Category Archives: John Ryan Commentary

Where is Handball Popular? And, Just How Popular is Handball Compared to Other Sports?: Europe

Posted on by
Handball’s Popularity in Europe
  • This is part of an ongoing series. Check out these maps for other continents
    • Africa: Link
    • North America & the Caribbean: Link
    • South and Central America (In development)
    • Asia (In development)
    • Oceania (In development)

Note: This map was updated based on feedback on 31 March 2020: See paragraph at bottom for what the feedback was and why or why not the map changed

  • Where is handball popular?
  • How popular is handball compared to other sports?

Those are definitely a couple of questions that I’ve been asked quite a few times. In 2005 I tackled those questions in one of my very first blog posts. Back then it was often stated that handball was the 2nd most popular team sport. Well, it would be totally awesome if that were true, but alas it’s not… not even close. In fact, even in Europe where handball is most popular there are only a handful of countries where our sport definitely takes 2nd place.

Methodology (or the Lack of One)

As an engineer I generally prefer to deal with data as opposed to gut feelings and anecdotal information. For sure there are a lot of different criteria that one could use to measure popularity. Here’s a laundry list for you:

  • # of participants
  • # of registered federation members
  • # of clubs
  • Attendance at matches
  • Frequency of TV broadcasts and ratings
  • Existence of a professional league
  • The salaries of professional players
  • Interest in national team performance
  • Social media interest.

Each of those criteria have merit, but there are several problems.

  • This data is not readily available on a country by country basis
  • The accuracy of the data that is available is often suspect or open to interpretation
  • The relative importance of each criterion is wide open to debate

Bottom line: An exercise to carefully weigh all of these criteria in a systematic reliable way is pretty much impossible.

That being said in most cases it’s fairly easy to weigh all those criteria and to come up with a ranking of the top 3 sports in just about any country. And, a ranking that most objective sports fans of that country would agree on without a whole lot of debate.

There’s a couple of reasons why this is true.

  • In most countries there is one dominant team sport and that sport is football (soccer). Practically no one will even credibly argue against soccer’s dominance. So off the top, we’re now only talking about 2nd and 3rd place.
  • And, again in most (but, not all) countries, #2 is often pretty well established based on the criteria above. Even without hard numbers the answer is obvious to people that live there.

All this being said, there are some countries, however, where handball’s place in the pecking order is open to debate. A debate, for the reasons listed earlier is pretty hard to resolve. So, instead of resolving I’ve decided to use the lack of a resolution as a way to help classify the sport’s popularity.

Classification (Key)

Here’s a few notes on how I’ve classified popularity.

  • Definitely the 2nd most popular team sport:
    • Countries where handball is 2nd in a preponderance of the criteria
  • Either the 2nd or 3rd most popular team sport:
    • Countries where there could be a legitimate debate between 2 sports as to which is 2nd or 3rd
      • Example: In several Balkan countries depending on who you talk to either basketball or handball is 2nd
    • Countries where handball is clearly 3rd
      • Example: There’s a pretty strong consensus that the proper ranking in Sweden is 1) Football; 2) Ice Hockey; and 3) Handball
  • A major sport with a significant presence
    • Countries where the ranking becomes muddled from 3rd place on down, but handball is still clearly a major sport that captures significant attention
      • Example: In France few would argue with soccer being first and rugby being second, but 3rd place is less clear between basketball and handball. That being said, even if Handball is the 4th most popular sport it’s still is a “major sport with a significant presence.” This is clearly demonstrated by it’s pro league, attendance and national team
  • A minor sport with some presence
    • Countries where the ranking becomes muddled from 3rd place on down, but Handball is more of a minor sport with a small, but dedicated following.
      • Example: Greece has a national league and several club teams playing at different levels, but the level of play is below that of other countries. They have a national team that is competitive, but still a notch below nations where the sport is more established.
  • A very minor sport with a limited presence
    • Countries where the sport’s ranking is somewhat moot because it’s hard to compare perhaps the 6th or 7th most popular team sport. Overall, participation numbers are small and the sport is seen as a curiosity by most of the citizens of that country.
      • Example: Great Britain fits that definition pretty well. The sport is growing, but they have a ways to go move up in popularity.

A few more thoughts

  • There is a rough pecking order from top to bottom. Blue is top; Green is next, etc.
  • This isn’t a perfect representation. And, one could argue for even more gradation. For instance, one could take the nations in yellow and create a rough pecking order.
  • What about individual sports? If you really wanted to further complicate matters we could add Formula 1, UFC and Tennis. I didn’t want to go there.
  • A few tough calls
    • Iceland: I’ve seen a few Icelandic basketball players playing for USA colleges and read that the sport is making inroads there. There are even more registered basketball clubs than handball clubs in the country… Still, I’m not ready to say that handball has slipped to third in Iceland.
    • Portugal: I’m thinking that 5 years ago Portugal would have been orange, but now they’ve jumped to green? But, a couple of folks convinced me that it’s arguably #2 there. Could that be just a momentary blip due to a Euro 2020 high?

What do you think?

This compilation/depiction isn’t set in stone. It’s just one man’s opinion influenced by feedback. If I’ve missed the boat let me know via email or social media and I’ll reconsider updating the map.

Email: john.ryan@teamhandballnews.com
Facebook: Link
Twitter: Link
Instagram: Link

Also, I’ll be creating similar maps for the other continents and I could use some feedback on Africa, Asia and the Americas.

Update (31 March 2020)

After the initial posting on 29 March, 2020, I received a lot of great feedback. Based on this feedback I made a few changes.

What’s Changed and Why

  • Romania (Green to Blue): Several comments all pointed out that handball is a solid #2 as a team sport; In particular, women’s handball both at the club and national team level has a pretty high level of attention- Arguably, higher than even football.
  • Cyprus (Red to Orange): Handball is not a big time sport in Cyprus, but based on their solid performances in both IHF Emerging Nations and early round EHF Qualification matches the sport has more than a limited presence
  • Faroe Islands (Blue): This small, but proud handball nation was inadvertently omitted. Some have even suggested that handball might even be the #1 sport there. Based on feedback, however, from one resident who is also a huge handball fan, however, I’ve assessed that it’s close, but not quite there yet.

What Received a Lot of Feedback, but Stayed the Same

Some handball knowledgeable people pointed out some colors on the map that just didn’t seem quite right. While, I understood their points and even agreed with them to some extent I decided not to make a change, though, in several instances. More than anything the debate centers on the imperfect classification system which naturally leads to some reasonable disagreements.

  • Portugal should be moved to yellow… Especially if France and Spain are Yellow: It does look a little strange, but it shouldn’t be interpreted to mean that handball therefore is a bigger sport in Portugal than it is in those two countries. If anything it’s more reflective of the reality that France (rugby) and Spain (basketball) have strong #2 sports.
  • Netherlands should be yellow… Especially if their women’s team is now the World Champion: There’s no denying that the women’s team has been an incredible success, but I would argue that this success is more the result of a smart national team strategy making the most of a pretty small talent pool. Handball is still a fairly small sport there in terms of participation and national interest. That certainly could change and this map is not set in stone.
  • Why is Russia yellow… Handball isn’t as popular there as it is in other countries like France and Spain: Handball has certainly slipped in terms of popularity in Russia and I, for one, agree that it’s clearly more popular in many other countries depicted in yellow. However, it’s still an important sport there and it’s women’s team is still a force. And, if one looks at the countries in orange it’s also clear that handball is more popular in Russia than it is those countries.
  • Serbia should be yellow… Since handball has really slipped in popularity there: I got feedback from one Serbian that handball has slipped behind basketball, water polo and even volleyball. I’ll need more feedback, however, before I drop any Balkan state below green.

What We Want (Part 2): College Development: More College Clubs… and College Clubs Playing Handball at a Higher Level

Posted on by
World University Championships: This biennial event might be a great way to further develop our collegiate programs and track how well those programs are doing in terms of developing handball athletes.

This is part of an ongoing series: Link

Collegiate handball has been identified as a key focus area for developing handball in the U.S.  As such, several goals and objectives to move the college game forward have been identified both in the broader USA Team Handball Strategic Plan (drafted in 2018) and in a College Specific Strategic Plan (Feb 2018).

USA Team Handball Strategic Plan

A college and university initiative is identified on page 6.

D. Launch collegiate and university initiative.

  • i. Cultivate a competitive university club system across the United States.
  • ii. Target four geographies utilize the well-established collegiate club sports model.
  • iii. Create regional league competition.
  • iv. Host season ending Final Four event.

