Balic and Karabatic teammates?

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There are some interesting developments and rumors in the Croatian handball. It is well known that the dominating club on the men’s side, Croatia Osiguranje Zagreb, is undergoing a form of ‘restructuring’, in terms of ownership and status. This naturally is combined with increased ambitions regarding the club’s strength and status on the European scene. One key objective is then obviously to hold on to Ivano Balic beyond his current contract. He is assumed to like the idea of finishing his career at home in Croatia, but someone of his caliber will always be sought after by other wealthy clubs.

But the real ‘coup’ would be if the rumors are true that the club also endeavors to try to sign up Nikola Karabatic next season. http://www.handball-planet.com/2010/10/nikola-karabatic-to-join-hc-zagreb/ The mere thought of a Balic-Karabatic combination at the club level is obviously very intriguing. That would surely create a serious obstacle for the German-Spanish domination in the Champions League. Of course, many observer if the notion of having these strong rivals and handball personalities on the same team is not just a bit too explosive and risky. Would they really be compatible and how would it affect the team’s cohesiveness?

One of the dominating personalities in Croatian handball during recent decades has clearly been Zoran Gobac. He has just resigned from his position as Chairman of C.O. Zagreb, and he has also announced that he will leave his key position in the Croatian Handball Federation next year. http://www.balkan-handball.com/english/co-zagreb-chairman-zoran-gobac-resigned From my observations during my IHF period, Gobac has had a great and positive influence on the status of handball in Croatia. He would surely be leaving on a positive note, if the developments described above were to materialize.

Finally, another key figure in Croatian handball, Lino Cervar, continues be a person in the spotlight. After his many years of great successes, but also some degree of controversy, as the coach of the Croatian national team, he is currently coaching the Macedonian top club team Metalurg Skopje. The desire of the Macedonian Federation has been to get Cervar to extend his services also to the men’s national team. It seems, however, that this will not happen, as the wealthy sponsors of Metalurg frown at the idea of supporting in this a national team that apparently is not enjoying any kind of serious backing from the Macedonian government and its sports authorities.

EHF game of the week: Montpellier at Veszprem (And with same day TV coverage in the U.S.!)

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Montpellier travels to Hungary Saturday to face unbeaten Veszprem in a key Group B showdown. Montpellier bounced back from their week 1 defeat to Hamburg with an easy victory over Sweden’s IK Savehof in week 2. Meanwhile Veszprem is riding high from their 3 goal victory last week over Group B favorite Hamburg. A victory for Veszprem gives them a leg up in Group B, while a loss for Montpellier will put them at 1-2. According to online sportsbooks Veszprem is a 3 or 3.5 goal favorite.

As my colleague, Chirster Ahl, pointed out recently four teams will advance from each Group and it’s a safe bet these two sides will advance. So what makes these matches important is the seeding that will come out of the group. A first seed will likely mean an easy match up in the round of 16 and an easier opponent in the quarter finals. A second seed will mean a stronger challenge in the round of 16 and a likely matchup vs. a #1 seed in the quarter. A third seed means even worse prospects and who knows, Denmark’s KIF Kolding might be for real with their 2-0 record so Montpellier could even be looking at a fourth seed if they keep losing.

For U.S. residents there is the added treat that this broadcast will be available on TV via the MHz Network at 1600 Eastern Time. See the press release for information on where you can watch this channel. MHZ is not ESPN, but it is available through a number of different avenues including Direct TV and via arrangements with local stations in several markets. We’ll be researching this more in the coming weeks. For those without MHz ehfTV will broadcast the match live at 1725 Central European Time (1125 U.S. Eastern Time)

ehfTV On Demand Video Link: http://www.ehftv.com/ec/cl/men/2010-11/video/001160
USA Team Handball: MHz Worldview to Air Velux EHF Champions League Across USA: http://usateamhandball.org/news/2010/10/08/mhz-worldview-to-air-velux-ehf-champions-league-across-usa/38948?ngb_id=42
EHF: Interview with Veszprem’s Mark Vujin: http://www.ehfcl.com/men/2010-11/article/13406/%22My+legs+are+much+stronger%21%22

Same old story!?

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It is always risky to make predictions after just 6 rounds of 34, but it seems that only one major change has taken place in the Bundesliga since the 2009-10 season: last year the league really had only 9 strong teams out of 18, considering the huge 14-point gap from the 9th team to the 10th, but now the league probably consists of 10 serious teams… Magdeburg seems to have joined the top group, after have won three times in five matches against very tough opponents.

And then one has to point to the quick start of the Rhein-Neckar Loewen, the only team without a loss so far, despite the turbulence that one would expect to come with a coaching change so early in the season. Kiel and Hamburg, last year’s top two teams, have lost only one time each and are clearly playing well. Kiel looked quite superior to many observers before the start of the season, but the long-term injuries to several key players cannot be just shaken off, despite the large number of top talents on the Kiel squad.

In Spain we had a similarly divided Liga ASOBAL last year, with less than half of the teams being really competitive. Like in Germany, there were two real top clubs, Ciudad Real and Barcelona, with two ‘almost’ rivals in the form of Valladolid and Leon and another three teams competing for European slots. Prior to the start of this season, there have been many stories about clubs having severe financial difficulties, with a resulting need for cutting back on their expenses and their ambitions. To some extent it seems this also affects the top clubs.

