Commentary: Re-Imagining the U.S. Collegiate “Olympic” Sports Model (Part 2): “Free” Development Courtesy of American Football. Why? And, Why Just for some Sports?

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This Collegiate System doesn’t make much sense… It just doesn’t.

In Part 1, I highlighted the dramatic funding disparity between club and varsity sports. In Part 2, I review how much “Olympic Sports” cost Ohio St and why to a large extent American Football pays for everything.

There are a lot of ways one can classify or categorize the sports that are played at American colleges and universities. It can be confusing and sports are often lumped together in categories that can be misleading. Here are some of those categories and some basic definitions for them:

  • Revenue Producing Sports: These are sports which produce significant amounts of revenue and at many colleges they have a positive balance sheet.
  • Non Revenue sports: These sports do not generate much revenue and in most cases have a negative balance sheet.
  • Varsity Sports: These are sports that are managed and funded by a school’s athletic department
  • Club Sports: These are sports managed and partially funded by a school’s Student Services or Recreation Services department.
  • NCAA Sports: These are sports that are sanctioned by the NCAA. Schools choosing to participate in NCAA competitions are required to follow NCAA rules, particularly when it comes to recruiting and scholarships.
  • NCAA “Head Count” Scholarship Sports: These are sports where the NCAA requires every scholarship athlete to receive a “full ride” scholarship. (In other words everything is paid for.)
  • NCAA “Equivalency” Scholarship Sports: These are sports where “partial” scholarships can be awarded and split among the roster of athletes. Coaches can still choose to award full ride scholarships to some athletes, but this will then limit the number of partial scholarships available.
  • Olympic Sports: These are Olympic sports, but the definition is pretty fluid. Non varsity sports (which also happen to be Olympic) are usually not part of the discussion. Additionally no distinction is typically made as to what role these college competitions actually have in terms of developing athletes for Olympic competition.

These categories can overlap into some fairly complicated Venn diagrams, but I’ve tried to group them in terms of net revenue and their relevance to athlete development for future Olympic competitions. Remember this analysis is for just one college, Ohio St, and it was compiled using this publicly available data: link

Net Positive Varsity Sports

At Ohio St, and at most colleges, there are only two sports that generate significant amounts of revenue: American Football and Men’s Basketball. At Ohio State they are also way on the plus side and generated $55M and $14M respectively in 2019. And, as we shall see as we look at the rest of the categories they essentially pay for all the other sports that lose money.

Varsity Sports (Olympic: Primary Development Pathway)

These 21 sports are Olympic sports where college programs are the primary development pathway for future Olympic athletes. It can be debated somewhat as to how vital college programs are for each individual sport, but I think it’s fairly safe to say that the vast majority of the athletes in the sports listed above would not have been Olympians if these college programs didn’t exist.

Here’s some food for thought:

  • How much value is the USOPC and the individual sports National Governing Bodies (NGB) getting out of these programs at Ohio St? Well, if one divides the net revenue (-$27M) by the total scholarships (179.3) it amounts to roughly $150,000/year for each full scholarship athlete. Multiply that by 4 and that is $600,000 over 4 years of college education… all for 1 potential Olympic athlete. (Yes, if one wants to further divide by partial scholarships and walk on athletes (total 702) you’ll get a smaller number: $38,000/year or $153,000 over 4 years.) That being said, in most cases the top athletes with the most potential will probably have a full ride scholarship.
  • Keep in mind… that these college sports program cost the USOPC and the individual sports NGBs nothing. All of this development of athletes is “free” and does not come out of their budget.
  • And, this is just for one college. Ohio St is big college with a fine tradition and one of the largest budgets, but it’s still just one college. There are 130 large schools (D1 Football Subdivision Schools (FBS)). There are an additional 217 Colleges with sizable budgets (D1 basketball schools without a D1 FBS football program). And, then there are several hundred smaller colleges with sports programs, albeit with fewer or no scholarships.
  • All of this is paid by college football and to a lesser extent Men’s college basketball? How does that make sense? Did the players sign up for this?

Varsity Sports (Secondary/Very Limited Olympic Development and Non Olympic)

The 12 varsity sports above have only marginal or zero benefit in terms of the development of Olympic athletes. The reasons vary, but are mostly related to athletes turning pro without collegiate careers or in the case of gymnastics and synchronized swimming athletes become high level competitors without college training. And, then the last 4 sports listed aren’t Olympic sports. Baseball and softball will be back for Tokyo, but won’t be played in Paris. Lacrosse hasn’t been an Olympic sport since 1908 although they surely would like to get back on the Olympic Program.

A Side Note on Fuzzy Math

It should be noted that all of this self reported data from Ohio St should be taken with a grain of salt for multiple reasons. One big reason is the actual cost of a scholarship is open for a lot of debate. In most instances schools are not actually paying that full cost or losing out on the money that another non scholarship athlete would pay. Further, if one reviews the Ohio St database there’s some big accounting lines that aren’t associated with any particular sport. A whopping $75M (expenses) and $61M (revenue) is not explained or attributed to any individual sport. (See pages 15 and 16 in the report) I’m thinking one could probably actually attribute those costs if they really wanted to. As an example, how much time to you think the Athletic Director spends on football and synchronized swimming issues respectively?

Why this Crazy System?

If you ever live outside your home country, you’ll get the chance to see first hand how other countries do things and inevitably you’ll find yourself questioning how things are done back home. For me, personally, there were two big topical areas that came to mind. Health care and our sports structures. I won’t get into health care, but let’s talk a bit about how sports are organized in the U.S. and specifically, our college sports structure.

The European sports model is by no means perfect, but once exposed to it, it doesn’t take long for an American to compare it to the system they are familiar with… and start to scratch their head. Honestly, it’s pretty hard to look at the numbers above and defend this crazy system. Certainly it is impossible to do so from a fiscal viewpoint. Men’s football and to a lesser extent men’s basketball subsidize almost everything. That just doesn’t make any sense. And, worse the athletes playing those sports are not paid their market value and they have to become college students in order to play. Don’t get me wrong. Getting a college education is a good thing, but there’s no real reason it has to or should be tied to playing a sport.

So why do we have this crazy system? Well, if you do a little research you’ll discover that over time a system which made sense for amateur collegiate competitions gradually made less and less sense as two sports, American Football and Men’s basketball, grew into bigger and bigger sports with professional leagues. Instead of these sports becoming fully professionalized from age 18 and up, colleges hung on to these sports creating pseudo professional leagues which also became the de facto development competitions for the pro leagues.

At the same time other collegiate sports did not grow to the same extent, but since they were part of school athletic departments and the NCAA they were still provided substantial levels of support. This support was provided in part due to tradition and in part, due to NCAA requirements. Further, a U.S. law, Title IX required colleges and universities to provide equal opportunities in terms of sports and scholarships for women.

So essentially, over time we have created a system where hundreds of colleges in order to keep their cash cow revenue sports have agreed to fund dozens of other sports which are a net revenue loss.

A Crazy System, but it’s not All Bad

This system might seem a little crazy, but depending on where you stand it’s not all bad. More opportunities for women to play sports… That’s a good thing.