Target Outcome

  • Increase university club programs to 40 (4th Qtr 2020)

Appendix A

  • Appendix A references “Univ Teams” several times with targets for the number of teams
    • End 4th Qtr 2018:  14 (Accomplished:  15 Men’s Clubs /3 Women’s Clubs)
    • End 2nd Qtr 2019:  20 (Not Accomplished 15/3)   
    • End 4th Qtr 2019:  30 (Not Accomplished 15/4)    
    • End 2nd Qtr 2020:  35 (Not Accomplished 15/4)   
    • End 4th Qtr 2020:  40       
    • End 4th Qtr 2024: 100
  • There are several references to the selection and identification of new regions (Accomplished:  5 “hubs” (New York City, Boston, Chicago, San Francisco and Los Angeles) have been selected.
  • There are several references to the establishment of regional leagues in the 2018-2020 time frame.  (Not Accomplished:  There are currently no regional collegiate leagues.)
  • A Final Four tournament for top collegiate programs was identified for the 4th Qtr of 2019  (Not Accomplished)

Collegiate Strategic Plan (Feb 1st, 2020)

The Collegiate Strategic Plan was developed by a Collegiate Working Group and provides more detail on collegiate goals and objectives.  However, in my opinion, (similar to the more broad USATH Strategic Plan) it strays in some instances into what might more accurately be described as near term action plans.  Here is an over of the plan’s contents:

  • 2050 Vision
    • Team Handball is a sanctioned NCAA Sport
    • Scholarship sport that competes for the best athletes
    • Widespread media presence
    • Handball is a recognizable, established major sport in America
  • 2019-2022 College Strategic Plan Goals
    • 1) Create a comprehensive and streamlined starter pack to allow a college student to create a college handball program in a semester and supply a resource person. 
    • 2) Have sustainable clubs playing 15 games per season in 72 colleges, including 36 women’s teams.
    • 3) Have the structures and systems in place to grow participation of college club players by 400%.
    • 4) Assemble the necessary capacity to achieve the goals of this plan.
    • 5) Raise sufficient funds to achieve the goals of this plan.

In my opinion goals 1 and 4 are near term actions that will be implemented to support goals 2 and 3.  Goal 5 is probably more suited for a broader discussion on fundraising.   As I think they are more “strategic”, here’s a closer look at goals 2 and 3:

  • Goal 2: Have sustainable clubs playing 15 games per season in 72 colleges, including 36 women’s teams.
    • 2.1 Recruit colleges proximal to existing clubs
    • 2.2 Establish new clubs in locations with a concentration of colleges based on receptivity and leadership
      • 2.2.1 Achieve 40 colleges by end of 2020
    • 2.3 Provide competition structure leading toward a National Championship in order to enable the best teams in the country play each other
      • 2.3.1 Consider two-season structure to enable cross-regional competition
      • 2.3.2 Publish competition structure well in advance to enable maximum participation
    • 2.4 Develop and implement a path to ensure club succession and continuation of administration
    • 2.5 Provide support from USATH ambassador
  • Goal 3:  Grow participation of college club players by 400 percent
    • 3.1 Raise the profile of team handball
      • 3.1.1 In concert with USATH, develop and implement a comprehensive promotion plan to have handball recognized across the country 
      • 3.1.2 Offer resources for parents, coaches, athletes
      • 3.1.3 Focus on benefits of participation
    • 3.2 In concert with USATH, ensure a pipeline of athletes to join college clubs using the Athlete Development Model
    • 3.3 Support established clubs
    • 3.4 Provide pathway for athletes post college, e.g. national team, city clubs, coach, referee, volunteering

Discussion

In broad terms, I would assess that the overall goal of collegiate development is to:

  1. Increase the number collegiate athletes, clubs and leagues (Increase participation)
  2. Improve the level of collegiate play

Increase Participation

In terms of increasing the numbers of athletes, clubs and leagues several targets have been presented, but they could use further definition.  Here are some clear targets that I emphasized in bold face in the text above:

  • Have sustainable clubs playing 15 games per season in 72 colleges, including 36 women’s teams.
  • Grow participation of college club players by 400 percent

Of particular note, the text highlighting “playing 15 games per season”, seems to provide a benchmark for a club program.  Essentially, making the point that there’s a significance difference between a club that plays 15 matches and a club that holds a couple of practices and plays in one weekend tournament.  If that is the definition of a collegiate club it also decreases the # of clubs.  Using the 15 match requirement for the last two seasons, there would have been this many clubs

  • 2018-19 (9 Men/2 Women)
  • 2019-20 (7/3) (I used 10 matches as the season has been shortened)

Participation growth is not defined, but it would logically have a strong correlation with the growth of the # of the clubs.  Depending on the “start date” and the number of existing clubs at that point in time one can then project the number of clubs needed to obtain 400% growth.  As an example, the U.S. had 15 men’s collegiate clubs and 3 women’s collegiate clubs during the 2018-19 season for a total of 18 clubs.  400% growth would then be 90 clubs.  If one uses an average of 15 athletes per club, the total number of collegiate athletes for the 2018-19 season would be 18 clubs x 15 athletes for a total of 270 collegiate athletes.  400% growth would equate to 1,350 athletes by the end of 2022.  And, of course, participation could also be simply assessed by totaling up the annual number of collegiate USA Team Handball memberships from year to year.

Improving the Level of Play

In terms of improving the level of play I would assess that both documents could use more specific targets related to accomplishing this goal.  The USA Team Handball Strategic Plan mentions “Athletes identified out of University Programs” in a few places and references “pipeline development”, but there is not much “meat on the bones.”  The Collegiate Strategic Plan included several bullet points that point to improving collegiate competition, but lacks measureable targets.

Here, though are some potential candidates:

  • USA Performance in World University Handball Competitions: Link  (Actually participating would also be good. It’s doubtful that the 2020 Championship will take place, but 2022 could be a possibility.)
  • Numbers of collegiate athletes (Current/Former) on Youth (U19), Junior (U21) and Senior national teams
  • Numbers of collegiate athletes being identified for further development by International Clubs
  • Numbers of collegiate athletes transitioning to U.S. Clubs

I haven’t identified the actual numbers (and dates) that should go with these targets, but would suggest that the Board of Directors consider adding these targets (with dates/numbers) for future updates to the Strategic Plans.

That wraps up “What we want” for College development.  Part 3 will take a closer look at Fundraising and Marketing

2003 EHF Champions League Finals (Portland San Antonio – Montpellier): Remembering a Classic

Posted on by
(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 (blog youtube) with the 1st leg of this classic final. 

  • 1st Leg (Spanish):  Link
  • 2nd Leg (Spanish):  Link
  • 2nd Leg (French): Link

What a gift!  What a trip down memory lane!

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

What We Want (Part 1): Official Documentation and National Team Targets

Posted on by

This is part of an ongoing series: Link

A Bit of History (Sometimes Tilting at Windmills Actually Works)

Long time readers will know that I’ve linked to one particular commentary on several occasions. 

U.S. National Team Plans (Part 6): Federation Planning: Right Idea, Flawed Execution, Time to Right the Ship:  Link

Way back in 2012, the USOPC sponsored a Strategic Planning meeting in Salt Lake City and the outcome of that meeting was…  well, it was pretty much nothing.  Lots of fine discussion, but unfortunately no follow through.  No strategic plan was ever developed.  Not that I didn’t valiantly try to engage leadership, but such pleas fell on deaf ears.  Instead short term plans went forward without much thought in terms of the long term direction of USA Team Handball.  Or, if there was such “thought” it went totally undocumented.

I kept hammering away at this discrepancy every chance I could and eventually in 2018 USA Team Handball decided to draft a Strategic Plan.  I really don’t know whether my hammering actually contributed to that happening, but I like to think that it did.  Regardless that document exists and is available here: Link

I even participated briefly in the plan’s development.  Not as much as I would have liked, but at least I got to attend one meeting and influence its development.  Here’s a commentary on the plan that I wrote back in 2018:  Link

Note:  The Board of Directors met in October 2019 to review and update the 2018 document and I was informed in February that the Board is currently review the final edits on that update

In addition to this strategic plan a separate College Strategic Plan has also been developed:  Link

Background on Strategic Planning

When it comes to strategic planning there are often misconceptions as to what it is intended to accomplish.  First and foremost, strategic plans are intended to be… well, strategic.  They are not tactical.  This means that they look at the big picture and attempt to define what are the mid to long term goals and objectives and some top level actions that should be taken to achieve those goals and objectives.  It’s not a detailed plan of action but the guiding document used to develop such plans.  So, one shouldn’t complain if a strategic plan lacks the detail needed to go out in take specific actions.  In fact, it’s more appropriate to complain if a strategic plan is too detailed and solution specific.

The USA Team Handball Strategic Plan (An Overview)

As I alluded to in my commentary that was written shortly after it was released I have some issues with its structure and content.  It’s too detailed (solution specific) in some instances and in some cases (youth development, beach handball) its discussion is too sparse.  Parts of the document also seem a bit misplaced in that some very near term actions (e.g. staff hires) are spelled out, making the document more of a plan of action, rather than strategic guidance.  As such, I’ve decided to distill the more strategic aspects of the document into some broad areas for further analysis.  Those areas are 1) National Team Performance; 2) College Development; 3) Marketing and 4) Fundraising

1) National Team Performance

National team performance is referenced in several areas of the document and is most closely associated with the fourth focus area, “Organizational and Competitive Excellence”.  Two items (C and E) are closely related to National Team Plans

C. Develop national team training and competition plan for Olympic, Pan American and World Championship Qualifications.

    • i. Set competition goals and objectives.
    • ii. Establish talent acquisition pipeline.
    • iii. Develop national team training schedule.
    • iv. Develop national team competition plan.
    • v. Determine national team training site

On the surface these items seem fairly straight forward, but the “devil is in the details”.   In particular, the U.S. has struggled in the past to simply define what a “talent acquisition pipeline” is, let alone establish one.  The brief mention of a “national team training site” also needs to be fully defined as the simple item is wide open to interpretation. On one extreme it could be a full blown residency program and on the other extreme it could simply be a location for the national team to train for a week or two prior to major competitions.

