LNH TV: A great new online handball web streaming option
The EHF Champions League is taking a break this week, but will be back in action next Wednesday (14 October). In the meantime there’s plenty of great handball action, courtesy of the French and Spanish leagues that can be seen online. Here’s a rundown on where and how to watch.
French League (LIDL Star Ligue)
The top level of French Handball, the LIDL Star Ligue will be playing two match days this week and thanks to their new Youtube platform, LNH TV you can catch several matches online. Unfortunately, the more interesting matches tend to be on traditional beIN Sports TV channels in France and aren’t available for viewing. This means missing out on a lot of Paris SG, Nantes and Montpellier matches. Because of this, I’m thinking of adopting a 2nd tier French team. Perhaps Dunkirk? Or maybe Istres?
Spain’s top league, the Liga ASOBAL will be playing a midweek match day this Tuesday and Wednesday. Three matches (below) can be seen on the La Liga Sports TV Handball Channel. This viewing option used to require VPN, but currently there is no Geoblock. The Irun vs Leon match tomorrow should be a good battle between two sides that often fight for 2nd place behind Barcelona. USA National Team player, Drew Donlin also plays for Leon so you might consider adopting them as your favorite Spanish Side.
Tuesday, 6 October
Valladolid vs Cangas 20:25 (CET) / 14:25 (US ET) Link
The 2020-2021 EHF Champions League throws off this Wednesday and there are some important changes that handball fans will need to get used to.
Midweek Appointment Viewing
First and foremost, the biggest change will see all matches being played on Wednesday and Thursday. Whoa. Come Again? Champions League matches won’t take place on the weekend anymore?
Yes, that’s right. All matches will be on Wednesday and Thursday. And, further all matches will take place at two consistent throw off times. In Europe throw offs will be at either 1845 (CET) or 2045 (CET). That means these matches, depending on your time zone, will take place late morning to mid afternoon in the U.S. For reference on the east coast the first matches will throw off at 12:45 PM (US ET) and the second matches will throw off at 2:45 PM (US ET).
While some folks might whine at this change overall it’s a really smart move for the sport and the change in time won’t
Things that make you go Hmm?: “Free” registration at an “ehfpayments” url.
<IMPORTANT UPDATE (3 July, 2020)>
The EHF has informed me that the answer to this question is “No. There are no plans whatsoever to change ehfTV to a paid subscription service. The misleading URL is a result of the switch to a new streaming partner which serves other entities that charge a subscription. The URL has been flagged for an update. The EHF, however, noted that handball fans will need to register and login to ehfTV to watch live matches. A small requirement, though, to watch the world’s best handball free.
<Original Article (Posted 2 July, 2020)>
ehfTV: The Best Thing Ever for Handball Fans in Far Flung Countries
Big things are a foot with the European Handball Federation (EHF). A new 10 year contract for TV and Marketing rights is now in full swing. The result: a revamped Champions League format, fresh new web pages and a new look ehfTV.
If you’re reading this article and are any kind of a handball fan you already know what ehfTV is. Why, it’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me as a fan of the sport here in the U.S. All of the Champions League matches, European Cup matches and even the European Championships available* for free viewing. Free! What a deal.
Are the Days of a Free Ride Coming to an End?
ehfTV is such a good deal that I’ve been wondering for years just how long it would last (Article from 2016). I mean we have to credit the EHF for being so forward thinking with this positive promotion of the sport, but they are a business and “free” generally is not a smart long term business move.
And, indeed in some countries the free ride ended a few years ago. There’s an asterisk on “available” and that’s because some matches are geo-blocked in some countries if the TV rights have been sold. That’s totally understandable. If I was a TV network owner I wouldn’t want the match being shown for free elsewhere. I would want viewers watching my channel.
But, it’s only understandable if the match can actually be seen in the country in question. In the U.S., beIN Sports (the previous rights holder) usually only aired 1 match a week on a delayed basis on Wednesday mornings. But, because they had a TV contract that match and many others were geo-blocked. This was extremely frustrating and forced handball fans like me to use VPN to watch matches on line. VPN is a less than desired workaround, but as a paying beIN Sports subscriber I had no moral qualms with using that alternative.
A New U.S. Network?
With a new 10 year contract kicking in there is now a chance for the EHF Champions League being seen on a new network. There are several possibilities that hopefully are being considered. NBC is a possibility and they’ve already shown the 2019 Men’s and Women’s on the NBC Olympic Channel. Other possibilities include Fox Sports, CBS Sports Network, TNT, 11 Sports or yes, a return to beIN Sports.
