The EHF-IHF impasse over IHF plans for a new qualification format for the World Championships and a World League appears to not be heading towards a peaceful resolution. At the EHF Presidents meeting in Vienna last week 47 EHF members agreed to propose 12 motions at the next IHF Congress in April 2007. Foremost, the EHF is proposing that the IHF be restructured and that an Extraordinary Congress be held 3 months later to hold new elections. These motions raise the stakes significantly for the IHF leadership as they are essentially a threat to vote them out of office halfway into their 4 year term.
http://home.eurohandball.com/ehf_files/ehf_news/NEWS2006/159_1911.pdf

According to Article 14 of the IHF By-laws http://www.ihf.info/upload/PDF-Download/Regulations/01_-_Bylaws.pdf only a simple majority is required to request an Extraordinary Congress. The IHF has 160 members, so the EHF with 47 members can not reach a majority alone. Hence their recent meetings with the Asian and African Federations to develop a consensus majority voting block.

Additionally, the EHF is also proposing to hold the World Championships only once every four years. The proposed sequence of events would be

2012 Olympics
2013 Continental Championships
2014 World Championships
2015 Continental Championships

As far as when this change would take place, the EHF article does not go into detail. The 2009 World Championships have already been awarded (Croatia- Men, China- Women), but they could probably be moved to 2010. Additionally, the EHF has already awarded their 2010 European championships. As the Continental Championships would move to odd years a transition, in which there is either a short 1 year or long 3 year gap would have to be decided upon

Previous reports on this issue:
13 September 2006: EHF Sues IHF Over New World Championship Qualification Tournaments https://teamhandballnews.com/news.php?item.145
26 October 2006: EHF/IHF Impasse and the Proposed World League https://teamhandballnews.com/news.php?item.177

So do you think you know your Handball? Specifically, Champions League Handball? Here’s your chance to prove it. Predict the winners for the Round of 16 knockout stage and the margin of victory (total goal aggregate for both games) for each of the 8 matchups.

[b]How to Enter: [/b] Click here: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=107952898636

[b]Contest Scoring:[/b]
Correct Club: 5 points
Correct Club and margin of victory (10 points)

[b]Prizes:[/b] Right now, just simply bragging rights. We are, however, looking for a sponsor. If interested please let us know.

One entry per email address please

Here’s some very quick analysis on the Draw. We will provide more detail soon.

[b]Most Compelling:[/b] These two matchups should provide the most drama. Both Veszprem and Montpellier are more than capable of knocking out the higher seed.

Montpellier vs Barcelona
Veszprem vs Kolding

[b]Could be Interesting: [/b] The top seeds will be favored, but the second seeds have a legitimate chance to advance. They will need to get a good victory at home in the first match and then hold back the flood waters in the return match.

Pick Szeged vs Valladolid
Celje vs Flensburg
Chehovskie Medvedi vs Gummersbach

[b]Least Suspenseful: [/b] It would take a massive upset for the two Spanish sides and Kiel to get knocked out

Gold Club Kozina vs Portland San Antonio
GOG Svendborg vs Ciudad Real
Chambery vs Kiel

Group play concluded this weekend with a few minor surprises. Notably, Valladolid’s 9 meter throw with one second left that gave them a draw vs Montpellier and a top seed in the round of 16.

A lot is at stake tomorrow and most of the teams are keeping quiet as to who they’d prefer to play. No sense in saying something to motivate the opposition. We don’t have to worry about that so here’s our assessment of the 16 remaining teams and where they stand relative to each other.

[b]The Powerhouses:[/b] These 4 sides are at the top of their game and will be huge favorites to advance no matter who they draw for the round of 16:

1) Portland San Antonio
2) Ciudad Real
3) Kiel
4) Flensburg

[b]The Second Tier:[/b] These 4 sides will likely be favored going into the next round, but they are beatable especially if they meet one of the members of the next category.

5) Kolding
6) Gummersbach
7) Barcelona
8 ) Valladolid

[b]Dangerous 2nd Seeds: [/b] These are the 4 teams that no one will want to see pulled out of the ping pong ball at the drawing on Tuesday. Montpellier and Celje have both won titles in the past. These teams are capable of an upset against the powerhouses and would battle the second tier teams evenly.

1) Celje
2) Montpellier
3) Veszprem
4) Chehovskie Medvedi

[b]Thanks for Participating, We Have some Lovely Parting Gifts: [/b] Reaching the Round of 16 is an accomplishment for these sides- Going farther in the Champions League will be a lot tougher. If matched up against one of the 4 Powerhouses, it would be a major upset for them to advance. If they draw a 2nd tier team they will have some hope, but even then they will be significant underdogs.

5) GOG Svendborg
6) Pick Szeged
7) Chambery
8 ) Gold Club Kozina

The draw is scheduled for 11:00 AM, Tuesday, 14 November. Drawings have been webcast previously, but the EHF site doesn’t indicate whether this one will be.