E. Initiate Project France

    • i. A project of USA Team Handball, International Handball Federation, and the France Handball Federation.
    • ii. The project places USA Team Handball athletes (together as a team) into the French Handball League for regular competition.
    • iii. The French Handball Federation has made an initial invitation for the team to begin competition in September of 2019.
    • iv.  National team athletes benefit through increased playing experience and competition.
    • v.  The national team program gains opportunity to develop as a unit and compete against international teams during national team weeks that are set aside in the European club system.
    • vi. Project France is seen as a recruitment tool for university level athletes interested in advancing their athletic careers.

I personally see a lot of potential with an overseas effort like this. Indeed, back in 2014 I outlined a similar concept. However, this is a very solution specific concept and it is very misplaced to include it as part of a strategic document.  For certain, it needs to be further assessed and compared with other possible actions before it is implemented.

Target Outcomes: 

On the right hand side of page 6 there are several very specific target outcomes related to National Team Performance.

  • Qualify for the 2019 PANAM Games (Accomplished: Men and Women)
  • Top 4 Finish at 2019 PANAM Games (Partially Accomplished: Women: 4th; Men: 6th)
  • Hire Technical Director (3rd Qtr 2019) (Accomplished: Stefan Olsson)
  • Begin “Project France” (3rd Qtr 2019)  (an effort that would see a U.S. team playing as a unit in a French league)
  • Qualify for the IHF World Championships by 2024
  • Top 12 Finish at IHF World Championships by 2024
  • Top 2 finish at 2023 PANAM Games
  • Qualify for the 2024 Olympic Games
  • Top 2 finish at 2027 PANAM Games
  • Top 6 finish at 2028 Olympic Games

I won’t go into detail as regards to the feasibility of these targets, but suffice to say some very realistic expectations were set for 2019, but the targets for the outer years are very ambitious.

Elite Athlete (Appendix A)

Appendix A provides additional detail and targets for select topics from year to year.  One target block is entitled “Elite Athletes” and it’s envisioned that both the Men’s and Women’s programs will have 40 athletes identified as elite and that the definition of elite athlete will continue to evolve, which I presume to mean that the elite will become more elite.  Additionally it’s desired to have a greater percentage of these athletes coming from our improving college programs.

That’s a top level review of USA Team Handball’s Strategic plan and a closer look at what’s desired in terms on National Team Performance. Part 2 will take a closer look at “College Development”

USA Team Handball Makes a Coaching Change for its Women’s Beach Handball Program (Some Questions Regarding Need, Timing and Process)

Posted on by
Former USA Beach Handball Women’s Coach, Juliano De Oliveira.

Earlier this week USA Team Handball announced the appointment of Lisa Dunn to be the new Women’s Beach Handball Head Coach and Michi Mensing to the Asst Coach position.  Left unsaid, however, was that Juliano De Oliveira, the Head Coach since 2016 had been “let go”, fired, or not renewed (pick your description). 

De Oliveira did get a mention though for having “laid the foundation for the program” and indeed that’s the case as he took the helm of a pretty much non-existent, dormant program in 2016 and under his helm it has been established as North America’s best Women’s Beach Handball side and one that is now respected on the world stage.

Here’s a review of what the U.S. Women’s team has accomplished in the four major tournaments they have participated in under his watch.

Juliano De Oliveira Coaching Record

2018 Pan American Championships
– Match Record: 2-4
– Games Record: Not Available
– Final Ranking: 6th out of 8 Teams

2018 World Championships
– Match Record: 1-8
– Games Record (Non Shoot Out Matches): 2-16
– Games Record (Shoot Out Matches): 0-0
– Points Differential (Non Shoot Out Matches): 213-338 (-125)
– Final Ranking: 14th out of 16 Teams

2019 North American and Caribbean Championships
– Match Record: 6-0
– Games Record (Non Shoot Out Matches): 12-0
– Games Record (Shoot Out Matches): 0-0
– Final Ranking: 1st out of 8 Teams

2019 World Beach Games
– Match Record:  2-5
– Games Record (Non Shoot Out Matches): 6-8
– Games Record (Shoot Out Matches): 0-2
– Points Differential (Non Shoot Out Matches): 224-240 (-16)
– Final Ranking: 10th out of 12 Teams

A review of these results makes it pretty clear there’s been some solid progress.   A team that wasn’t very competitive in 2018 turned it around in 2019.  A clear sign of progress was their dominating performance at the 2019 North American Championships.  A weaker field than the Pan American Championships the year before, but they left no doubt that they were the best team in the new Confederation. 

Arguably, more telling was the better performance on the world stage.  In two similar events (2018 World Championships and 2019 World Beach Games) the Final Ranking wasn’t much different (10th out of 12 vs 14th out of 16), but a closer look at the results reveals significant improvement.

In 2018, the women were 2-16 (Win Percentage of .111) in non-shootout games with an average point differential of -7/game.  Translation: most of the games were noncompetitive and essentially over in the first few minutes.  In 2019, they were 6-8 (.429) and the average point differential was 1/game.  Games were typically much closer and the U.S. had a shoot out loss to 6th place Argentina and they battled 3rd place and perennial power Brazil to a golden goal in one match. In consolation play they actually blew out some teams. 

To be clear, playing teams closer is still not winning, but make no mistake, it’s progress.

A Question of Need (Management Expectations)

Perhaps, however, management expectations were higher for U.S. performance.  For sure, it would have been nice to get out the consolation bracket and place higher, but it’s debatable as to whether that was a reasonable expectation for such a new program with some key players getting their first experience at a high level tournament. 

Additionally, while results in competition are important, there surely were other goals and objectives for the program.  I don’t know what was expected, but one can only assume those expectations weren’t being met.  Otherwise, if the team is making progress why make a change?

A Question of Timing (Why Now?)

The timing of the move also suggests that more was at play than just team results.  Otherwise such a change would logically have occurred right after the tournament in October rather than 5 months later.  Coaches everywhere know the drill.   If your team performs poorly and the season/tournament has ended they know that the “phone call” could well be coming.  The Monday after week 17 in the NFL is known as Black Monday for a reason.  Ask French Men’s Coach, Didier Dinart, what happens when you have one bad game (vs Portugal) at the European Championships.  You’re often shown the door.  That’s just how it works.  Results matter, but, Coach De Oliveira was not shown the door until several months later suggesting that the move was not directly related to competition performance.

A Question of Process

Personnel changes can be accomplished in a number of different ways, but a more open and transparent process might have been warranted.  In 2018, the U.S, advertised for the “court” Men’s Head Coach position and received dozens of applications and this process resulted in the eventual hiring of Robert Hedin.  A beach head coaching job is certainly less sought after, but a more open process would probably stifle any concerns that personnel changes were being quietly orchestrated behind the scenes.

Practicality for Practice

A majority of the athletes likely to make the U.S. roster currently live in Southern California. Having a coach co-located with those athletes facilitates instruction during practice. There, of course, can be training camps in other parts of the country, but such traveling can be expensive.

A Tough Coaching Change

Making a coaching change is rarely easy and with the U.S. beach handball community being so small it’s even tougher.  Everybody knows everybody really well and everyone knows that Coach De Oliveira has been there from the start, first as Assistant Coach for the Men’s Program and then as the first coach of the Women’s Program.  This past summer I saw firsthand the effort involved in setting up the Southern California Beach Handball Tournament.  It takes a village to stage such an event, but De Oliveira is a really big part of that village.  I can only assume that he’s also been a big part of everything else that’s taken place the last several years.  With all of that work done as an unpaid volunteer coach/organizer.

To make the determination that all that work plus steady progress in International competition just wasn’t good enough couldn’t have been easy.  To say thanks, but sorry your assistant coaches are better equipped to take the team to the next level, that’s got to be a very tough call.

The Road Ahead (Near and Far Term)

In the near term it’s all about the Beach World Championships, currently scheduled for 30 June – July 5 in Pescara, Italy.  (One can at least hope that the Coronavirus Pandemic will have subsided by then).  With likely a very similar, but now more experienced roster, I would have expected a better performance regardless as to who was coach.  In my opinion a great result would be top 8, 9th-12th would be OK, while 13th-16th would be a disappointment.  From a few social media postings it appears the athletes are motivated and they have recently met in Atlanta and San Antonio for training.  Even were planning to train in Southern California this weekend, but it has since been cancelled due to Coronavirus concerns.  I wouldn’t bet against dedication like that.  This side will rally around who’s ever coaching and come together for the best performance possible.

Beyond the World Championships this summer, however, some serious thought is needed as to what the long term strategy should be for Beach Handball.  The big inflection point will be the IOC’s decision on whether to include Beach Handball at the 2024 Olympics.  I think the odds are against it due to athlete quotas, but if does happen, we could have a seismic change in terms of the resources and focus that will be placed on Beach Handball.  One can even envision a residency program (perhaps at Chula Vista, CA) and an influx of talent that would make the U.S. a strong medal contender.