If you are involved with one of the dozens of sports propped up by this system it’s a great thing. If you are an athlete you have the opportunity to perhaps earn a scholarship and play in a well organized competition. If you are a high level coach there are multiple, good paying job opportunities. If you are part of the youth sports industry this system will help ensure that plenty of youth athletes will be interested in furthering developing their skills via sports clubs. If you are a sports NGB all of this development from youth to college is infrastructure that you don’t have to pay for. Indeed, it is often an additional source of revenue.

Of course, I know what supporters of these dozens of sports are saying as they read this. They are saying that their sport isn’t being propped up, but rather the demand from athletes was already there. That colleges are just responding to the growing demand from their sport.

I would argue, however, that they are exaggerating this demand in most cases. For sure, all sports have some level of intrinsic demand. Sports are fun and people play them just for fun. That being said most sports if they lost NCAA status, the great organized competitions that come with that status and, of course, the scholarships would see a significant decline in interest at all levels.

Different Tiers, Different Perspectives

Much has been written and said about how American football and men’s college basketball athletes should be paid for their efforts. After all they are bringing in revenue. Call these sports the top tier.

Much has also been written and said about the other NCAA sports that are in some cases now being cut from some schools. And, that these “Olympic Sports” are getting short changed. Call these sports the middle tier.

And, then there are sports like team handball and rugby with no NCAA status. Call this the bottom tier.

As a proponent of a sport in the bottom tier I can only look at the middle tier’s whining and say, “Give me a break! Good lord. You guys all lose money. Quit whining. You don’t realize how good you’ve got it.”

Here’s some food for thought for you:

  • Ohio St University (just 1 college) spends more on 33 sports than USA Team Handball does as a national federation. Yes, for the last several years the expenses for USA Team Handball has been around $500,000. Divide that in two for Men/Women and only Men’s Rifle and Women’s Pistol at Ohio State have a smaller budget.
  • NGBs which have an NCAA component typically receive more grant money from the USOPC than USA Team Handball does. Contemplate for a moment where those NGBs would be in terms of competitiveness and fiscal status if they didn’t have that NCAA component?
  • Finally, here’s something else that will have you scratching your head again. Quite a few scholarships are actually awarded to foreigners. In fact, in 2019 there were 3,455 international student athletes playing Division 1 sports. Roughly 12% of Division I. Yes, U.S. colleges are spending millions of dollars to develop foreign athletes; many that have gone on to win Olympic medals. How does that possibly make sense?

Time to start over? The pandemic has exacerbated the dramatic difference between Tiers 1 and 2 with some schools dropping some sports. But, maybe this just isn’t an issue between tiers 1 and 2? In part 3, I’ll discuss how the pie should be split more equitably between tiers 2 and 3.

Handball Web Streaming this Weekend (27-29 Nov 2020)

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Abou Fofana and Angers take on Billere Friday at 20:00 CET / 14:00 US ET. Watch the match live on Angers Facebook page.

Plenty of handball viewing options this weekend, including some Friday mid-day options for Americans with a long Thanksgiving weekend.  Odds courtesy of Bet MGM.

American Athletes in Action

  • France Pro Ligue:  Angers (-0.5) vs Nice vs Billère  (Friday, 2000 CET): Link (What? Bet MGM is posting 2nd Div French betting lines? They sure are)
    • Left back, Abou Fofana plays for Angers.  Currently in last place, Angers could really use a win vs 11th place Billere.
  • Germany HBL 2:  Dormagen (-3.5) vs Groswallstadt (Saturday, 1930 CET): Link (VPN required)
    • Ian and Patrick Hueter play for Dormagen.  9th place Dormagen will try and make it 3 wins in a row against 14th place Grosswallstadt

Other Matches this Weekend

  • EHF European Competitions:  ehfTV
    • It’s the calm before the storm this weekend as there are no EHF Women’s Champions League matches this weekend.  Instead Women’s National Teams are getting ready for the Women’s European Championships which will start this Thursday, 3 December.  However, there are plenty of on demand matches from this past week’s Men’s Champions League.  Options include Barca v Kiel; Paris v Porto; and Veszprem v Aalborg
  • LIDL Starligue:  LNH TV
      • Limoges (-2.5) vs Ivry (Friday, 2000 CET) Video Link
    • Nimes (-5.5) vs Tremblay (Saturday, 1800 CET) Video Link
    • Creteil vs Paris (-9.5) (Sunday, 1530 CET) Video Link
  • Liga ASOBAL:  LaLigaSportsTV 
    • Cuenca (-2.5) vs Valladolid (Friday, 2000 CET) Video Link
    • Granollers vs Barcelona (-12.5) (Saturday, 1200 CET) Video Link
    • Aranda vs Benidorm (-2.5) (Saturday, 1800 CET) Video Link
    • Angel Ximinez vs Irun (-3.5) (Saturday, 1930 CET) Video Link
  • HBL
    • Leipzig vs Magdeburg (-.1,5) (Sunday, 1500 CET) Video Link (VPN likely required)

Was the Kadetten Schaffhausen vs GOG Match Fixed? Judge for Yourself

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The official has a perfect view of this apparent line violation, but didn’t see it. Just one of several suspicious officiating decisions during the Kadetten Schaffhausen – GOG match.

Just Another EHF European League Match

On October 20th, Swiss club, Kadetten Schaffhausen hosted Denmark’s GOG in an EHF European League Group match. Kadetten won the tight contest, 29-28 when Gabor Csaszar scored a penalty shot with no time remaining.

  • Video of Match Winning Goal: Link
  • EHF Match Summary: Link

Just another hard fought European League contest on a jampacked Tuesday evening in the European League. Right? Well, maybe not.

Reports of Match Fixing Surface

The next day it was reported that Sports Books had stopped wagering for the match due to an unusual amount of money being bet on Kadetten.

The odds for the match opened the day before it was played with Kadetten being a slight underdog at 2.05 which then increased to 2.10 before dropping to 1.35 before the match. Below is what that looks like in your preferred betting system.

In practical terms the simplest number to look at is the implied probability which went from Kadetten having a 47.6% chance of victory to a 74.1% chance of victory. Line movements like that are pretty unusual and when they do occur it’s due to something unusual happening like an announcement that a star player has been injured and won’t play. Or, maybe two star players… or maybe the fix is in.

Suspicious Officiating Decisions

Suspicions quickly focused on the Kosavar referees (Arsim Vitaku and Erdoan Vitaku) that officiated the match and some of their calls (or non calls) that were made. 

Below is a compilation of some potentially suspicious calls (or non calls) that were made during the match.  The first four were discuss by former Danish nation team player, Joachim Boldsen, in this video:  Link (Available in Denmark… VPN) and are also referenced by Danish Handball expert Bent Nyegaard in this article: Link  The 5th one listed is one that I added after I watched the last few minutes of the match.