My preferred choice, however, is ESPN and specifically a combination of ESPN linear channels and ESPN+. As this earlier commentary highlight ESPN+ practically begs for a dedicated handball sub-channel: Link
Maybe Everybody Pays?
But, there’s another model that might at some point come into play. If you’ve checked out the new ehfTV platform you may have noticed that it invites you to register for free: Link
But… the url is for ehfpayments.streamamg.com. Yup. The “free” registration is at “ehfpayments”. Which is certainly a “Hmm” moment. As in, “Why would you call it that?”
Pure speculation on my part, but I can envision the EHF eventually transitioning ehfTV to a tiered service with some matches still being free, but adding a subscription to watch more matches and additional content.
Assuming such a subscription was reasonably priced this would actually be a good solution. Some matches on regular TV, some matches on free ehfTV and some matches on premium ehfTV. Actually I could get real used to that. HBL, LNH… are you listening?
(19 Year old Nikola Karabatic with one of his 11 goals in the first leg of the 2003 Champions League Final… Notice anything strange about this goal?)
The Coronavirus Pandemic has been a real bummer for sports
fans everywhere. No more live sports. To fill the gap ESPN and other sports
networks have been airing classic matches.
Handball is no different and last week I sent out a Twitter post asking for recommendations of classic matches that were available online and “Sharp Action” replied with a link to the 2nd Leg of the 2003 Champions League Final between Portland San Antonio and Montpellier. And, then later someone pointed me to a great Spanish site (blogyoutube) with the 1st leg of this classic final.
It’s hard to believe it was 17 years ago. It seems like yesterday that I was watching these matches in with my 1 year old daughter “surfing” the coffee table in our Paris apartment. Now she’s getting ready to graduate from high school. (I guess it’s TBD as to whether she walks across a stage or just gets her diploma in the mail.)
Handball wise, it’s been quite an education. I remember that it took me awhile back in the
2002-03 season to figure out that club handball was on TV in France and what
the Champions League was. Not to mention
what the hell a “two match aggregate playoff” was. There was no Final Four at the time and
therefore the semifinal and finals were decided by the aggregate score of two
matches, with one being played in each locale.
I’ve only rewatched the first leg in Pamplona and I won’t give any spoilers, but here’s a few contextual tidbits that might help you appreciate the match more:
Arguably, these matches are a bit of a coming out party for France’s big 3: Nikola Karabatic, Didier Dinart, and Thierry Omeyer. Dinart is generally considered to be the best defender of all time. Omeyer is in the conversation for best all time GK and, of course, Karabatic may well be the handball GOAT. Certainly, few would argue against the reality that he has been the GOAT for the 21st century.
Karabatic had just turned 19 years old at the time these matches were played. I will never forget a few months earlier watching Montpellier and checking his (at the time) relatively short Wikipedia page and absolutely being floored to discover that he was just 18 years old and thinking to myself, “Holy crap! How good is the guy going to be in a few years?”
Laughably, Montpellier coach, Patrice Canayer didn’t start Karabatic for this match. To Canayer’s credit, though, he doesn’t leave much after he does enter the game.
Take a look at this goal by Karabatic: Link (Notice anything unusual?)
Watch what Karabatic does at the end of the first half and think about how that might impact the final outcome.
Check out how Didier Dinart clogs up the middle on defense. There ought to be some handball analytics that measure what an impact that sort of play can be on the final outcome. You just don’t see many goals scored while he’s in the vicinity of the action. It’s hard to measure that, but if you watch just him (instead of the ball) for a few minutes you’ll start to appreciate what a difference he makes.
The Spanish club, Portland San Antonio was a major presence in the Spanish League and was actually located in Pamplona. Yes, the club was located there even if the club name by coincidence featured the names of two NBA franchise cities, which are not cities in Spain. Best that I can tell, San Antonio is a neighborhood in Pamplona while Portland was the name of the cement company that was their sponsor. They were also a casualty of the Spanish financial crisis that caused the dramatic decline in the Liga Asobal.
Be sure to appreciate Jackson Richardson’s skills both on offense and defense, but keep in mind that he was also almost 34 years old and was actually entering the tail end of a great career.