But, even if that doesn’t happen a strategy’s still needed.  In particular, there will be a need to consider steps to develop beach clubs, grow the elite talent pool and whether one geographic area should be selected for focused development.

(Note: I reached out to USA Team Handball CEO, Barry Siff, for more information regarding the coaching change, but he declined to comment.)

Euro 2020 Sports Betting Review and a Few Thoughts on Handball Betting

Posted on by
Amateur vs Pro Bettor…

A Handball Betting Experiment

During the 2020 Men’s European Handball Championships this past January I conducted a little betting experiment with “Samo”, a professional handball bettor from Slovenia. We each started the tournament with 1000 Euros and made a variety of wagers almost every day. My imaginary bank roll of 1,000 Euros took a 115 Euro hit, leaving me with just 885 Euros. Meanwhile, Samo fared considerably better, netting a profit of 860 Euros. That’s a solid return on investment.

Overall, most of our wagers were around 100 Euros. My W-L-D record was 7-8-1 (46.7%) and Samo’s was 12-4-1 (75%). Because we each had several bets that weren’t 50-50 point spreads these percentage don’t tell the whole story, but they tell a story. 50% is about one would get by throwing darts. 75% is doing pretty damn well. Historically, professional bettors are very happy with 55-60 %.

Side Note on My Personal Sports Betting History

Back in the day I was a much more active sports bettor. Frequent trips to Vegas and parents living there accommodated this hobby. For the most part I bet American Football and basketball and bet on the teams I liked when I thought they had a good line. I learned the hard way to never bet on my teams when I thought they would lose. Why? Well, it sucks to root for your team to lose. (I guess if I was more serious about my “hobby” I wouldn’t care.) Anyway, after awhile I decided to meticulously track my wins and losses. And, what did I find out? Well, I found I was right almost exactly half the time. Yes, there was a diminishing sine wave that would start at 60% to 40% and then over time dampen from 55% to 45% and so on.

So, I couldn’t stay above the magical 52.38% (The break even % with the Vegas house cut), but proved to myself that if the wager size didn’t get out of hand, it was pretty decent entertainment that wouldn’t break my bank. And, if you’ve ever been to Vegas during the NCAA basketball tourney with 16 games on Thursday and Friday for 12 hours of non-stop action and hundreds of people cheering, it can be phenomenal entertainment. (Trust me, if that experience is not your bucket list it should be.)

Anyway, the point of this personal history is to make it clear. Done right, there is nothing morally bankrupt about sports betting.

Wrong Handball Betting

Of course, handball betting can also be done wrong… very wrong. And, there can be no more troubling example than the 2012 Montpellier scandal. As new people in the U.S. are always discovering handball they may not be aware that one of the greatest handball players of all time, Nikola Karabatic and his brother Luka were found guilty of being a part of a match fixing scheme. I’m always a bit amazed at how handball can somehow sweep history like this under the rug, but swept it has been for the most part. Even more amazed that the penalties were so minor. Seriously, Shoeless Joe Jackson and Pete Rose would both be in the Hall of Fame if baseball adopted handball’s penalty structures.

Montpellier Scandal: Link 1 Link 2

Evolving Views on Sports Betting and a Way to Help Popularize Handball

For some perspective on the evolving situation check out my commentary from 2008 on sports betting. Yes, 12 years later the times are a changing big time. U.S. leagues are now talking to sports books. They are even signing data partnerships to ensure the integrity of the game. The Las Vegas Knights play in the NHL and the Las Vegas Raiders are joining the NFL. The NBA even wants a cut on sports bets made on NBA games! These moves were almost unthinkable 12 years ago.

Even more dramatic: Sports betting is legal now in 13 states. Christ, there are sports books in Iowa now for crying out loud. And, more and more states are allowing mobile betting from the comfort of your own home.

Further, there are now more interesting ways to bet sports now. The proposition bets on individual players used to be a Super Bowl only opportunity. Now it’s every game… And, even for handball. If you think a certain player is going to struggle to get his goals because the defense a team plays you can bet that. There are a ridiculous number of possibilities.

And, the possibility that handball betting could help popularize the sport in the U.S. shouldn’t be loss on anyone trying to grow the game in this country. During the Xavier O’Callaghan interview with Barstool Sports the subject of gambling on handball came up briefly. And, why wouldn’t they ask that question. The popular sports website is selling a 36% stake in the company ($163M) to sports betting company, Penn National Gaming, with an option to take that stake to 50%. Yes Barstool Sports is well on its way to becoming a gambling company with a website and podcasts.

In the not too distant future could we see the Barstool guys debating the line on Paris SG – Kiel? Or whether Mikkel Hansen will score more than 6.5 goals? Could be. And, make no mistake that could help popularize the game, big time.

My Favorite Handball Bad Beat

ESPN does Sports Center segment where they review the bad beats of the week. The bets you thought you had won only to lose in the end.

Well, watch the closing minutes of the Spain – Croatia match where I had Spain at -2.5 Link (at around 2:00:00 on the efhTV clock)

Two easy chances for Spain to win by 3 and one of those chances foiled by sportsmanship! Well, you know what they say… Losing a close bet is as almost as much entertaining as winning it.

Is the USA Team Handball CEO taking the Side of Jay Cutler and Pardon My Take? With a Few Caveats, It Sure Sounds that Way

Posted on by
USA Team Handball CEO, Barry Siff, on Play Sqorr TV: Is he really taking Jay Cutler’s side in the ongoing controversy? It sure sound like it and why that’s a bit concerning.

The recent remarks by Jay Cutler and others regarding handball being a sport that American athletes from other sports could easily learn and quickly dominate have stirred up a lot of controversy.  On one side is virtually the entire handball world, collectively scoffing at American arrogance and ignorance of the sport they love.  On the other side are Americans who’ve been watching American athletes dominate and perform so well in so many sports.  Let’s take a look at these two viewpoints with some quotes from the past few weeks.

Americans Just Dominate Viewpoint

Here’s a summary of quotes from the “Americans Just Dominate” side:

Jay Cutler, Former NFL QB
(28 January on Pardon My Take: Link)

“I do want to get a team together for the Olympics… I think it’s handball, but it’s basically like a little ball that you throw around and throw into a goal, so it’s like indoor soccer with a ball that you throw.  There’s a U.S. team, but I want to go and do that.  Just throwing missiles….  I guarantee it that we can put a team together to win gold.”

Domonique Foxworth, Former NFL CB
(30 January on ESPN’s Highly Questionable: Link)

“I’m sorry if this is disrespectable to handballers everywhere, but I’ve watched that game before… It’s not like this is soccer and it’s just not a big deal here.  I’m sure handball is a big deal somewhere…. You know who plays handball.  The people who couldn’t make it in soccer, couldn’t make it in football, couldn’t make it in basketball… So, I know it’s completely disrespectful to all handballers out there, but I don’t care… Me, Jay Cutler and Lebron will go win a handball championship”

Dan “Big Cat” Katz, Pardon My Take Host 
(7 February on Pardon My Take: Link)

“I mean it’s 100% true.  No offense to Handballists.  I’m sure you’re very nice people, but you play a sport that if we decided to stop playing all the other sports that that there would be a lot of guys better than what you’re doing.”

“Handball is not easy… It would take 3 months for U.S. pros to train and get acclimated.”

Handball World Viewpoint

And, here are some quotes from the “Handball world” side:

Ty Reed, USA Men’s National Team, Right Wing
(1 Feb on PlaySqorr TV: Link) 

“They’re very misinformed about the sport and kind of what the possibilities for American athletes are.”

“It’s a great foundation to have basketball, football, baseball; to have those skills, but, handball is a very unique game.  The athleticism isn’t really the problem.  It’s knowing the tactics of the game and making a positive result out of that.”

“You take Jay Cutler, Lebron, Patrick Mahomes, 3 other scrubs that don’t know how to play they’re going to lose by 30 to Argentina.  It’s not even going to be close.”

“They’ve been playing handball since they’re six years old and they know more about the sport than anybody picking the game up in their mid 20’s will ever know, including myself.  It sucks for me.  I’ve been over here 2 years now and I’m a beginner compared to these kids because I just don’t have the knowledge and experience that they do.  Athletically, Americans in general are very much superior to the general European players that are playing handball. The athleticism is not what’s in question.  The tactics and the execution of the game and their knowledge of the game couldn’t be further apart.”

Robert Hedin, USA Men’s National Team Head Coach
(12 February on the Team Handball News Podcast: Link)

“Funny to hear them talking about handball being so easy…  It would be difficult for them to score many goals against a good team.  No chance…”

“For them to score 5 goals in one half… It would be impossible.  Maybe if they had 2 or 3 years of training they could score 5 goals… but 3 or 4 months, no chance.”

“Because it’s not so easy, if you have never played handball…They are looking at it and they see that they are big athletes and good trained guys, but it’s not enough.  Talk about curling.  It’s another sport and it looks easy, but it’s also, really, really difficult.  Respect to every sports.  It’s not just to train for 3 or 4 months and think you can win.  It’s no chance.”