And, you can judge for yourself whether the calls are suspicious.  Here’s the full match video at ehfTV: Link

  1. efhTV recording clock (17:05) / Match clock (14:07):  GOG Circle Runner, Anders Zachariassen, receives a pass, pivots toward the line… but is called for an offensive foul?
  2. efhTV recording clock (20:04) / Match clock (17:20):  Kaddeten Schaffhausen Left Wing, Sebastian Frimmel appears to step on the line right in front of the official… but there is no whistle for a violation? 
  3. efhTV recording clock (1:00:00) / Match clock (06:20):  GOG Circle Runner, Anders Zachariassen, receives a pass, is grabbed on line as he turns to shoot… but the result is a nine meter free throw instead of a penalty shot?
  4. efhTV recording clock (1:08:44) / Match clock (11:30):  Kadetten Schaffhausen fouls Mathias Gidsel as he attacks the goal.  Gidsel releases the ball towards the 9 meter spot where the free throw will be taken… but no, this release of the ball by Gidsel is considered to be the actual free throw?  Kadetten Schaffhausen picks up the ball and it results in an empty net goal.
  5. efhTV recording clock (1:31:05) / Match clock (29:00):  With the score tied GOG is offense… and Anders Zachariassen backs into a player and is called for an offensive foul?

I’ve asked a few people their impression and as you might expect the opinions are varied.  Situations #1 and #3 were seen as judgement calls that were probably wrong, but where the mistake could be rationalized.  #2 looks pretty bad, especially where the official is situated… but sometimes you just don’t see something. I’ve seen #4 happen, particularly with officials somehow taking pleasure with educating newcomers to the sport, but I’ve never seen officials allow it at higher levels.  #5 I guess is another one of those judgement calls even if it seems pretty ticky-tack.

Each call taken alone doesn’t seem too out of the ordinary.  Bad calls happens.  But, if one looks at them cumulatively it does raise some eyebrows.  Combine those calls with the unusual odds movements and it clearly warrants further investigation.

At Second Glance… Everything is not so Clear

However, as I’ve investigated this match it seems to me that it’s not an open and shut case.  If you want an open and shut case think back to the Kuwait – Korea match in 2007 for Olympic Qualification:  Link  As that match demonstrated, if you’re an official fixing a handball match you can’t just go crazy and start calling everything one way.  Well, I guess you can, but you’re going to get caught.  Instead, if you’re fixing a match you need to be a bit more discreet and selective.

These officials, if they were fixing the match were fairly discreet.  Further, if one puts themselves in the shoes of the officials.  Actually, thinks to themselves, “I’m officiating this match and I want to fix it.  How should I go about it?” you might well conclude what I did:  That these officials were really, really taking their chances.

At least, if one assumes they were fixing the match for a simple “to win” bet for Kadetten they were doing a bad job of fixing it.  Seriously, the match went down to the wire and was decided by a penalty shot.  If I were officiating a match and wanted to fix it, I wouldn’t leave that to chance.  I would instead look for a 2-3 goal cushion.  

It’s been pointed out to me that perhaps a handicap or point spread wager had been made instead of a “to win” bet, but that’s something that should be evident to the betting sites.  Another possibility that would explain the lack of a cushion would be a tacit arrangement for the officials to just do what they can reasonably do to help Kadetten without raising suspicion.  Maybe there are some betting fixers willing to have a “no guarantee” deal like that, but I doubt it.

Strange Phone Calls from Kosovo

Another aspect to the story that was recently reported were dozens of phone calls from Kosovo to the GOG coaching staff and players prior to and after the match.  The calls from unknown numbers were ignored, but when finally picked up there was just silence on the other end.

The article suggests that the phone calls were simple harassment, but I immediately wondered if something more nefarious was being attempted.  As in some Kosovo fixer trying to get some GOG player on the line to either intimidate or worse offer money in return for some help in altering the match outcome.  Having watched portions of the match, however, there doesn’t seem to be anything to support that being a possibility.

More to Come or Brushed to the Side?

According to the Danish reporting, the EHF’s betting monitor Sport Radar did not pick up on anything unusual, but that the EHF indicated that they would further review the match.  

GOG Coach, Nicolej Krickau, notes that he’s been contacted by members of the “betting community” with rumors that the Kosovo diaspora around the world making bets on the matches.  Something that can’t be confirmed, but supports his suspicions.

Of particular note:  Since the match played in October the Kosovar officials have not been assigned yet to another European match.  Is that simply due to scheduling?  Or, as Krickau suggests is there an intent to hide them away and bring them back after several months and the whole affair has been forgotten?

Time will tell, but the combination of suspect calls and suspect betting patterns suggests to me that we haven’t heard the last on this story.

Reporting Referenced in this Article

  • “GOG match is investigated for match fixing” by David Schiøler & Christian Ipsen  (21 Oct 2020) Denmark TV2: Link
  • “The families of Danish stars received mysterious calls before a suspicious match” by David Schiøler & Lars Bruun-Mortensen (24 Nov 2020) Denmark TV2:  Link
  • “There are a lot of misconceptions that are very grotesque” by Peter Schulz (24 Nov 2020) Denmark TV3: Link

Handball Web Streaming This Week (24-26 Nov 2020)

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Toulouse hosts Leon in a key EHF European League match on Tuesday

Plenty of handball matches to watch the next 3 days.  What’s also fun to think about:  The switch to midweek means that American fans will be able to start a new Thanksgiving tradition on Thursday:  Dual screen Champions League Handball/NFL viewing after their turkey dinner.

American Athletes in Action

  • EHF European League:  Toulouse (-1.5) vs Leon (Tuesday, 2045 CET): Link
    • Circle Runner, Drew Donlin, plays for Leon.
    • Leon is on a 3 game winning streak with a victory over Metalaurg and 2 wins in Asoobal play, but Toulouse will present a tough road test.
  • EHF European League:  IFK Kristianstad vs Sporting Portugal (-1.5)  (Tuesday, 2045 CET): Link
    • Goalkeeper, Rene Ingram, plays for Kristianstad.  Ingram is Kristianstad’s 3rd keeper and is on the roster due to an injury to their top keeper.

Other Matches this Week

  • EHF European League LINK
    • In addition to the 2 matches above featuring U.S. players there are 7 other matches on Tuesday at either 1845 or 2045 CET.
  • EHF Champions League LINK

Were at the halfway point of the Champions League and that means we get return legs from last week’s matches.  This is generally interesting in that we get to see how coaches make adjustments in the intervening weeks to fix problems or pile on with what worked last week.  I’ll be watching to see if Flensburg can rebound from their surprise draw with Brest and whether Barca will have no problems with Kiel again.   No spoiler preview:  Link

    • Veszprem (-6.5) vs Aalborg  Brest (Wednesday, 1845 CET)
    • Kielce (-5.5) vs Vardar (Wednesday, 2045 CET) <<English Commentary>>
    • Celje vs Nantes (-2.5) (Wednesday, 2045 CET)
    • Paris S-G (-5.5) vs FC Porto (Thursday, 1845 CET)
    • Szeged (-4.5) vs Elverum (Thursday, 1845 CET)
    • Barcelona (-3.5) vs Kiel (Thursday, 2045 CET)
  • Liga Asobal
    • Valladolid vs Irun (-2.5) (Wednesday, 2000 CET) Link
    • Aranda vs Angel Ximenez (-2.5) (Thursday, 1830 CET) Link
    • Nava vs Huesca (-1.5) (Thursday, 2000 CET) Link
  • Lidl Starligue
    • St-Raphael vs Aix (Wednesday, 2030 CET) Link