Portland San Antonio’s leading scorer for the match was a Belarussian, Mikhail Yakimovich, who also won a gold medal in 1992 for the Soviet Union. He was also 35 years old. Back in the day, Liga Asobal teams seemed to have quite a few players from the Balkans and the former Soviet Union populating their rosters and this is one of the reasons the league was once considered the best in the world.
The GK for Portland San Antonio, Vladimir Rivero, was originally from Cuba and tragically died a year later due to an aneurysm. He played 191 international matches for Cuba.
It’s kind of quaint to see all the lines on the floor for basketball, volleyball, etc, but that was pretty commonplace until the EHF instituted requirements for standardized floors.
Links to more classic matches you can see online: Link
This weekend 8 Spanish Club teams will meet in Madrid for the finals of the Copa Del Rey Cup. Of special interest to American handball fans will be the 2nd quarterfinal between Ademar Leon and Logrono La Rioja which will have one current U.S. National Team player (Drew Donlin) playing against a possible future U.S. National Team Player (Jr. Scott).
Leon and Logrono will play tomorrow (Friday) at 1615 CET / 1015 US ET. And, the match can probably be seen here in the U.S., but it might take a little planning/effort. (How to watch in the U.S.: Link)
The Team Handball Sub-Channel on ESPN+ (What I Would Like to See, Anyway)
The Bill Simmons Podcast recently had an interesting discussion on how streaming is changing the way we watch sports. Joining Simmons was tech analyst, Ben Thompson, and they covered several topics, but eventually the discussion turned to ESPN and their relatively new Over the Top (OTT) streaming service, ESPN+. Around 16:30 into the episode, Thompson talked about which sports content would be on the traditional ESPN network channels and what sports would find their way to ESPN+
“They’re never going to take the big stuff away from ESPN. ESPN still makes a ton of money. And, also it makes a lot of sense with it being live, advertising… Sports is going to be the very last thing to go to a subscription model.
But, all the other sports, that like a few thousand people care about… there’s literally no time for that on ESPN… There’s 24 hours in a day. Right? And, so all that sort of stuff is a huge opportunity.
Actually, I think one of the biggest missed opportunities that people don’t think about for ESPN is… ESPN was pretty early to soccer and they should have locked up the Premier League a decade ago. Like, if they owned the Premier League and had it on ESPN+. Imagine how huge that would be right now? That was a big missed opportunity.”
There then was a brief discussion on how ESPN had
investigated purchasing the Premier League, but had assessed that they couldn’t
because there just wasn’t enough room for it.
That it would interfere with American football which attracts the
greatest number of viewers.
Thompson then continues:
“Whereas, now that they have ESPN+; their bandwidth is unlimited. Right? They can show whatever they want to on there. So, it’s like a total shift in mindset as to what’s valuable and why it is valuable. It goes from what reaches the maximum number of people… to actually what’s really valuable is stuff that some number of people care intensely about. Because the more intensely they care about it the more they are willing to pay for it.”
It doesn’t take much imagination to review this conversation in the context of team handball. As in, how big might it be for ESPN if they were tp purchase the EHF Champions and other handball content and put it on ESPN+? Or, will it end up being another missed opportunity. Yes, right now it might not seem like a huge opportunity, but in 10 years hindsight might well tell a different story.
As one of nearly 8M ESPN+ subscribers, all I know is that every time I access the app it is painfully clear to me that this is exactly where team handball belongs. That it would provide the very best exposure and chance to grow the sport.
Don’t get me wrong:
I love ehfTV (especially, when it’s not geoblocked), but it stands little chance of exposing the sport to new fans in the U.S.
I love traditional TV channels like ESPN, the NBC Olympic Channel, and even beIN Sports, but it’s tough to get time on those channels. (Christ, it’s often tough for handball to get aired on TV in Europe.)
And, maybe there are other streaming possibilities like NBC Gold and DAZN USA, but those OTT platforms are starting to fall far behind ESPN in terms of subscriber base.
Some other reasons why ESPN just makes sense:
They have had multiple on air personalities like Scott Van Pelt profess their love for the sport.
They recently talked about handball twice on their daily show, Highly Questionable.
They have included handball several times on its popular plays of the day segment. Like these from from 2017 and 2018, as well a couple more from the 2019 PANAM Games and 2020 European Championship. (I wonder how often it would be on if they owned the product)
They have an immense social media presence. As an example when they’ve put handball plays of the day on their Instagram account they gotten up to 2M views.