Xavier O’Callaghan, Former Player, Spain and FC Barcelona
(13 February on the Pardon My Take Podcast: Link)

In response to a question about whether Jay Cutler’s take is insane or has a little truth to it.

“He is insane… He cannot win an Olympic medal in 2-3 months… You have the potential to be amazing athletes to play in a high level, but it takes time to be professional (a very good handball player).  So, what I mean.  In the short term it is impossible.  Insane.  In the long term… It takes years. For sure…”

But, in another world, if Cutler was born in Barcelona could he be a professional handball player?

“Of course, and probably one of the best… But, he needs to understand the game. He needs to train every day.  So, it’s a matter of technique.  It’s not just the physical condition.  It’s the technique and the tactics.  You need to read the game.  To know when you have to move.  When to pass the ball.  When you have to shoot.  Those kind of things; you have to learn them.  It’s not a matter of 1, 2, 3 months.”

USA Team Handball CEO, Barry Siff, on the Controversy

Just when I thought the controversy was dying down a bit, USA Team Handball CEO, Barry Siff went on PlaySqorr TV and, to me, it sounded quite a bit like he is taking the side of Jay Cutler, Domonique Foxworth and Pardon My Take. (Minus, the overt arrogance, of course.) Review the quotes below and form your own opinion.

Barry Siff, USA Team Handball CEO
(21 February on PlaySqorr TV: Link) 

“When we do our tryouts later this year I think we’re going to shock some people in the type of athletes that we’re going bring onto handball and onto our team.”

“I know this is sacrilegious and I’m insulting a lot of people, but I don’t think it takes these 2, 3, 4, 5 years of learning all the nuances and techniques, etc…”

“I don’t think long term that well… I’m only going to be here through Paris, you know.  This is like my last stint of full time stuff.  And, you know, we got to get to Paris.  Long term, we’ve got to be really competitive in L.A., but, my personal goal is to have a team or two in Paris for sure.  And, the way to do that is through getting some of these athletes that we’re talking about.  These high, high caliber athletes starting to play right now.”

Not convinced?  Take a listen to this podcast back from last July

Barry Siff, USA Team Handball CEO
(23 July 2019) Babbitville Radio Podcast:  Link (at 34:45)

“The concept that I had in 2016 was to have a kind of Netflix, 30 for 30, whatever it is documentary building the next great America sport.  What we were going to do was track going out and having tryouts in New York, in LA, San Francisco and Chicago.  Having tryouts; bringing these athletes…”

“Our vision was let’s document building this team from scratch.  We were going to go out and get football players, basketball players, water polo players.  We were going to quietly build this team and then we were going to challenge USA Team Handball to a match.  Winner take all.  We win:  We take over the federation.  You win: We walk.”

“That was the idea.  I thought it was a brilliant…  We ran into political complications, you know, some other matters and we walked away from it.  But, I still feel that way.  I still feel like we can go out and we can make this media project that will bring interest to the sport.  We’ve got to get eyeballs. We’ve got to get people to see the sport.”

To me, as described, this proposed “challenge match” sounds remarkably similar to the Pardon My Take challenge. Again, form your own opinion.

Side Note:  The documentary concept also seems to be very similar to the Reality TV show concept that was discussed with USA Team Handball at around the same time in 2016.

Transfer Athletes to Handball?:  It can be done… with caveats

It’s pretty hard for me to be an objective neutral in this debate.  As someone who started playing handball at age 19 and only obtained a modest level of performance I’ve experienced firsthand how hard it is.  And, I’ve also seen how hard it is for athletes way more physically gifted than me.  Finally, I have spent an inordinate amount of time and energy assessing this very topic from virtually every possible angle.  Link 1  Link 2  Link 3 Link 4 Link 5 Link 6 Link 7

In short, the right question is not, “Can it be done?”  Actually, if you listen to the full interviews everyone on both sides thinks it can be done.  They just disagree on how long such a transition would take.  On one extreme is the viewpoint that it can done with a couple of months of training.  On the other extreme is that is takes 10 years and pretty much has to be done starting at age 15 or so.  And, the answer is further muddled by varying discussion as to what level of performance would be achieved.  (e.g. winning a gold medal to just needing to be able to beat Argentina and Brazil in a few years.

No, the right question is “Should it be done?”  And, that question can only be properly considered after asking and answering a lot of questions related to the specifics of the proposed talent transfer focused effort being planned.  Such questions like:

  • How long will it take?
  • How much will it cost?
  • What raw talent level of athlete is being targeted?
  • What are the target ages for those athletes?
  • What are the overall goals of such a short term focused effort? (How many athletes?  What level are those athletes expected to achieve?)
  • What is the likelihood that such goals will be achieved as a result of this effort?
  • What are the opportunity costs in terms of lost grass roots development?

Perhaps, all of these questions (and more) are indeed being asked and answered.  All, I know is that if the plan is to take athletes from scratch to World Class in 3 years (i.e.; in time to meaningfully contribute to 2024 Olympic Qualification at the 2023 PANAM Games) it’s not going to being easy or cheap.  My back of the envelope analysis is that probably the only way it could make sense would be for a reality TV show or a privately financed Pro League to pay for almost all or most of the costs.

Big Picture

If you’re like me, you are genuinely optimistic about USA Team Handball’s future thanks to recent developments like the Verizon Sponsorship, hiring of IPG 360 for additional promotion and the placement of U.S. players with top club teams in Europe.  CEO Barry Siff has also sure brought some positive “can do” attitude to USA Team Handball.  

But… positive “can do” attitude can only take you so far.  Unless sponsorship will soon exceed my wildest dreams USA Team Handball is still very resource constrained.  It just doesn’t seem practical at this point in time to start a major talent transfer effort.  Not when there are so many other worthy needs competing for resources.

Then again, I could be wrong.  I haven’t finished my assessment yet.  For sure, I’ll be tackling these sorts of questions in more detail as I work on the “what we want” section of this series: Link

Charting a Way Forward for USA Team Handball (2019 Reboot): Introduction

ESPN Missed Out on the English Premier League: Will they Miss the Boat for Handball Too?

Posted on by
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?

ESPN’s Highly Questionable with some “Highly Questionable” takes on Handball

Posted on by
Former NFL Quarterback, Jay Cutler, thinks he could get a team together to take Gold at the Olympics; He’s not the only one with this “highly questionable” take.

It’s always great to see team handball get a little publicity on TV and yesterday the sport got around 3 and a half minutes of analysis on ESPN’s Highly Questionable, a show with a question and answer format resulting in some irreverent takes on a variety of topics.

Team Handball got two questions: Video Link

The first handball question was, “Are you with Jay Cutler that he could win a gold in handball?” The clip then shows, the former NFL quarterback discussing handball on the Barstool Sports, Pardon My Take, Podcast. The episode is here (1:18:45 – 1:19:53), but ESPN rebroadcasts most of the handball discussion.

Co host, Domonique Foxworth, a former NFL cornerback, has the typical take we hear every fours during the Olympics, “I’m sorry if it’s disrespectful to handballers everywhere, but I’ve watched that game before… You know who plays handball. The people that couldn’t make it in soccer, couldn’t make it in football… Me, Jay Cutler and Lebro will go win a handball championship.”

While Sarah Spain, has a more accurate assessment, “I do feel like there are probably some sports where the very best of our athletes could excel if they spent the time and energy.”

The second question was “Do you guys want to see what the U.S. handball team currently looks like?” At which point they showed footage of a 2016 promotional video done by the residency program at Auburn. At which point Sarah reverses course and agrees that Dom and Jay Cutler would dominate.

Of course, the problem with that video is that is most definitely not our current team. The residency program has been shut down and most of the men’s national team now consists of dual citizens playing in Europe, some at a fairly high level. And, trust me, this U.S. Men’s team would make short work of some inexperienced wannabe handball athletes in their mid 30’s, no matter how good they are in other sports.

Past Commentaries on this Topic

Like clockwork every four years during the Olympics this topic comes up. In 2016, LeBron’s potential as a would be handball player was front in center.

Could LeBron James really become the best handball player in just 6 months?

  • Part 1: Do I really have to explain how crazy that notion is? Link
  • Part 2: Why it’s just not going to happen, but what about Lebon lite? Link

More recently the dismal showing of the U.S. Men’s Basketball team shows just how silly the notion is that the U.S. could win a gold medal in a sport with all newcomers: Link

Future USA Team Handball Plans Related to this Topic?

The old saying, “Any publicity is good publicity” certainly applies here. Even if it’s nonsense takes, it’s totally awesome for team handball to be a topic of discussion on Barstool Sports and ESPN.

What has me a bit worried, however, is that USA Team Handball’s CEO, Barry Siff, is brand new to the sport and seems to buy into these takes to a certain degree. In several interviews he’s talked about talent transfer and the possibility of turning water polo players into handball players. He’s already jumped on the possibility of getting Jay Cutler to an open tryout for our National Team.

Now, obviously Cutler at 36 is simply too old for such a transfer, but make no mistake he would have been a great handball player. According to his Wikipedia article, in addition to football, he was a first team Indiana All State basketball player and honorable mention All State shortstop in baseball. That’s a strong pedigree, but there’s virtually no way he would have given up an NFL career to choose handball.