[b]Last Week[/b]
[i]Ciudad Real (-9.5)[/i] vs Pick Szeged Bet 200 on Ciudad Real at 1.72 (32-25) LOSE 200
[i]Kolding (-7.5) [/i]vs. Chambery Bet 100 on Kolding at 1.57 (32-32) LOSE 100
[i]Zagreb (+1.5)[/i] vs. Flensburg Bet 200 on Zagreb at 1.85 (21-23) LOSE 200
[i]Veszprem (-1.5)[/i] vs Portland San Antonio Bet 100 on Veszprem at 1.75 (23-21) WIN 75
Gain/Loss: -425 Euros

[b]Season[/b]
200 Euro Bets 4-4; -170
100 Euro Bets 4-4; -70
Current Bankroll: 760 Euros (Started with a 1000)

Back down to earth this week with a disappointing 1-3 performance last week. I still can't believe Chambery pulling out a draw at
Kolding with Vuckovick on the bench. I guess that's why they play the game on the court instead of on paper. The last weekend has some interesting matchups with qualifying and seeding both at stake. The picks are mine, but with some key advice from betting tipster Miguel.

[b]This Week's Picks[/b]

Odds courtesy of Nordicbet: www.nordicbet.com

Celje vs Gummersbach
This is the match of the weekend as first place and in all likelihood an easier round of 16 matchup is at stake. Celje is truly a tough
place to play, but I think Gummersbach is up to the task. The fast style of play they are using this year has them on the top of the standings in the German league. They might lose the match, but they will keep their aggregate 3 goal lead. Take Gummersbach and the 3.5 goals
[b]BET: 200 Euros on Gummersbach (+3.5 goals at 1.85)[/b]

Kadetten Schaufa vs Szeged
A true showdown between a Cinderella upstart and a traditional power from Hungary. Although, some would argue that Kadetten with several top Swiss players, Christian Rose from Germany and Martin Kovar from the Czech Republic is hardly a Cinderella. Kadetten also has the homecourt, but this is balanced out by the tradition and experience of Szeged, who is currently leading the Hungarian league. In my opinion it's a 50-50 toss-up, but since the books are giving Szeged an extra 1.5 goals, I'm going to take them.
[b]BET: 100 Euros on Szeged (+1.5 goals at 1.85) [/b]

Chehovskie Medvedi vs Flensburg
Medvedi needs to tie or win to advance while this game has no bearing on Flensburg as they already have 1st place locked up. There's a lot of debate as to how Flensburg will play. Words off the court rarely have a real impact on the outcome of a match, but I think this game is an exception. Zagreb Coach Klajic's inflammatory comments insinuating that Flensburg wouldn't try very hard to win will come back to haunt him. Flensburg will start out with full motivation to win, but if Medvedi can extend the lead to 4 or 5 goals at some point in the match, chances are Flensburg will ease up a bit. Psychologically, under the surface, they are just not going to feel very bad about not being able to help out Zagreb.
[b]BET: 100 Euros on Medvedi (+3.5 goals at 1.70)[/b]

Montpellier vs Valladolid
This match will decide who wins Group H. Montpellier played well last weekend against Bregenz without Hmam and Burdet and they
should be back for Valladolid. Valladolid managed a 9 goal win in the first match in Spain, but threw the aggregate tie breaker out the window with their draw against A1 Bregenz. This match will be close, but I expect Valladolid to fall behind by a couple of goals at some point in the second half. When they overcompensate with aggressive offensive play the game will turn into a fast break duel. Which is never a battle you want to fight at Rene Bougnol as Monpellier celebrates their 100th game in European competition. Add in the fact that Valladolid managed just a 1 goal win at home against 15th place Almeria in their midweek Asobal match and the signs point to Montpellier. Look for them to blow the game open at the end of the match and cover the 4.5 goals.
[b]BET: 200 Euros on Montpellier (-4.5 goals at 1.90)[/b]

Courtesy of NordicBet www.nordicbet.com here are the lines for week 6 of the Champions League. (Please note that some of these lines are preliminary and may not yet be officially posted at the Nordic Bet site)

Key to the betting line: Handicap, 1st Team Win, Draw, 2nd Team Win, 1st Team Handicap Price, 2nd Team Handicap Price

Need Help on Understanding European Betting Lines: Check this tutorial: https://teamhandballnews.com/e107_plugins/content/content.php?content.15

Saturday, 11 November 2006
16:00 Ciudad Real vs Brest 11.5 1.01 19.20 16.00 1.70 2.00
16:15 Veszprem vs Sarajevo 9.5 1.01 19.00 16.00 1.70 2.00
16:15 Chehovskie Medvedi vs Flensburg 3.5 1.30 13.20 3.85 1.70 2.00
16:30 Barcelona vs Athens 14.5 1.01 19.00 16.00 1.85 1.85
17:00 Reykjavik vs Sandefjord DC 1.82 11.25 2.15 x x
17:15 Celje vs Gummersbach 3.5 1.38 12.25 3.35 1.85 1.85
18:00 Povazska vs Portland San Antonio DC 11.00 17.00 1.05 x x
18:00 Kadetten Schaffhau vs Szeged DC 1.60 11.50 2.50 x x
18:00 Yuzhny vs Bregenz 4.5 1.25 13.25 4.40 1.85 1.85

Sunday, 12 November 2006
10:30 Karvina vs Svendborg 3.0 2.95 12.00 1.43 1.90 1.80
14:15 Kolding vs Belgrade 10.5 1.03 18.00 13.00 1.70 2.00
17:00 Zagreb vs Skopje 8.5 1.01 19.20 16.00 1.65 2.10
17:15 Kozina vs Hammarby 4.0 1.22 14.00 4.70 1.85 1.85
19:00 Kiel vs Constanta 11.5 1.01 19.20 16.00 1.85 1.85
17:00 Montpellier vs Valladolid 4.5 1.30 12.75 3.90 1.90 1.80