The EHF Champions League TV rights are opening up this summer. The French and German League rights are already available. ESPN+ is still looking to add content. It just makes so much sense. Who knows, maybe it will even happen.
Side Notes:
Did the proposed ESPN+ channel graphic look familiar to you? It might because it’s very similar to one I made after the Olympics four years ago when I wrote a commentary proposing a similar OTT handball channel. My commentary was somewhat prescient, but, for sure, I didn’t consider ESPN getting into the act.
The podcast host, Bill Simmons, is also a big handball fan. He wrote this article during the 2012 Olympics and talked about handball on his TV show during the 2016 Olympics. Makes me wonder what’s in store for 2020?
Group Play for the EHF Cup starts this weekend with 4 teams broken up into 4 groups. Normally, I don’t pay much attention to the EHF Cup as there are only so many hours in a day and it is the second fiddle to the more prestigious EHF Champions League. Unless you have a “dog in the fight” watching the EHF Cup is a bit like watching the NIT instead of the NCAA Tournament.
However, this season, I, and other USA Team Handball fans, indeed, have a dog in the fight with Drew Donlin, playing for Ademar Leon, 1 of the 16 clubs fighting for the title. Leon is in Group C and will be battling German club, Madgeburg, French club, Nantes, and Slovenia club, Velenje for a spot in the quarterfinals. 1st place guarantees advancement and placing 2nd also may advance depending on the ranking of the 2nd place teams in the the 4 groups.
This should be a very interesting competition and on paper I would assess that Nantes (2nd in the French League and Magdeburg (5th in the German Bundesliga) are the two favorites with Leon and Velenje the outsiders. But, the competition is a double round robin and won’t be played on paper.
Even better news is that every match will be available on ehfTV and unlike the EHF Champions League there is no pesky geoblock in the way of enjoying the matches. (There are ways around geoblocks, but it’s nice not to have deal with that. How to watch the EHF CL: Link)
Here’s Leon’s schedule in Group C (All times CET / US ET (+6)
Sunday, 9 Feb 1700 @ Nantes Livestream Wednesday 12 Feb 2000 vs Magdeburg Livestream Saturday, 22 Feb, 1930 vs Velenje Livestream Saturday, 29 Feb, 1700 @ Velenje Livestream Saturday, 21 Mar, 2000 vs Nantes Livestream Sunday, 29 Mar, 1700 @ Magdeburg Livestream
(Bookmark this page for future reference: I will update this page with On Demand streams when they become available)
It’s not clear how much game time, Donlin will be seeing in these matches. Of late he’s been seeing a few minutes of action as a defender in each half. However, as we discussed in this podcast, coach Cadenas has told him that his size might be needed against bigger teams like Nantes and Madgeburg.
Sunday, 26 January All Times Local (CET) / US ET is -6 hrs) Odds courtesy of 10Bet <Open an account>
The match can be seen live on Free TV in the the U.S. on beIN Sports XTRA. (How to watch) Check it out. I like ehfTV, but I personally get a better viewing experience with beIN Sports XTRA. The picture quality is better and it’s more reliable than the web stream.
The final will also be rebroadcast in prime time on the beIN Sports Network (regular TV) at 8:00 PM (US ET).
16:30 Spain (-1) vs Croatia (For 1st Place/Gold) Match Video (On Demand): Link (Commentary: Paul Bray)
Betting Predictions
For this tournament we’ve doing some betting predictions using an imaginary starting bankroll of a 1,000 Euros. Joining me will be professional handball bettor, Samo Košmerl, from Slovenia.
John’s Pick(s): – Current Bankroll: 994.92 Euros – Yesterday’s Result: Germany (-1.5) vs Portugal (1.84, -119); Bet 100 Euros to win 84.03. ; Win 84.03 Euros as Germany won 29-27. – Today’s Pick: Alternate point spread; Spain (-2.5) vs Croatia (2.3, +130); Bet 100 Euros to win 130. I’ve got nothing to add to Samo’s detailed analysis. He’s got me totally convinced. Heck, I’m tempted to take Spain (-4.5) at (3.45, +245), but I’ll play it relatively safe.
Samo’s Pick(s): – Current Bankroll: 1795.25 Euros – Yesterday’s Results: Did not bet – Today’s Pick: Money Line bet; Spain to win (1.64/-155); Bet 100 Euros to win 64.51
Today, Spain will try to defend the title they won in at the 2018 EURO in Croatia. And, for multiple reasons I think they will indeed win back to back titles.