And, this is where the discussion becomes, “Well, maybe we can’t get Jay Cutler or Lebron James, but what about Lebron Lite?” And, then you have a boat load of questions to take into consideration:

  • How much “lighter” in raw talent?
  • At what age can you get that athlete to switch?
  • How long does it take to make that athlete a great handball player?
  • How much is it going to cost you to transition that athlete?
  • And, the biggest question of all… If you focus on such athletes what are the opportunity costs in time and resources diverted from growing traditional grass roots?

I take on some of these questions in Moneyball Handball series:

  • Part 1: Broad Categories for Athlete Identification: Link
  • Part 2: Pushing the Outside of the Recruiting Envelope: Link

Overall, I’m hopeful that these national team tryouts (now apparently planned for this summer in LA and NYC) are primarily marketing tools for publicity, but I could be wrong. Regardless, the publicity won’t hurt. I just hope it doesn’t become the primary focus and eat up too much of the budget.

What We Have: Finances: Part 2: USA Team Handball Revenue (Membership and the Importance of Tracking that Data)

Posted on by

This is part of an ongoing series: Link

Membership:  Arguably, the Most Important Metric for a National Governing Body (NGB)

A National Governing Body (NGB) in the sporting world serves many purposes, but serving its members is probably its most important function.  One just has to look at the USA Team Handball By-Laws and the 275 times that members or membership is mentioned to get a clear picture as to how important members are.

Aside from By-Law references and common sense, membership is also a major revenue source.  Or, ideally it should be.  For many NGBs it clearly is.  This table highlights the membership revenue for several team sport NGBs using data from their 2016 IRS Form 990s and Annual Reports 

NGB Membership Data Comparison (2016 Data)

As can be readily seen USA Team Handball revenue, as well as, total members is significantly smaller than most other team sport NGBs.  Orders of magnitude smaller.

Additionally, while membership has its own dedicated revenue line it also indirectly impacts every other line to a significant extent.  If an NGB wants to bring in more revenue for events and clinics then doing so will be greatly enhanced by a larger membership.  And, it goes without saying that activating sponsorships for a membership base that doesn’t crack a 1,000 can be a pretty tough sell.

But, if you increase membership revenue and the total numbers of members everything becomes a bit easier.  Convincing would be sponsors becomes easier.  Convincing a TV network to air handball matches becomes easier… which also makes selling sponsorship easier.

The Fuzzy Math Behind NGB Membership

The importance of a large membership base is therefore very clear.  Or, if it’s not large, it’s good to be showing some real growth from year to year.  Make no mistake: This is a reality not lost on NGBs.  Yes, amusingly, multiple sports have at different points in the recent past or present have laid claim to the title, “Fastest growing sport in the U.S.”  And, since data is sketchy and can be manipulated they all probably can make the claim without being called out.  Heck, depending on how growth is defined/calculated from time period to time period they all could be right.

If an NGB wants to increase membership there are steps that can be taken.  To a certain extent membership can be boosted by lowering the cost.  Or, it can be boosted by making a huge push via reduced cost youth memberships.  Or, memberships can be tied to directly to participation in high interest competitions.  Because of these potential step it’s important to look at membership revenue in addition to the total membership.  But, as I’ve learned recently even membership revenue can be manipulated to an extent by making membership revenue to the NGB a “pass through” revenue that is mostly distributed back to regional bodies. (or, in the case of USA Rugby, was supposed to have been distributed back to regional bodies.)

Tracking Membership and Officially Taking the Mantle of Fastest Growing Sport

So, what is USA Team Handball’s membership total?  I hate to say this, but I really don’t know.  I’m not even sure if USA Team Handball knows.  I have asked this question multiple times in the past and have never gotten a definitive straight answer.  Instead I’ve usually been given a deflected answer with maybe a low and high range value.  Over the years I’ve heard numbers as low as 300 and as high as 1,200.  I think there are a couple of reasons for this. 

Firstly, I don’t think USA Team Handball has ever had a decent system for tracking this number.  Either back in the old days when membership was handled by check or more recently with the Top Score management system that is now being replaced.  On top of that, the number of members changes depending on the time of the year. So, if you ask for the number early in the yearly cycle it’s going to be lower since a lot of people don’t sign up until… well, until they have to.  Old timers might well remember the long membership sign up line at the National Championships.  As in, you couldn’t play if you weren’t a member.  And, if USA Team Handball picked a bad location for nationals and fewer people showed up I bet the membership suffered that year.

Still despite these handicaps, it’s not rocket science.  There should be a yearly official membership number, but, believe it or not, I don’t recall ever seeing it written down in official documentation.  As someone who likes crunching and assessing data you can probably guess what I think about that.

Of course, that’s all in the past.  It’s a new day and we’ve got a new membership platform (Sport:80)  Whatever the membership number is we can bet that it’s being closely tracked now.  It’s surely a low number and while we could whine about it being such a low number, we can also look at it as a crazy good opportunity to show improvement.  Because with better revenue flows and the IHF grant to support college development, it’s hard to imagine not improving upon it significantly. And, when you’re starting with a small number percentage growth can be really impressive.  For instance, if our current membership is let’s say 800 and we were to simply add 400 members next year we would have a 50% growth rate.  A growth rate that would be nearly impossible for sports like Ultimate, Cricket, Rugby and Lacrosse to match. 

And, USA Team Handball shouldn’t just track the top level number, but track membership data by age, region and club.  And, then track that data from year to year.  To see where members are being gained, lost and retained. This data is “gold” and it can really show what’s working and not working in terms of development efforts.

I suppose I’m getting a bit ahead of myself.  That I’m eyeing some end goals in terms of membership and, in turn, the number of clubs in the U.S. But, then again it’s hard to set such goals if one doesn’t first fully understand what one has to begin with.

And, I’m getting a bit tired of the drudgery associated with capturing “What We Have”. Why, believe it or not, some folks have even accused me of not being forward thinking and stuck in the past. As if? Everybody knows it’s more fun to dream up solutions. And, far less fun to do the homework.

I’ve done a lot of homework. Not that I probably won’t backtrack some, but it’s time to start delving into the “What We Want” portion of this effort. 

The USA Team Handball – Verizon Sponsorship Deal: A Big Opportunity that Could Well be Epic

Posted on by
The new USA Verizon jersey signed by USA Team Handball CEO, Barry Siff and Verizon CEO, Hans Vestberg

Earlier this week the long awaited USA Team Handball – Verizon Sponsorship deal finally came to fruition.  Long awaited in that it was no secret that USA Team Handball CEO, Barry Siff and Verizon CEO, Hans Vestberg were friends.  And, that Vestberg is a big handball supporter, and the former President of the Swedish Handball Federation and the Swedish Olympic Committee.

As one might expect I was flooded with feedback regarding the deal.  I’ll give the glass half empty / glass half full perspectives and my own two cents.

Glass Half Empty:  Little Money and not Historic

Most of the negative feedback centers around the small dollar figure associated with the deal.  (An official dollar figure was not revealed, but multiple sources have indicated that it is somewhere between $100K – $200K.)  In terms of a total amount this is not historic… not even close.  In fact, the biggest sponsorship signing for USA Team Handball was for $1M with “The Weather Channel” from 1994-1996.  Factoring inflation that sponsorship deal would be worth around $1.7M in 2020 dollars or roughly 10 times the amount of the Verizon deal.  Of course, that deal was directly tied to the Atlanta Olympics, but even recent sponsorship deals related to the residency program at Auburn or with Grundfos in the 2009-10 time frame were of similar value. 

Compared to the amount of sponsorship dollars Verizon pays to the NFL ($500M/year) and the reality that there is no other USA company so conveniently headed by such a stronger backer of handball the reaction of the naysayers is: 

We waited for this?  Is this all you got?  This doesn’t even make a dent into the lack of revenue the organization currently has. A budget so paltry that our national team athletes have to pay for their own travel to represent their country in official competition.

Glass Half Full:  A Real Big Opportunity for More Deals and Better Promotion

While much of the feedback was negative there was also a lot of positive comments about getting such a “Name” sponsor on board.  And, make no mistake, Verizon is a really big name.  As Barry Siff told Sports Business Journal:

“Verizon’s a legitimizer for the sport of team handball.  It’s as simple as that”

Yes, putting Verizon on the front of U.S. jerseys is a really good thing.  And, there’s a solid chance that other businesses might follow suit, thinking “What’s good enough for Verizon, is good enough for us.”

Making me feel even better about the situation is the sales and marketing agency, Innovative Performance Group 360 that has been hired to help secure those new deals.  If one checks out their website you’ll see that they’ve done this before.  In particular, check out the testimonial and some of the work they’ve done for another U.S. Sports National Governing Body (NGB):  Link

Yes, no surprise here as the new USA Team Handball CEO also sits on the USA Triathlon Board.  Still, if one looks at some of their promotion work like this video it’s not hard to envision something similar or even better being done as handball is a tailored made spectator sport.

My Own Thoughts:  A Glass that Could Well be Filled, but How is that Money Going to be Spent?

Overall, I’m more in the glass half full category.  Sure, I would like for the deal to have been for more money, but I also know how hard it is to sell team handball in this country.  Getting companies and/or TV networks to even talk to you can be tough.  We don’t even have a real handball product to market in the U.S. yet. 