Podcast (Episode 72): Greenlander, Marxwell Masauna Frederiksen and Canadian, Jackson Howden (Part 2): NORCA Cancellation, The IHF selection of the U.S. for the WC and More

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 40:26 — 37.0MB)

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | RSS

A discussion on the new North America & Caribbean Handball Confederation

In Part 1, I chatted with Marxwell Masauna Frederiksen and Jackson Howden about their handball backgrounds.  In Part 2 we discuss the cancellation of the North American & Caribbean Championship and the IHF’s decision to give the U.S. the NACHC slot for the Men’s World Championships.  We also talk about the future of the NACHC including the possibility of the roommates playing against each other, the NACHC getting more spots for the WC, the possibility of Greenland playing in the PANAM Games/Olympic Games, expansion of the Forum Club Handball (FCH) program to help other NACHC nations and the development of beach handball in Greenland and Canada.  Beach Handball in Greenland?

Podcast Interview on the Team Handball News YouTube Channel: Episode 72 Link (Audio only, mp3 file available at the top of the page)

Commentaries on the IHF Decision

  • The U.S. Gets a 2021 WC Slot while Greenland (and others) stay home (Part 1): The Business Case: Link
  • The U.S. Gets a 2021 WC Slot while Greenland (and others) stay home (Part 2): The Competitive Case: Link

Don’t miss an episode:

  • Subscribe to the podcast in iTunes: Link
  • Follow the Team Handball News podcast on Spotify: Link
  • Or use this RSS Feed to sign up for the podcast in your favorite podcast aggregator: Link

And, be sure to check out the podcast archive with interviews and great handball discussion going all the way back to 2006: Link

Handball Web Streaming this Weekend (20-22 November 2020)

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Plenty of handball viewing options this weekend.  Odds courtesy of Bet MGM.

American Athletes in Action

  • French Pro Ligue:  Nice vs Angers (Saturday, 2030 CET): Link 
    • Left back, Abou Fofana plays for Angers.  Angers lost to Strasbourg on Tuesday and really could use a win vs Nice which is the only club below them in the standings.  The winner of this match will move out of the relegation zone
  • Liga Asobal:  Viveros Herol BM. Nava vs Leon (-3.5) (Sunday, 2000 CET): Link
    • Circle Runner, Drew Donlin, plays for Leon and has been getting some extended playing time lately on defense.  Leon had a huge victory on Thursday over previously unbeaten Irun and will look to continue their winning streak.

Other Matches this Weekend

  • EHF European Competitions:  ehfTV
    • There’s a jampacked schedule of 25 matches on ehfTV this weekend.  2 on Friday, 12 on Saturday and 11 on Sunday.  Most of the matches are lower level European League and European Cup fixtures, with the exception being 5 Women’s Champions League matches.
  • LIDL Starligue:  LNH TV
    • Toulouse (-2.5) vs Creteil (Friday, 2000 CET) Video Link
    • Tremblay vs Montpellier (-3.5) (Saturday, 1530) Video Link
    • Ivry vs Nimes (-3.5) (Saturday, 1800 CET) Video Link
    • Cesson vs Aix (-1.5) (Sunday, 1730 CET) Video Link
  • Liga ASOBAL:  LaLigaSportsTV 
    • Vallodolid (-1.5) vs Angel Ximinez (Saturday, 1700 CET) Video Link
    • Huesca(-3.5) vs Puerto Sagunto (Saturday, 1830 CET) Video Link
    • Barcelona (-13.5) vs Cuenca (Saturday, 1930 CET) Video Link
    • Irun (-8.5) vs Aranda (Sunday, 1200 CET) Video Link
    • Viveros Herol BM. Nava vs Leon (-3.5) (Sunday, 2000 CET) Video Link

Interview with the Kras Volendam Women’s Head Coach, Mark Ortega

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Kras Volendam Women’s Head Coach, Mark Ortega (Photo: Jaap van der Pijll)

The following interview was conducted by Dutch club KRAS Volendam

The USA national team is going to the World Championships. An in-depth interview with Mark Ortega/Coach of KRAS Volendam ladies

Recently the USA Men’s National Handball team has been invited to participate in the World Championships. Normally this news would not have a great impact on HV KRAS/Volendam, but this season we feel the effect due to our American trainer Mark Ortega and players Alex Binderis and Christine Mansour.

How many games will the USA win at the World Championships?

“The USA has never won a game at the World Championships. I predict we will win at least two, but more importantly we will show our growth as a handball team and as a nation.”

Team USA made it to the World Championships. The world doesn’t really know much about this. Tell us about the journey?

“The last three to four years Team USA has made some huge leaps. This is a combination of various factors. The last few USA Junior National teams have had some recent success on the international stage. Due to the new IHF developing Nations Tournaments. The last four years the USA Men’s Junior National team has qualified for the IHF Developing Nations Final, which has led to the Junior National team qualifying for the Junior World Championships in Spain (2019). There’s also a new program developed where the USA Handball players (both male and female) are placed at high level clubs in Europe. FCH (Forum Handball Club) started this program with a selected group of athletes and coaches and currently contains approximately 10 athletes and one coaches. In my perspective the IHF, FCH and EHF are all doing their part to see the USA Handball develop. From creating high level youth and junior tournaments to creating programs designed specifically for player and coach development, allowing these players and coach to be part of major clubs throughout the world. It’s easy to see that we, Team USA, are on the fast track to possibly bring our national teams to a higher level. I’m excited to see this new development.

On a personal level HV KRAS/Volendam has seen this as an opportunity and jumped on board. It’s great to work with a club that sees things in advance and isn’t afraid of anything abnormal within the handball world.” 

What’s your role at HV KRAS/Volendam and for Team USA and how does this combination work?

“My role at HV KRAS/Volendam is a combination between creating a stable women’s handball foundation for HV KRAS/Volendam and working on the development of the Team USA handball. 

It’s a challenge for me as fulltime trainer/coach for our Ladies first team. But the club gives me enough space to combine my daily work with the position as USA assistant within the men’s National Team. I’ve been the assistant there for the past six years and have been responsible for many aspects regarding the development of the team. For example, I’ve worked as the full-time residence coach in Auburn for the past five years, Alabama, USA. Where I’ve had the privilege of working with five-time Olympian Javier Garcia Cuesta helping develop USA players. Most of the players in the residency program were ‘late starters’ of the game, many football or basketball players. Ty Reed is one of those players who started in Auburn and now plays in Flensburg, Germany. But I’ve also recruited high level athletes and dual citizens for the USA national team, which is not easy. Without any funding and only being able to talk about what if… what if… scenarios, to recruit players. Players such as Ian Hueter, Patrick Hueter and Domajoj Srsen have heard my talk of what the USA National team can do and it’s great seeing them get a chance to participate in a World Championships early in their career. These players have dual citizenship and respectfully played or have played in the top leagues in Europe.” 