First of all, Vargas – Corrales GK duo is much better than Šego – Ašanin. I know both Šego and Ašanin have made some big saves in the final minutes of important matches during this tournament, but Vargas is consistent throughout. He is one of the best goalkeepers in the world and even if he is having a slightly worse day, there is always Corrales, another world class GK. There is just no debate: Spain have better goalkeepers.
Croatia’s strongest asset is their back line, but will Cindrić be ready? He has problems with his knee and he wasn’t able to play in the semifinal the way we all expect him to. But ok, they still have Karačič and most importantly, Duvnjak. What a player! He set everything up in the final minutes and overtime. And, not just one overtime, but two overtimes against Norway.
And yes, this 80 minute match will impact their play today. Croatia doesn’t have a great bench, and players like Mamič/Šarac/Hrstič are not (yet) players who can make a big impact in a EURO final. And we all saw how tired were Karačič and Duvnjak at the end of last couple of matches. Sure, there is also Stepančič, their ONLY right back. (I still don’t understand how Červar didn’t bring another RB.) And, because Stepančič is playing 50+ minutes per match in both attack and defense his shooting has not been the best. Only 52% and he is also taking a lot of shots: 54 attempts in 8 matches.
Marič, Croatia’s pivot, had a great match vs Norway, but Spain plays a different style of defense and I don’t think he will get very many useful balls today. As far as wingers go, Spain is much better at this positionl. Their wingers are playing for Barcelona and both of Croatia’s wingers are playing for Zagreb: Enough said.
Finally, let’s talk about each side’s defense. Croatia’s 5-1 defense has been fantastic. Duvnjak should probably win the best defensive player award as well as MVP. He has been amazing. But, will the 5-1 work so well against Spain? Spain is using their wings a lot, and if they can past Duvnjak in the middle they can stretch this Croatian defense out. And, I think they have players to do so. Dujshebaev is playing fantastic, he is in great form and working great with Entrerrios. Plus, there are also Sarmiento, Fernandez and Maqueda, all with solid tournaments so far and this allows Ribera to rotate and keeping playing at a high tempo in attack. Croatia will really need to perform on another level in defense to stop all the possible threats Spain has to offer.
The best part of this Spain team is (still) their defense. Combined, Morros and Guardiola are 71 years old, but they are still one of the best defensive pairs in the world. Croatia are the most dangerous in the middle, but this is also where Spain’s defense is the strongest. Any and all turnovers are punished as we saw in semifinal against Slovenia. And, rest assured with Croatia playing their 9th match in 17 days, there will be mistakes. Croatia will try to slow down the game to limit Spain’s fast break opportunities much the same way they did against Norway.
Overall, Croatia has an amazing back line, but you need more than that to win against Spain. They will have 10k+ fans behind them and players will feel like they are playing at home, but Spain won their last EURO with fewer fans backing them and they are just too good to not do it again.
16:00 Germany (-1.5) vs Portugal (For 5th Place) Match Video (Live): Link (Commentary: Paul Bray)
18:30 Norway (-2.5) vs Slovenia (For 3rd Place/Bronze) Match Video (Live): Link (Commentary: Paul Bray)
The 5th place match between Germany and Portugal doesn’t have any ramification for qualification, but as both teams are somewhat rested they may well put on a decent show. Meanwhile, Norway and Slovenia, both undoubtedly exhausted after yesterday’s matches will play for bronze and a direct ticket to the 2021 World Championships. So, they actually have something to play for as the loser will have to play a 2 leg qualification match for World Championship qualification in June.
Betting Predictions
For this tournament we’ve doing some betting predictions using an imaginary starting bankroll of a 1,000 Euros. Joining me will be professional handball bettor, Samo Košmerl, from Slovenia.
John’s Pick(s): – Current Bankroll: 910.89 Euros – Yesterday’s Result: Norway’s Sander Sagosen, Under 6.5 goals; (2.1, +210); Bet 100 Euros to win 110; Lost 100 Euros as Sagosen poured in 10 goals. – Today’s Pick: Germany (-1.5) vs Portugal (1.84, +119); Bet 100 Euros to win 84.03. Germany plays solid defense and they will stifle Portugal’s creative offense. They simply are the better team here and it’s impossible now for Portugal to sneak up on anybody anymore. Germany will be ready.
