the tournament's opening match, Macedonian champions Vardar comfortably outplayed Greece's Olympiacos. Five days of handball by the lake, with teams from four countries - this is what Macedonian handball still organises better than far wealthier leagues.

Three days earlier in Struga: Ohrid beat Vardar 31-30

Before the Ohrid tournament, the curtain came down in Struga on the 54th edition of the traditional international tournament - on the legendary open-air court by the lake. The final lived up to the name: HC Ohrid beat Macedonian champions Vardar 31-30 and retained last year's trophy. Vardar, without Lazarevski and Mitrović, opened the match better and went 4-2 up through an inspired Abdalah Mohab. Then Ohrid steadied - two exclusions for the opposition, saves from goalkeeper Dino Slavić and a lively Dominik Mate turned the story around, and it was 15-13 at the break. In the second half Goce Georgievski completed the turnaround at 20-19, but a single goal decided it at the end. A duel settled in the final minute, outdoors, in front of a full crowd - no VAR, no adverts in the interval.

Pelister are in a group with Gummersbach, and the EHF European League has a new format

The draw for the EHF European League split the competition into eight groups of four clubs, 32 teams in total, with a new playing format. Eurofarm Pelister landed in group G alongside Germany's VfL Gummersbach, Spain's Logroño La Rioja and Poland's Wybrzeże Gdańsk. The group stage runs over six rounds, from 29 September to 2 December, with the top two from each group advancing to the play-offs, where the third and fourth-placed sides from the Champions League group stage await them. So Pelister have work to do: two of four go through, and Gummersbach is not a club you beat by accident. For a Bitola club with Champions League experience this is a normal ambition rather than a dream - which in itself says how far handball in Bitola has come.

The season in Bitola starts on Sunday, tickets are already on sale

The first real test comes sooner. On Sunday at 6pm in the „Boro Čurlevski” hall in Bitola, Eurofarm Pelister host Partizan in a regional league match - which is also the start of the 2026/2027 season. Single tickets went on sale from noon the previous day. The regional league is a novelty still looking for its audience: the supporters' group „Čkembari” has already issued a statement saying it will not attend that competition's matches as an organised group, judging the schedule overloaded and the competition not a priority for them. When part of the loudest support says in advance that it will not come, for the organisers of a new league that is data, not a whim.

The EHF fined Croatia 10,000 euros, and the player another 2,500

The EHF Court of Appeal partly amended an earlier decision in the case involving the Croatian federation and player Matej Mandić. During the medal ceremony at the men's EHF EURO 2026, Mandić produced a flag that is not in the EHF protocol and is therefore not permitted under the applicable rules. The Croatian federation's appeal was rejected and the 10,000-euro fine upheld, of which 2,500 is suspended for two years. At the same time the court partly upheld the EHF's own appeal and additionally fined the player 2,500 euros personally. The deadline for filing with the European Handball Court of Arbitration is 21 days. The Balkans and flags on a podium: a story as old as the championships themselves, except that now it comes with a price list.