Team USA and HV KRAS/Volendam don’t seem to be a logical match? Can you tell me if there is a match?

“HV KRAS/Volendam and Team USA are actually much alike. The fit is obvious in regard to the players and coaching levels. The club is still emerging in the league and is trying to develop players at various skill levels, just like our national team programs. Coaching handball in the USA is not considered the highest level throughout the world and you have to develop players with various skill levels and mindsets. The same goes at HV KRAS/Volendam. An emerging club with large differences in skill level and mindset between the players. As a trainer I work with developing the talent that is at hand. That’s a different way of creating impact and improving skill sets to when you ‘just buy’ pro players and work on a team. HV KRAS/Volendam has amateurs with highly skilled talents. You have to know how to reach each one of them to impact them all.”

“I have to say that I’m thankful for HV KRAS/Volendam’s work. They made this opportunity possible for me. You have to be able to look outside of the box to give an American an opportunity like this. It says a lot about their direction and vision as a club. To broaden the program and impact for Team USA we need more clubs who are willing and able to facilitate like HV KRAS/Volendam does. In the end HV KRAS/Volendam’s investment for the future will give them a unique position within the handball world.

They have also given me the opportunity to complete my IHF Master Coaching Course via the Spanish association. In February I’m expected to receive my EHF Master Coaching course/Pro License. This EHF license will make me the first American born coach to have the necessary license to legally coach Pro teams and National teams at EHF and IHF official competitions. I’m very proud of this.”

Alex Binderis is also at HV KRAS/Volendam. Could you tell us something about him?

Alex has a unique story. As a younger player he participated in some of Sweden’s National team development programs. As the years went by Alex and his family continued to follow the USA National team. At the age of 19 Alex and his brother Max decided to try and join the USA National team. Both have seen recent success participating in IHF Developing Nations Tournaments. Alex was invited to join the FCH program last year and Volendam answered the call. After playing many years on different Swedish teams Alex is not only fulfilling his dream to play as a professional but also fulfilling his Dad’s dream for Alex to be a professional handball player in the Europe’s top league. 

We take it you’ve had some influence in the arrival of Christine Mansour as well.

“We were able to invite her this year to join HV KRAS/Volendam to train and compete with the women’s teams. The interesting thing about Christine is that she’s never played indoor handball before; however, Christine is the best beach handball player for Team USA and her potential is enormous. Even with the Covid outbreak Christine is making enormous steps to becoming a better all-round handball player. I expect her, when we start again, to play an important role. Again HV KRAS/Volendam thinks out-of-the-box and gets it done. A great development for USA team handball.”

What is your direction and drive for handball? 

“Handball has been a central part of my development for the past 17 years. I understand with our sport that sacrifice is needed a lot. I learned this as a player and expect this mentality from my players. I also realized in my career as a player that if I was on the court it was important to find players that were better than me. You have to test yourself and commit to getting better. My wife and two kids moved to Volendam as part of our sacrifice and commitment to our goal of becoming a better coach and representative for the USA.”

What are your plans for the future?

“Recently, I resigned as the assistant to the National team coach to concentrate on representing the athletes on the Board of directors of USATH. Being in the Netherlands and seeing what goes on in the management of the club I’ve come to realize that we can make huge strides in the development of USA team handball, both on management and board level. Since I stepped down from my position as assistant coach of Team USA, I’ve been elected to represent the athletes on the board of Team USA. Seeing what happens behind the scenes at HV KRAS/Volendam gave me the insight to make this move and get more involved directly with all the athletes. My goal will be to help all athletes’, men and women, to find the road helping them succeed. This is a role long needed within the USA as American athletes don’t have a contact person to whom they can go whatever their playing level. And I would like to be that person. My goal is to develop new programs, similar to our program at HV KRAS/Volendam. This would give athletes more opportunities to play and develop.” 

Athletes first, seems to be your message.

“Being a head coach in the Dutch Women’s first league now opens a new and wide road of development for coaching. Being an American coach in Europe means many eyes will be on me, and that attention will help the USA gain more possibilities. I hope my path will give more athletes and coaches inspiration to keep pursuing their handball goals. Christine, Alex and I have a great situation in Volendam, and we proved that it’s possible. We hope we can continue to contribute to the development of the HV KRAS/Volendam program and our ideas about life and handball are really similar. Let’s keep this movement going.

We’ve also been busy contributing to the development of new handball players around the World via my personal YouTube channel. I try to cater to a specific demographic group of adults who have never played handball before but want to learn the sport. Of course, we use my players at HV KRAS/Volendam. Check out the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xoeQucS7UvA

 

Handball Web Streaming this Week (17-19 Nov 2020)

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Abou Fofana and Angers take on Strasbourg today at 2000 (CET) / 1400 (US ET) Watch live on the Angers Facebook page

While the Coronavirus pandemic has resulted in several matches getting postponed this week, for the most part the European Leagues are marching on with a near full slate of matches.  And, this has got to be a first:  3 Americans with 3 different club will be playing simultaneously later today.

American Athletes in Action

  • French Pro Ligue:  Angers vs Strasbourg (Tuesday, 2000 CET): Link
    • Left back, Abou Fofana plays for Angers.  Both Angers and Strasbourg are near the bottom of the table and could use a win. This video will be on Facebook and is the first opportunity we have this season to see Abou Fofana with his new club
  • EHF European League:  Leon (-5.5) vs Metalurg (Tuesday, 2045 CET): Link
    • Circle Runner, Drew Donlin, plays for Leon.
    • Leon lost to Logrono on Saturday and will look to bounce back vs Metalurg.  It will be interesting to see how ready Metalurg after their 40 hour bus drive from North Macedonia to Spain. 
  • EHF European League:  USAM Nimes (-3.5) vs IFK Kristianstad (Tuesday, 2045 CET): Link
    • Goalkeeper, Rene Ingram, plays for Kristianstad.  Ingram is Kristianstad’s 3rd keeper and is on the roster due to an injury to their top keeper.
  • HBL 2:  TSV Bayer Dormagen vs. HSG Konstanz (Wednesday, 1930 CET): Link (may require VPN)
    • Hosts, Dormagen (Ian and Patrick Hueter) should be solid favorites over 17th place Konstanz

Other Matches this Week

  • EHF European League
    • 10 matches on Tuesday at either 1845 or 2045 CET
    • Top Matches: Both of these matches are interesting in that they feature more well known top clubs as 3.5 goal favorites on the road
      • Nexe vs Montpellier (-3.5)  (Tuesday, 1845 CET)
      • GOG vs Rhein-Neckar (-3.5) (Tuesday, 1845 CET)
  • EHF Champions League
    • Top Matches:  It will really be very interesting to see how struggling Paris (only 1 win) does against Porto.  Kiel vs Barca is the other standout match.  No spoiler preview:  Link
    • Aalborg vs Veszprem (-4.5) (Wednesday, 1845 CET)
    • Flensburg (-4.5) vs Meskov Brest (Wednesday, 1845 CET)
    • FC Porto vs Paris S-G (-2.5) (Wednesday, 1845 CET)
    • Zagreb vs HC Motor (-1.5) (Wednesday, 2045 CET)
    • Vardar vs Kielce(-2.5) (Thursday, 1845 CET)
    • Kiel vs Barca (-1.5) (Thursday, 1845 CET) <<English Commentary>>

Podcast (Episode 71): Greenlander, Marxwell Masauna Frederiksen and Canadian, Jackson Howden (Part 1): Roommates and Handball Players Living in Denmark

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 23:34 — 21.6MB)

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | RSS

Marxwell Masauna Frederiksen and Jackson Howden

Greenlander, Marxwell Masauna Frederiksen and Canadian, Jackson Howden are roommates and play for Skjern Handball‘s 2nd team in Denmark. In Part 1 of this interview we discuss their respective handball journeys and playing in Denmark.