Samo’s Pick(s): – Current Bankroll: 1795.25 Euros – Yesterday’s Results: Norway’s Goran Johannessen Total Goals – Over 3.5@ (2.00 /+100); Bet 100 Euros to win 100; Win 100 Euros as Johannessen scored 4 vs Croatia – Today’s Pick: No picks today.
Friday, 24 January All Times Local (CET) / US ET is -6 hrs) Odds courtesy of 10Bet <Open an account>
EHF Preview of today’s matches: – Slovenia vs Spain: Link – Norway vs Croatia: Link
Both semifinal matches can be seen live on Free TV in the the U.S. on beIN Sports XTRA. (How to watch) Check it out. I like ehfTV, but I personally get a better viewing experience with beIN Sports XTRA. The picture quality is better and it’s more reliable than the web stream.
Both matches will also be rebroadcast in prime time on the beIN Sports Network (regular TV) at 7:00 PM (US ET) and 8:30 PM (US ET)
18:00 Norway (-2) vs Croatia Match Video (On Demand): Link (Commentary: Paul Bray)
20:30 Spain (-3) vs Slovenia Match Video (On Demand): Link (Commentary: Paul Bray)
Betting Predictions
For this tournament we’ve doing some betting predictions using an imaginary starting bankroll of a 1,000 Euros. Joining me will be professional handball bettor, Samo Košmerl, from Slovenia.
John’s Pick(s): – Current Bankroll: 1,010.89 Euros – Wednesday’s Result: Sweden (-1.5) vs Iceland 1.86/-115; Bet 100 Euros to win 86.95; Result: Win 86.95 Euros as Sweden won 32-25 – Today’s Pick: Norway’s Sander Sagosen, Under 6.5 goals; (2.1, +210); Bet 100 Euros to win 110. Norway has been on a roll and totally dominated Main Round Group II, but Croatia will be a tougher opponent than they’ve faced so far. Croatia is a veteran side and plays great defense. I think this will be a low scoring game and Croatia will keep Sagosen in check.
Samo’s Pick(s): – Current Bankroll: 1695.25 Euros – Wednesday’s Results: Portugal to win vs Hungary; 1.79/-133 Bet 100 Euros to win 75.82 ; Win 75.82 as Portugal won the match 34-26. – Today’s Pick: Norway’s Goran Johannessen Total Goals – Over 3.5@ (2.00 /+100); Bet 100 Euros to win 100; Johannessen will be very important for Norway today. Without Rod in attack they will need Reinkind in great form, but there is also Johannessen who has great shot and won’t hesitate to shoot as well. I think we will see big game from him today.
Roland Mikler and Hungary need a win vs Portugal to still have a chance at making the semifinals.
Main Round play at the 2020 Men’s European Handball Championships concluded today. Here are the video links, odds and some predictions for those matches.
16:00 Spain (-1) vs Croatia Match Video (On Demand): Link (Commentary: Clayton Lucas)
18:15 Belarus vs Austria (-0.5) Match Video (On Demand): Link (Commentary: Clayton Lucas)
20:30 Germany (-5) vs Czech Republic Match Video (On Demand): Link (Commentary: Clayton Lucas)
The Match of the Day in Group I will be the first match between Spain and Croatia. The winner here will top the Group and will likely avoid a tougher semifinal vs Norway. Belarus and Austria will then play a match to determine 4th place in the Group. At first glance this match appears meaningless, but depending on the results of the other Group and the Semifinals the winner could actually secure a slot to an Olympic Qualification Tournament. The day closes out with a match between Germany and the Czech Republic which is truly just for pride.
Current Standings
All 3 matches in this Group can be seen on Free TV in the the U.S. on beIN Sports XTRA. (How to watch) Check it out. I like ehfTV, but I personally get a better viewing experience with beIN Sports XTRA. The picture quality is better and it’s more reliable than the web stream.