Now we’ve got somebody on board.  A company (Verizon) with immense resources.  And, a company (IPG 360) that knows how to sell and market.  Based in Santa Monica too… Where the LA Olympics will be in 8 years.  Plus, our once every four years Olympics TV boost is coming this summer.  Oh, and a new mega 10 year EHF Champions League TV contract with requirements to market in the U.S. also starts this fall.  Could handball broadcasts move to a major U.S. network?   Really, there is a big confluence of events coming that could well be capitalized upon and it seems the wheels may be in motion to actually do it. That’s all good.  It’s really good.  In fact, it could really be legitimately historic.  Epic even.

But… I then hear and read things about how some of that new money might be spent and I get a bit antsy.  There’s going to be an Open National Team Tryout in a few months?  Why that raises so many questions in terms of what is hoped to be accomplished and practicality that I don’t even know where to start. What would we do with great raw talent transfer athletes from say, water polo, if they show up?  Start another residency program?  Ship the newbies to some European club for a 3 year project? 

The Sports Business Journal article talks about a Pro League starting in 2023 with 10 franchises costing from $3-5M.  Hey, that sounds awesome… just not practical.  Who’s going to invest that kind of money? Where are you going to find the players?

Sigh… Such efforts can be done, but they won’t be cheap. They would empty our newly flush bank account very quickly and more importantly, they would drain resources away from the long hard slog that is true grass roots development. Similar choices have been made in the past. Similar choices that have put the sport right where it is now.

But, what do I know?  Maybe, I’m just someone part of the old culture that has kept handball from growing in the U.S. A culture of naysayers that think small when when they should have been thinking audaciously.  Or, maybe… I’m someone who has seen it all before, knows what the challenges are, what has worked, what hasn’t worked and why. In short, someone who really knows what they are talking about. 

Regardless, the next few months should be real interesting.  Real interesting.

What We Have: Finances: Part 1: USA Team Handball Revenue (Grants, Contributions and Sponsorships)

Posted on by
Total USA Team Handball Revenue since 1993. What we have and some reasons for optimism.

The previous parts of this series have focused on our current athlete and club demographics.  This part of the series will focus on USA Team Handball’s current finances.

Big Picture

As you might recall from the introduction to this series I am addressing possible futures for USA Team Handball by first methodically capturing, “What we have.”  I have covered quite a bit of ground, but haven’t focused on the lack of money and resources that pretty much underlie most of team handball’s small footprint and presence in the U.S.  

It may be true that “Money isn’t everything”, but I think we can also agree that, it’s still something.  And, that without money it’s very difficult to move forward with new projects and initiatives.  As one long time handball follower put it to me succinctly:

“If there’s more money, there are more choices.  But, if there’s no money, there are no choices.”

While, historically there has usually been “some money” it’s been pretty limited with the exception (to varying degrees) of support to national teams that have qualified for the Olympics.  In recent years, the cupboard has been really bare.  Fortunately, there are a number of developments that should help improve USA Team Handball’s financial situation.  These developments include the 2028 LA Olympics, IOC pressure on the IHF to develop handball globally, and European pro leagues/clubs seeking to develop a U.S. market.  Yes, after years of shrugging, Europeans are finally starting to realize the potential of a U.S. market and seem willing to do some things to make it happen. All told, this confluence of events could be a real game changer. 

Yes, long time followers that accuse me of being an eternal pessimist I am truly optimistic that our financial picture will change.

But, while these numbers should change in the not too distant future, it’s still a worthwhile exercise to assess where we are starting from.   Further, it’s important to also characterize the different sources of revenue.  Where the revenue is coming from and where there are opportunities to improve revenue generation.

Publicly Available Data

To assess USA the current financial situation I have reviewed USA Team Handball’s publicly available financial data. As a 501(c)(3) non-profit, USA Team Handball is required to file an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Form 990 every year.  Additionally, an audited financial statement is prepared on a yearly basis and both the annual audits and Form 990s are available on the USA Team Handball website.  While great information this data, however, has its limitations.  In particular, it’s top level data, so while it might be really interesting to break down revenue sources and expenses in greater deal, that information is not available.  Additionally, the forms are typically posted around one year after the accounting period in question.   So, if you are looking at a hot off the press Form 990 you will be reviewing data that is actually 1-2 years old.  And, if it’s been awhile since the Form 990 has been posted you could be reviewing data that is 2-3 years old.

The data below comprises the last four available Form 990s, covering the period from July 30, 2014 to June 30, 2018, so the data that is from 1.5 to 5.5 years old.  I have heard that the IHF and USOC have kicked in some grant funding already, but it’s not clear how much and for how long.  While this data doesn’t include those plus-ups it does provide a good baseline.

USA Team Handball Financial Data:  Link

Total Revenue

USA Team Handball’s average total annual revenue has been roughly $540K.  For a U.S. Sport National Governing Body (NGB) this is a paltry amount that significantly limits what can be done. Compared to several other team sport NGBs it is an order of magnitude smaller.  There’s a reason why for several years USA Team Handball has been pretty much a staff of one, plus coaches and a part team media specialist.  Heck, in some years it’s not even clear whether the coaches have actually been paid.  I have also heard rumors that at times there have been cash flow issues resulting even the CEO not being paid. It should therefore come as no great surprise that many national team trips for competition have been partly self-funded by the players participating.

So why has the revenue been so lacking?  Let’s take a closer look at several sub-components of the top line number.

Grants and Contributions

Historically, an annual grant from the USOPC has been the primary source of revenue for USA Team Handball.  For the 4 most recent years of available data the USOPC has provided around $225K/year.  As I’ve highlighted previously the annual USOPC grant used to be substantially more but has decreased over the years for several reasons.  First, following the 1996 Olympics the USOPC began more closely tying financial support to medaling opportunities.  With the U.S. being very unlikely to medal grant funding decreased.  Secondly, the U.S. has failed to qualify for the Olympics since 1996 meaning there was no need to support national teams so that a “respectable” performance in the Olympic spotlight could be had.  Finally, there have been general concerns with the management and performance of USA Team Handball.  The 2005 decertification of USA Team Handball is a prime example of those concerns.

With the 2028 Olympics now on the horizon and with greater engagement from the IHF, USOPC concerns seem to have been lifted.  Reportedly the USOPC is now providing some additional grant funding that is more in line with what other minor sport NGBs are provided. 

The U.S. Team Handball Foundation which was established with left over funds from the 1984 Olympic Game has also been a consistent source of revenue support, albeit on a smaller scale.  For the most recent four years they have provided roughly $34K/year often in support of national team competition.

The IHF did not provide any grant support in the posted four years, but reportedly they are now providing some grant funding to support college development efforts.  How much funding and for how long, however, has not been officially reported.  It would certainly be interesting to know, but we probably won’t officially know until the 2019 Form 990 is released in spring 2021.

Contributions are charitable donations that USA Team Handball receives from individuals and have averaged $88K for the past 4 years.  Considering the small base of supporters USA Team Handball has to work with this is actually a fairly decent number compared to other NGBs with much larger membership bases to draw from.

Corporate Sponsorship

Corporate Sponsorship highlighted in blue.

Corporate sponsorship is roughly $64K/year and this is, as one might expect, substantially lower than other NGBs.  In short, “what we have” is pretty much next to nothing.  There has long been an outcry that this was a direct result of management and salesmanship incompetency.  However, as I pointed out in this 2012 commentary the reality is that sponsors are not in the business of charity and they want to see return on their sponsorship investment.   With a very small membership base and no TV exposure it has been very difficult to make a strong business case in support of USA Team Handball sponsorship.  There essentially has been no product to credibly sell to sponsors.  So, in other words I would argue that it was more of a product issue than it was a salesmanship issue.

However, with some investment from the USOPC and IHF this could be changing and we could actually have some products (e.g. a collegiate club championship) on the foreseeable horizon worthy of sponsorship.  Add in the promise of the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles and it’s becoming more possible to sell the future of USA Team Handball. 

Further some personal relationships with a key handball proponent could make a difference.  In October, USA Team Handball and the IHF met with Verizon CEO, Hans Vestberg, in New York. (IHF Writeup: Link)  Vestberg is a former handball player and the former President of the Swedish Handball Federation and Swedish Olympic Committee, so he personally has an affinity for handball.  Verizon is also one of the largest companies in the U.S. (16th on the Fortune 500 list) and already has major sport sponsorships with the NFL, NHL and NASCAR.  The NFL deal alone is reportedly for $500M/year so one can easily envision some sort of deal (on a smaller scale) for USA Team Handball being announced in the near future. 

So right now, sponsorship revenue is paltry.  But, this could be changing very soon.  For how much and for how long, again are the big questions.

Next up:  The assessment of current finances continues with a closer look at events and memberships.

What We Have: America’s Team Handball Demographics (U.S. Clubs: Part 4: Why there are so Few Clubs and Why the Rosters Mostly Consist of Expats)

Posted on by
Detroit Handball Club Promotional Video: This new club effort is a good example of the challenges facing any new club effort in the U.S.