Podcast Interview on the Team Handball News YouTube Channel: Episode 71 Link (Audio only mp3 file available at the top of the page)

Previous Greenland Related Handball Podcasts
– 2007 World Championships: Link
– 2018 Minik Dahl Hoegh: Link

Social Media Links
Marxwell Masauna Fredricksen: Instagram
Jackson Howden: Instagram Twitter

In Part 2 we tackle a more controversial topic: The cancellation of the North American and Caribbean Championship and the IHF decision to select the U.S. for the 2021 IHF World Championships.

Don’t miss an episode:

  • Subscribe to the podcast in iTunes: Link
  • Follow the Team Handball News podcast on Spotify: Link
  • Or use this RSS Feed to sign up for the podcast in your favorite podcast aggregator: Link

And, be sure to check out the podcast archive with interviews and great handball discussion going all the way back to 2006: Link

Handball Web Streaming Options this Weekend (14-15 Nov 2020)

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Rhein-Neckar takes on Lemgo in a Bundesliga Clash

The pandemic appears to be ramping up again, so you might want to catch some handball action online… while you still can.  Thankfully, there are a plethora of options this weekend.  Here’s some links to online streams with the goals handicap betting odds courtesy of Bet MGM.

EHF Women’s Champions League: Round 8 includes 3 matches on Saturday and 3 on Sunday.

  • Where to watch:  Link
  • Preview: Link (no spoilers)
  • CSM Bucuresti (-6.5) vs RK Krim Mercator, Saturday, 16:00 CET
  • HC Podravka Vegeta vs Brest (-4.5), Saturday, 16:00 CET
  • Buducnost (-6.5) vs SCM Ramnicu Valcea, Saturday, 18:00 CET
  • Bietigheim vs FTC-Rail Cargo Hungaria (-1.5), Sunday, 14:00 CET
  • Team Esbjerg vs Rostov-Don (-1.5), Sunday, 14:00 CET
  • Odense (-1.5) vs CSKA, Sunday, 16:00 CET

German Bundesliga (HBL and HBL 2):

  • Rhein-Neckar (-5.5) vs TVB Lemgo (Saturday, 1800 CET): Link (may require VPN)
  • Hüttenberg (pick em) vs. TSV Bayer Dormagen (Saturday, 1930 CET): Link (may require VPN)
    • (Note: Of interest to USA fans as Dormagen features 2 Americans: Ian and Patrick Hueter)

French LIDL Star Ligue

  • Montpellier (-5.5) vs Cesson-Rennes (Saturday, 1700 CET): Link
  • Tremblay vs Saint-Raphael (-1.5) (Sunday, 1600 CET): Link
  • Creteil (-1.5) vs Istres (Sunday, 1600 CET): Link

Spanish Liga Asobal

  • Aranda vs Vallodolid (-3.5) (Saturday, 1700 CET): Link
  • Cangas vs Huesca (-2.5) (Saturday, 1900 CET): Link
  • Cuenca (-3.5) vs Guadalajra (Saturday, 2100 CET): Link

The USA Gets a 2021 WC Slot, While Greenland (and Others) Stay Home (Part 2): The Competitive Case

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Greenland vs USA All Time Record:  All very interesting, but how relevant is it?

In Part 1, I endorsed the first five “business case” reasons that the IHF listed as rationale for selecting the U.S. to participate in the 2021 IHF Handball World Championships. I won’t, however, endorse the 6th listed reason:

  • From those teams that have registered for the planned qualification event and showed interest in playing the qualification (Canada, Greenland, Puerto Rico, USA), USA are the best-ranked team at the last official competition, namely the 2019 Pan American Games.

Why? Because, while true, it’s a tone deaf slap in the face to Greenland handball since Greenland is not allowed to participate in the PANAM Games. And, if you can’t compete in a competition it’s impossible to get ranked at that competition!

A Primer on National Team Handball Tournaments in the Americas

When it comes to national team competitions in the Americas a lot of folks get confused, and, for good reason as these competitions have similar names and participants. The best way to understand how everything is structured is to know which sport’s organization has overall jurisdiction for that competition. Or, to put it another way, what final tournament are the nations trying to qualify for?

For the IHF World Championships the IHF is ultimately responsible and until the Pan American Team Handball Federation (PATHF) was split into two confederations the event that qualified teams for the World Championships was the Pan American Championships. These Championships were held every 2 years and Greenland was able to participate because they are member of the IHF.

For the Olympic Games, the IOC is ultimately responsible and Greenland cannot participate because they are not a member of the IOC. Working with the Pan American Sports Organization (PASO), PATHF decided in 1987 to have the PANAM Games, which is essentially a mini-Olympics for the Americas as the handball qualification event for the Olympics. The PANAM Games are held every four years and Greenland cannot participate because they are not a member of the IOC or PASO.

As to why Greenland isn’t a member of the IOC it relates to Greenland’s semi-autonomous status as part of Denmark. The IOC currently requires full independence for new memberships. Which, incidentally, is why Puerto Rico competes in the Olympics despite their semi-autonomous state as they were “grandfathered” in as member prior to the change in policy.

Incidentally, since the North/South split of PATHF there has been no indication of any IHF plans to grant both the NACHC and SCAHC an Olympic slot. This status quo regarding Olympic qualification implies that the North and South will continue to share an Olympic slot that will be awarded at the PANAM Games.

The Tale of the Tape (All Time GRL-USA Competition Record)

So, while Greenland and the USA have never met in a PANAM Games competition they’ve met eight times in Pan American Championship tournaments, once in a North American Championship and once even at the World Championships. Here’s the all time match record based on Wikipedia results pages.

As an American, all I can say is, “Wow, this head to head summary pretty much summarizes the dismal performance of our men’s national team in the 21st century. 1-0-9 vs Greenland. A 330,000,000 population vs 55,000. This isn’t a rivalry. This is an ass whuppin. Seriously, what is wrong with handball in our country?”

At least that’s how it feels emotionally as someone who really, really cares about handball in this country. Putting on my analytical hat, however, none of this should be that surprising. So what if our population is almost 6,000 times larger. That doesn’t matter if more Greenlanders than Americans are actually playing handball. And, while our total GDP as a nation is massive, I suspect that Greenland spends more on handball than the U.S. does, from grass roots all the way to national teams.