16:00 Hungary vs Portugal (-1) Match Video (On Demand): Link (Commentary: Paul Bray)
18:15 Norway (-1.5) vs Slovenia Match Video (On Demand): Link (Commentary: Paul Bray)
20:30 Sweden (-1) vs Iceland Match Video (On Demand): Link (Commentary: Paul Bray)
All three matches in this Group will impact the standings and which nations will secure a semifinal berth and/or a slot in an Olympic Qualification Tournament. In the first match of the day, Hungary needs a win to keep it’s semifinal chances alive. Portugal has no chance for a semifinal, but they still have good chances for 3rd place and a likely slot in an Olympic Qualification Tournament. The importance of the second match will hinge on what Hungary does in the first game. If Hungary beats Portugal, Slovenia will be in a must win situation to make the semifinals. But, even if Hungary loses, Slovenia will still be interested in winning and securing the top spot in the Group. The final match of the day between Iceland and Sweden will impact the which nations get the “backup” Olympic Qualification slot. An Iceland win will put Iceland or Portugal in that slot, while a Swedish win will give that backup slot to the winner of Belarus – Austria in the other group.
For this tournament we’re doing some betting predictions using an imaginary starting bankroll of a 1,000 Euros. Joining me will be professional handball bettor, Samo Košmerl, from Slovenia.
John’s Pick(s): – Current Bankroll: 923.94 Euros – Yesterday’s Result: Norway (-3) vs Iceland 1.73/-135; Bet 100 Euros to win 74.07; Push, as a last second Iceland goal was scored for a 31-28 Norway win. – Today’s Pick: Sweden (-1.5) vs Iceland 1.86/-115; Bet 100 Euros to win 86.95; Result: Back to back matches will take more of a toll on Iceland and Sweden will look to finish strong in front of the home crowd.
Samo’s Pick(s): – Current Bankroll: 1619.43 Euros – Yesterday’s Results: Slovenia (-1.5) vs Portugal; 1.79/-133; Bet 100 Euros to win 75.82; Win 75.82 as Slovenia won the match 29-24. – Today’s Pick: Money Line Bet: Portugal to win vs Hungary; 1.79/-133 Bet 100 Euros to win 75.82; Hungary were still playing against Sweden just 18-19 hours ago. Awful scheduling and a big advantage for Portugal. Both are very motivated, but for me Portugal is the better team, with a lot of creativity in attack. Hungary’s confidence is hurt and I don’t think they will recover in such little time.
The 2020 Men’s European Handball Championships continues today with the first matches of Main Round Group II. Here are the video links, odds and some predictions for those matches.
All 3 matches can be seen on Free TV in the the U.S. on beIN Sports XTRA. (How to watch) Check it out. I like ehfTV, but I personally get a better viewing experience with beIN Sports XTRA. The picture quality is better and it’s more reliable than the web stream.
16:00 Slovenia (-1.5) vs Portugal Match Video (On Demand): Link (Commentary: Paul Bray)
18:15 Norway (-3) vs Iceland Match Video (On Demand): Link (Commentary: Paul Bray)
20:30 Sweden (-0.5) vs Hungary Match Video (On Demad): Link (Commentary: Paul Bray)
You gotta love Main Round Group II and the dog fight it has become. Norway leads the group and seems to be on a glide path to qualification. Sweden has been disappointing and has been eliminated from semifinal contention. But, the other 4 teams (Slovenia, Hungary, Portugal and Iceland)? They’ve been up and down and these 2 days of back to back games are going to be really interesting.
Betting Predictions
For this tournament we’re doing some betting predictions using an imaginary starting bankroll of a 1,000 Euros. Joining me will be professional handball bettor, Samo Košmerl, from Slovenia.
John’s Pick(s): – Current Bankroll: 923.94 Euros – Yesterday’s Result: Austria’s Nikola Bilyk (Under 5.5 goals) 1.80/-125; Bet 100 Euros to win 80 ; Won 80 Euros as Bilyk scored 5 goals in the match. – Today’s Pick: Norway (-3) vs Iceland 1.73/-135; Bet 100 Euros to win 74.07; This match should be a total track meet and in the end, I don’t think Iceland has enough depth to keep up for 60 minutes. I’m even tempted to go with an alternative spread with a blowout win, but I’ve learned my lesson and will just go with the conservative -3 goals.
Samo’s Pick(s): – Current Bankroll: 1,543.61 Euros – Yesterday’s Results: Croatia vs Czech Republic (over 52.5); 1.8/-125; Bet 100 Euros to win 80 Euros . Lost 80 Euros as Croatia won the low scoring match 22-21. – Today’s Pick: Slovenia (-1.5) vs Portugal; 1.79/-133; Bet 100 Euros to win 75.82; I can’t wait for this match. Two teams with creative offenses in a super important match for both teams. I think Slovenia has the slightly better team and they are a lot more experienced than Portugal. These advantage should be crucial today.