Note: This is part of an ongoing series, Charting a Way Forward for USA Team Handball (2019 Reboot): Link

Parts 1, 2 and 3 provided an overview of Men’s and Women’s clubs in the U.S.  It doesn’t take long to empirically determine that there aren’t very many clubs and that the few clubs we are for the most populated with expats.  Here’s some context as to why this is so.

Starting a Club:  Big Picture

It kind of goes without saying that all existing clubs at some point in the past had to get started.  And, let’s make one thing clear up front.  Starting a club is a huge undertaking.  It takes organization skills.  It takes resources (money).  It takes time.  (A lot of time)  It takes determination.  Either from one indefatigable person or a village willing to put in quite a bit of effort. 

It is not easy when structures are in place to facilitate new clubs.  It can seem like mission impossible when no such structures exist.   For many people it might be the hardest thing they’ve ever tried to do. 

It should therefore come as no surprise that many folks take initial steps to start a club, assess that it’s not going to be a walk in the park and fairly quickly decide to punt.  That maybe they’ve got better things to do with their time and money.  I used to kind of look down at those lazy talkers, but now older and wiser I sometimes think that maybe they’re the smart ones.

Back in 2013 I highlighted some of the challenges from my own experience in helping to start two clubs.  With mixed success I might add.  And, yes I must admit failure is not easy for someone who is used to succeeding at a lot of different things.  As one gets older, however, one gets smarter and a little bit more humble.

Here are the major hurdles that typically have to be overcome on the way to starting a new club:

Hurdle 1) Recruiting Players

When you’re starting a new handball club, the first step is recruiting players.  Anyone who has done this knows that it is not as simple as posting a flyer or a Facebook post and waiting for the players to simply show up.  It might sort of work like that for a short window during the Summer Olympics every four years, but for the most part it involves working on your sales pitch.  For some this is a simple task, but for others it requires really stepping out of their comfort zone.

Recruiting athletes is not easy and requires a lot of salesmanship.  Adults in their 20s are busy starting a new career; perhaps in a significant committed relationship.  They’ve got competing interests.  A college student may be focused on their studies or simply happy playing pickup basketball or jogging as an outlet. Many people are simply not willing to make the time and money commitment to a club. 

And, keep in mind this sort of convincing/recruiting can be challenging for a well-known sport that athletes are familiar with and have played before.  Convincing/recruiting people to play a sport they are not familiar with or have never played before adds yet another layer of difficulty. 

Yes, some folks, indeed, are interested in trying something new like handball.  But, it’s a long path from checking out handball after you’ve seen it on TV to becoming fully committed to the sport.  Typically, there’s a huge attrition rate as those new players discover that the sport is more physical and a whole lot harder to master than they thought it would be. 

Thus, it should come as no surprise that U.S. clubs are heavily populated with expats.  Yes, people seeking out… something they are familiar with and have played before vice seeking out an opportunity to join some other club to do something totally new.  In a nutshell, this explains the predominance of Expat clubs in the U.S.

Hurdle 2) Achieving “Critical Mass”

Then there is the issue of “critical mass.”  As in you really need around 16 athletes to have a truly viable club.  Yes, a club can “get by” with fewer athletes.  Heck, the mighty Condors once took 3rd place at open Nationals with just 7 athletes and one of them wasn’t really a goalie!  (Iron Man Handball at its finest.)  But, generally you want enough athletes to scrimmage at practices, for substitution in matches and to handle the natural attrition that occurs due to injuries and other commitments. 

It goes without saying that achieving such critical mass is much easier in big cities.  Big cities, where, you guessed it, there’s a healthy supply of handball loving expats moving in and out every year.  The bigger the city, the easier such recruitment is.  It should come as no surprise, for instance, that one of the largest and most international cities in the world, New York City, has such a strong and vibrant club.

Achieving critical mass in smaller population areas can also be done.  It’s just that it’s much harder and requires really strong commitment.  And, effective recruitment of stateside Americans to make up for the shortage of expat players available.  So, a new club is always on the lookout for new athletes to get to the critical mass needed to practice.

Hurdle 3) A Place to Practice and Equipment (Balls and Goals)

Once you’ve got enough players it’s then possible to actually practice.  But, of course, one can’t really practice without a gym, balls and goals.  For the most part, this is a logistical hurdle that can be solved pretty easily with money.  Balls and goals can be purchased or in the case of goals, built.  Sometimes, USA Team Handball or some other organization can even come through with a donation.  A gym to practice in can be a little more tricky.  Depending on where the club is being started there may well be issues with finding a gym that’s big enough for a handball court and that can rented for practice at a reasonable cost. And, finding a gym that will allow stickum is also becoming tougher as well.

Which leads to another point: cost.  Athletes brand new to a sport are often reluctant to contribute to the logistical overhead associated with a club.  This inevitably means that the fully committed have to front a lot of these costs.  This can be problematic depending on the number of people willing to contribute, as well as the financial situation of those people.  For the most part, wherever there’s a new club starting up, it’s a pretty safe to assume that somebody is paying out of pocket to make it happen.

Hurdle 4) Finding Opponents to Play

This hurdle is sometimes forgotten, but in the big picture of things has to be considered.  The U.S. is a huge country and some clubs have better “geography” than others.  For the most part this means not being “too far” from other clubs.  Ideally, being able to drive to competition that is less than 5 hours away.  Beyond that distance generally requires flying for competition and finding enough athletes willing to do that can be really challenging for a new club.

Changing the Sequence of Club Organization

I’m sure some reading this have mentally noted that the order of these hurdles can be altered.  In particular, finding a gym to practice (Hurdle) 3 can be moved up.  This, however, is a risky venture because it’s not yet certain that the players needed will indeed get successfully recruited.  (You, don’t want 5 people playing catch in an empty gym you’ve rented out.)  And, this creates a bit of an awkward chicken and egg situation.  As in, you need players to practice, but you also need a gym and equipment for those players to practice. 

Insurmountable Hurdles?

Finally, would be organizers have to also take a hard, critical overview of the overall situation.  Are there just too many hurdles?  Or, is one hurdle simply too high?  The answer to these questions is sometimes yes.  I know people like to think that “if there is a will, there is a way” and I guess that’s true to a certain extent.  I mean some dynamic handball loving guy in Nome, Alaska could put his heart and soul into establishing a handball team there, but there would be some serious mountains to climb.  No handball expats, limited population base and a flight to Vancouver or Seattle just to play some matches.  It is theoretically possible that it could be done, it’s just not very unlikely.

A Current Example:  Detroit Handball

I’ve been around a while and I’ve seen quite a few clubs come and go, and even come back.  And, one can generally look at the location and the people behind the effort and assess what their likelihood of success. 

Recently, Joey Williams, has taken on the task of starting a new club in Detroit, Michigan.  Joey has been a goalie on the Jr National Team and is pretty high on the “passionate scale” when it comes to handball, having attended a goalie camp in Croatia and trained in Denmark on his own dime.

As I highlighted at the beginning of this article it generally takes someone pretty committed to take on the effort of starting a club and Joey is nearly off the charts in that department.  Failure in this instance won’t be for lack of trying.

In terms of recruitment he’s been very active and has been using social media effectively.  He’s done an Instagram Takeover of the USA Team Handball Instagram account and recently posted a short infomercial on the new club.  “Critical Mass” has not been achieved yet, but generally that takes time. 

Depending on how one defines the Detroit metropolitan area there is between 3.7M to 5.3M so that’s quite a few people to draw from.  According to this list of metropolitan areas, Detroit is the 11 largest metro area in the U.S.   (And, no surprise here: you’ll see quite the correlation between U.S. Handball club locations and the top end of this population ranking.)  In fact, one might wonder why there hasn’t been a club effort in Detroit sooner.  It’s hard to say for sure, but I would speculate that the economic downturn probably has something to do with it.  And, in turn, I’m guessing that has resulted in fewer young expats with a handball background finding their way to the Motor City.  Not to say there aren’t some there just that it might be fewer than other cities which are perceived as hipper.

In terms of geography and distance to other clubs Detroit is in pretty good shape.  Chicago, Pittsburgh and Columbus, Ohio are within 5 hours drive.  And, maybe the development of a Detroit club will spur development of a club program at the University of Michigan so that the Ohio St – Michigan rivalry can be extended to Team Handball.

In terms of logistics, there are a number of suitable gyms, although they are still looking for one that will allow stickum.  And, the capital outlay necessary for balls and goals is still needed.

Taking into account all of these factors, I would put the likelihood of a club successfully being established in Detroit as fairly high, but with one huge caveat.  And, that caveat is that everything seems to be pretty much revolving around one highly dedicated guy.  If Joey can’t continue to fully dedicate himself to the effort or has to move somewhere else there isn’t enough of a club established yet to sustain what’s been started.

This is nothing new.  In just about every instance of a club being established it has been due to the efforts of a few key (or even just one) individual.  And, the same is true in regards to the folding of most clubs.  Generally they have folded due to the departure of a few (or even just one) key individual.  The clubs that stick around in most cases have been the ones that create a “village” of dedicated individuals that share the load.

If you want to help Joey Williams and the Detroit Handball Club they’ve set up a crowdfunding site. Check out that link and others below.

Detroit Handball Club
– Crowdfunding Site: Link
– Website: Link
– Facebook: Link
– Instagram: Link