A Trip Down Memory Lane

Looking at this historical record is quite the trip down memory lane and it really does mirror the decline of handball in the U.S. since the 1996 Olympic Games.  Note, how the sole U.S. victory is the very first match between the two countries in 1998. A ten goal victory with a roster that surely had some holdovers from that Olympic team.  But, as those players got older and nothing was really in place to develop athletes with traditional grass roots or a residency program the balance of power shifted.   In 2001, thanks to Cuba bowing out, the U.S. got a ticket to the World Championship where the U.S. was totally uncompetitive losing by an average of 22 goals, including an 8 goal loss to Greenland.  A year later with a trip to the 2002 World Championships on the line Greenland steam rolled over the U.S. 27-7.  The score at halftime:  11-2.  Two goals in 30 minutes?  To Greenland? When I first heard that result I was astonished.  When I asked an old teammate, “What the hell happened?” I got kind of a shrug and no real explanation.

And, for me personally, it was the beginning of a wakeup call, that the times they were a changin’.  A wakeup call, that was further realized by living 5 years in France and getting a close up view of what we up against on the world stage.  With support from the U.S. Olympic Committee being drastically cut and with no real grass roots structure in place it was the start of some real lean years for USA Team Handball.  Gone were the days when we could recruit some great athletes, train them up with a residency program and go take on the world.  At least that’s what was ridiculously obvious to me.  However, it was not so obvious to others and we attempted to recreate our “glory days” with an underfunded residency program that struggled to recruit athletes and couldn’t afford to travel to Europe for the competition that was needed to improve.

A Wakeup Call and a Change in Direction

Poor results continued as did the U.S. losing streak to Greenland.  In 2018 came the low water mark.  At a North American Championship, the U.S. finished 5th out of 6 nations and failed to even qualify for the Pan American Championships.  It did, however, finally elicit a wakeup call for USA Team Handball

Coincidence or not, my plea to shift to dual citizens was heeded and a totally revamped roster was put together to qualify for the 2019 PANAM Games.  Overnight the U.S. had a much better team and they qualified with relative ease over Canada winning a 2 match aggregate qualification by 12 goals.  And, having witnessed both matches in person, I would argue that it wasn’t even as close as the scores suggested.  The U.S. didn’t do as well as I would have liked at the PANAM Games, due in part to some injuries, but the score lines were better and we notched a victory over a Cuban team that’s also improved significantly.  The U.S. also performed well at the 2019 North American Emerging Nations Qualifier and the 2019 Emerging Nations Championship.

Is this new U.S. team World class?  No.  Our top prospects are playing in the German 2nd Divisions (Ian and Patrick Hueter) and the French 2nd Division (Abou Fofana).  And, then we have several players (thanks to support from the Forum Club Handball) are playing with top clubs like Spain’s Leon (Drew Donlin), Flensburg (Ty Reed, Tristan Morawski), Elverum (Nico Robinson) and Kristianstad (Rene Ingram).  With the exception of Donlin, these athletes are playing with 2nd teams, but also are training some of the time with the first team.  Those are all great training environments and every one of these athletes has improved since their PANAM Games opportunity last year.

They are not going to beat Norway and France, but they should put up a credible fight and we’ll see some flashes of real promise.  And, likely some wins in the President’s Cup.  Several of these athletes are also in their early 20s and will also likely be representing the U.S. in Los Angeles come 2028.

Better than Greenland?  (Or, Cuba for that Matter?)

Well, first to reiterate with emphasis:

No one.  I repeat no one is happy that no championship could be held to decide a winner on the court.  No one.

That being said, my educated guess if the North American & Caribbean Championship had been held this is the percentage odds as to who would have won.

  • Cuba: 40%
  • USA: 33%
  • Greenland: 25%
  • Another team 2%

Of course, this is just an educated guess, and we’ll never ever know for real, but here’s some more rationale.  Cuba and the U.S. played 4 times last year and split the matches 2-2, but I would assess that Cuba are a little deeper in terms of overall talent.

Neither the U.S. nor Cuba have played Greenland recently so it’s harder to extrapolate.  One might argue that Greenland’s performance at the 2018 Pan American Championships would make them the better team.  After all, they almost knocked off Chile to qualify for the 2019 WC, but those results are a bit tempered by the home crowd atmosphere they had pulling for them.  Further, their team is getting older with their top 3 players, Minik Dahl Hoegh and the Kreutzmann brothers all in their 30s and stepping away from full time handball.  And, there is no depth whatsoever on the Greenland roster.  Doesn’t mean they can’t overcome these shortcomings, just suggests that it would be a bit tougher for them to do so.

Does it Matter? Shouldn’t the IHF Just Look at Recent Results?

But, why just spitball how good the current teams are?  Let’s just look at the recent results.  I guess I could go along with that logic if it was written down somewhere that is the process that has to be followed.  But, lacking an established process it becomes a bit of gamesmanship.  Like the gamesmanship of using the PANAM Games as criteria to exclude Greenland.  How far back does one go in order to determine relevant results?  Should one factor in that both Cuba and the U.S. are dramatically different teams now?  Why or Why not?  Again, when one establishes criteria after the fact, one can select criteria that makes their case better.  Lacking such criteria, I would suggest that the business case for the U.S. couple with their recent improvement in performance makes the U.S. the logical, best choice to represent the NACHC.

An Awesome Set of Rivalries Shaping Up

I guess to end on a positive note, this little confederation is shaping up to be quite interesting.  Cuba and the U.S. have already renewed their rivalry and Greenland will be joining them.  I suspect the next GRL-USA match will be a hard fought one.  Canada, Mexico, Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic are surely thinking don’t forget about us.  Yes, one can really look forward to a real championship played on the court.  The sooner, the better.

Austria vs Estonia: A Glimpse of What a USA vs Austria Match Might Look Like

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The U.S. may have an outsider’s chance against Austria at the World Championships. Check out how well another outsider, Estonia, fares against them today.

Austria hosts Estonia today at 8:25 PM (CET) / 2:25 PM (US ET) in an European Championship Qualification match. The match can be seen on ehfTV. (Requires free registration). The oddsmakers have Austria as a 6.5 goal favorite. (Bet MGM)


The U.S. has drawn France, Norway and Austria and without a doubt that’s some stiff competition. It’s pretty hard to imagine the U.S. having any chance whatsoever vs France and Norway, but one can at least speculate on the possibility of the U.S. putting up a decent fight vs Austria.

Austria’s Roster

Austria is a 2nd tier European handball nation that sometimes challenges 1st tier European nations. Case in point: hard fought matches vs Croatia and Spain on home soil this past January at the European Championships. And, at the other end, they are a nation that has slipped up against lesser opponents. Case in point: A 32-24 loss to Chile at the 2019 World Championships.

Further, with their best player, Nikola Bilyk, out due to injury, the team participating in Egypt will be a notch down in quality from the side that participated in the most recent tournaments. Their roster features a handful of players playing in Germany, most notably Robert Weber, and other countries, but the bulk of their team plays in Austria. The Austrian League is a solid competition, but it’s not as strong as the leagues in other nations.

Estonia: A European Outsider

Austria’s opponent, Estonia, is a European outsider that’s never had any real success in handball. They’ve never qualified for the World Championships or European Championships and I don’t think they’ve ever come close. Their roster is mostly composed of athletes playing in Estonia or for 2nd tier foreign pro teams in other countries. The notable exception is Mat Patrail who currently plays for Rhein-Necker in the German Bundesliga.

An Estonia – USA Comparison

While Estonia has had no real success against Europe’s best teams, they’ve shown their better than Europe’s minnows. To get to this stage of qualification they easily beat Luxembourg 69-53 on aggregate. This same Luxembourg team easily defeated Great Britain, Bulgaria and Ireland and, those 3 nations were all at the 2019 Emerging Nations Championship which the U.S. also participated in. The U.S. beat Ireland 37-32 and lost to Bulgaria, 38-35, but the U.S. was missing some key players from their roster. I’m pretty certain a full strength U.S. roster would have won those matches and probably convincingly.

If one compares where the top U.S. players are currently playing club handball to Estonia you’ll see some similarities in terms of the level of play. The U.S. has the Hueter brothers (Ian and Patrick) playing in the German 2nd Division, Abou Fofana playing in the French 2nd Division and Drew Donlin playing a supporting role for Leon in the Spanish Liga Asobal. And, then several players playing in lower divisions throughout Europe, including 3 athletes (Ty Reed, Rene Ingram and Nico Robinson) that are also getting some practice time with Champions League Clubs.

Overall, based on these common foe comparisons and club assignments I would say that the current U.S. squad probably is somewhere between Estonia and Luxembourg in quality. Of course, that’s just a paper assessment based on limited information. It will be interesting to see how Estonia fares today and how the U.S. can do in January.

The USA Gets a 2021 WC Slot, while Greenland (and Others) Stay Home (Part 1): The Business Case

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Yes, the IHF is a business and business concerns are rightly part of the decision making process

Yesterday, the IHF nominated the U.S. to participate in the 2021 IHF World Men’s Handball Championship as the North American & Caribbean Handball Confederation (NACHC). It didn’t take long for a firestorm of protest to emerge pointing out that this wasn’t deserved and that Greenland should have been selected instead. It was very predictable and on the surface it seems pretty unfair. If one digs deeper, however, one can also conclude that it was clearly the right decision.

Establishing some Bonafides

For the record, I’m an American and former U.S. National Team player. I bleed red, white & blue and, of course, one could consider me as ridiculously biased. How could I possibly be objective here?

Well, let’s take a trip down memory lane to the 2006-2007 timeframe when Greenland was unceremoniously removed from the Pan American Team Handball Federation (PATHF) for essentially being too good. (And, yes, I regret to say that my own nation was part of those machinations.) Why, on two occasions (2002, 2006) Greenland beat the U.S. to secure World Championship spots. The 2006 defeat was a real bummer because I was living in Europe and looking forward to covering the U.S. at the 2007 World Championships in Germany.

Instead, I got to watch Greenland play instead. As you can see and hear from this 2007 article/podcast I became a pretty big fan. For sure it was very obvious that the whining I had heard in the states that Greenland’s team was just a bunch of Danish mercenaries, was totally hogwash. This was a legit team with real fans that were proudly Greenlanders. That’s why I was outraged when Greenland was kicked out of PATHF and used my soap box to lobby for their reinstatement. Whether this little website played any role is debatable, but thankfully the IHF forced PATHF to reinstate Greenland.

13 years later I still am a big proponent of Greenland handball. In 2018, I watched Greenland almost pull off a big upset over Chile on home soil to secure a 2019 WC slot. What a match and atmosphere! Check out this interview with Minik Dahl Hoegh regarding that match and handball in Greenland.

Anyway… If all this doesn’t convince you I can be objective… Nothing will. Moving on.

The IHF Role: They Decide and There’s No Established Criteria

So, why is the IHF making this decision? Well, due to the COVID-19 and probably the limited budgets of the nations involved it became impossible to hold a NACHC Championship. And, let’s be absolutely clear here:

No one. I repeat no one. Is happy that no championship could be held to decide a winner on the court. No one.

So no championship. How is this resolved? Does one turn to the NACHC regulations to see what it says under force majeure? No… not even if such regulations exist. As the IHF announcement points out, the applicable regulation is IHF Competitions, Section 2.8, World Championships: Non Appearance which states in part:

“If a Continental Confederation does not use its performance or compulsory places, the IHF Executive Committee shall decide on the reallocation of such places.”

So, with no championship being held, technically, the IHF didn’t even have to give this World Championship slot to a NACHC nation. They could have decided (as some have suggested in social media) given this slot to North Macedonia.

IHF Rationale for Selecting the U.S.

So, basically this was a free ticket for the IHF with no actual requirements dictating a solution. The IHF, however, provided some rationale, which I mostly agree with. That rationale is listed below:

  • USA are a very important handball nation for the worldwide handball development;
  • In view of the size of the population, a specific strategy was developed to accelerate the progress of handball in USA, aiming to grow the IHF’s TV audience worldwide and increase the social network impact of handball, which will help to maintain the status of handball in the Olympic system and ensure the future of handball at the Olympic Games;
  • The former Pan American continent was split in order to increase the number of handball activities and offer the countries in NACHC better chances to reach IHF major events. A special focus was placed from the very beginning on the USA being a major market. 
  • An agreement with major TV broadcasters in the USA has been made to show handball matches.
  • As Los Angeles, USA is hosting the 2028 Olympic Games, having strong host teams should be an overall target;
  • From those teams that have registered for the planned qualification event and showed interest in playing the qualification (Canada, Greenland, Puerto Rico, USA), USA are the best-ranked team at the last official competition, namely the 2019 Pan American Games.

The first five sets of rationale listed all relate to U.S. development and growing the U.S. market. Strictly from a business standpoint it’s hard to find fault with this rationale. And, make no mistake, the IHF is a business. Honestly, after years of shaking my fist in frustration at the lack of effort to develop a U.S. market, it’s refreshing to see criteria I’ve championed before being listed as reasons to give the U.S. an opportunity on the world stage. To promote the sport in this country.

A Rising Tide Lifts all Boats

It’s also worth noting that what’s good for USA Team Handball is also good for handball, in general, both in North America and the World. I get how the other nations of the NACHC might be resentful of the economic weight of the U.S. dictating this decision. Even if it is a unique, one off decision that’s only be made due to a global pandemic it still can leave a bad taste in one’s mouth.

But, make no mistake if the U.S. becomes a handball nation it will help everybody, much the same way the U.S. development as a soccer nation has helped the development of the CONCACAF. Yes, the CONCACAF isn’t UEFA, but make no mistake the U.S. caring about soccer now means some big paychecks for that organization. Big paychecks that have trickled down to all the CONCACAF nations.

Could the same thing happen with the NACHC? Yes, it could. Nicer competitions with a crowd and a TV contract. The U.S., Cuba, Canada, Greenland and others battling on the court for a WC slot in a nice arena in front of cheering fans.

So that’s the business case, but there’s actually a pretty solid case to be made that the U.S. is also the better team on the court. In Part 2, I’ll take a deep dive to explain why I think that is also true.