Nevertheless, after 4 rounds, precisely the top four teams from last year are again the ones showing the best form, winning all their games. The traditional powers from Granollers are next in the ranking. And at the bottom, winless, whom do we find if not the five teams who finished just above the relegation line last season. So how predictable can it get!? It goes without saying that also Montpellier in France and the new Danish ‘conglomerate’ AG are quickly at the top of their respective leagues.

So can we then find enough consolation and excitement in the current format of the Champions League? Well, perhaps on the women’s side, which is just about to start. But the first two rounds of the men’s competition show, on the one hand how fantastic a league or a format with the [u]real [/u]top teams could be, but on the other hand that in each group there are one or two teams that do not quite have the necessary strength.

So let us enjoy some really good handball matches, while we ignore that most of the results are either predictable or not so important for the final standings. And let us dream about how much more exciting it could be in a different format. Most likely, by saying that I will annoy some fanatic supporters of, for instance, Balingen and Torrevieja or AaB and Kielce; but I am sure you will continue to enjoy seeing your clubs play against first-class teams, even if they are losing.

Interview: USA Team Handball General Manager, Steve Pastorino: Part 4: Federation Organization and Financial Status

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In the 4th and final installment of our interview, we discuss how USA Team Handball is now organized and its current financial status.

[b]Federation Organization/Financial Status[/b]

John Ryan: One of the bigger changes between the old Federation and the newest incarnation is the radically different staffing philosophies. For many years 3 or 4 staff members oversaw operations from a national office. The current staff is much larger. Exactly how many full time and part time employees are there?

Steve Pastorino:

Full Time ADMINISTRATION:
1. Steve Pastorino/General Manager (UT);
2. Dan Bush/Membership & National Teams (UT);
3. Alex Leopold (IL) / PR, Website/Development

Full Time HANDBALL DEVELOPMENT:
4. Mariusz Wartalowicz/Technical Director (IL)
5. Brian Finley/West Region (CA)
6. Dominique Dumont/East (FL)
7. Marko Brezic/Regional Coach (UT)

PART TIME/INTERNS:
8. Greg Myers/Marketing & Chicago Youth Development (IL);
9. Aida Kulasic, Intern Chicago (IL)
10. Brandon Gustafson, Intern SLC (UT)
11. Tim Fifield, Intern Fresno (CA)
12. Jaclyn Rymer, Intern LA (CA)
13. Timo Krueger, Intern Chicago (IL) (from Germany)
14. Ditte Rasmussen, Intern (UT) (from Denmark)

JR: Why the change in staffing philosophy? What are the benefits?

SP:
1. I believe we should be a national federation, with presence in multiple regions. There is not one central hub of handball in America where all of the resources/people/development should be centered (not Atlanta, not NY, not LA).
2. I think we need to be significant enough (in size, dollars, manpower) to run this sport with the attention, breadth and aspiration it deserves. Therefore, my staffing plan is bigger and more aggressive than in the past.
3. Mariusz, Brian, Dominique and Marko give USA Team Handball a face and on-the-ground presence in four important and different regions. We are trying to be far more ambitious in scope than our predecessors, and our staff is far more useful in four different time zones than all in one place.

JR: Such a staff takes a bigger slice of a limited budget. Are you concerned that this will preclude other expenditures like international travel, funds for club development, etc?

SP: Everything requires money. We have made a case to USOC that handball deserves substantially greater funding, and our message has been well-received when we pitch our long-term plans to them. I want to grow USATH into a $1M-$5M/year organization, with proper grassroots programs, proper National Team expenditures, substantial staff/club/player/referee/coach development.

JR: I understand that USATH wants the budget to grow, but in the meantime you’re dealing with a limited budget. Some tough decisions are being made that impact a lot of people. If the U.S. was spending a little less on salaries we wouldn’t have athletes digging into their own pockets to represent our country in international competition. Conversely, someone could even make the argument that if we cancelled a few more trips we could hire another regional director. Everything does require money, but how are those tough decisions being made?

SP: My staff provides budgets based upon their geographical location and/or projects where they are assigned; I compile these and then I present proposed budgets to our board; and they assist me in the prioritization process.

JR: What are the current year projected overall revenues and expenses?

SP: Approx. $800,000 (up from $500k in 2008-09 fiscal year.)

JR: Do you see overall revenues increasing from year to year? Can you give me a rough idea of where will be in 2012,2016,2020?

SP: I’d like to be a $5M/year organization by 2016.

JR: How much has Board Chairman, Dieter Esch, personally contributed since being certified by the USOC?

SP: More than $500,000.

JR: Wow. Even for a wealthy man that’s a significant chunk of change. Where would USATH be right now without that level of contribution?

SP: There would be no USATH. Perhaps there would be another group running a federation; or perhaps the USOC would still be administering the sport.

JR: Have all other independent board members contributed the $50,000 required by the Federation by laws?

SP: Several are spreading the payments over multiple years. All are on track to make at least $50,000 in donations.

JR: How much funding has the USOC provided? What percentage of total revenue is it? Do you see that percentage becoming smaller?

SP: In 2009, it was approximately $140,000. In 2010, approximately $260,000. It has been less than 30% of operating revenues. We anticipate that USOC will continue to increase their contributions, and the percentage of overall revenues will be in line with other NGB’s of our size and scope.

JR: How much funding have our sponsors provided on a yearly basis? Do you see this increasing over time? How much has progress on this front been stymied by the recession?

SP: $100,000 – $150,000 in 2009 and 2010; I would like to see this grow substantially. The recession has made it difficult, but sponsors and grants are a key to our long-term viability.

JR: You indicated that USATH wants to grow the budget to $5,000,000. The current budget is $800,000. How does the USATH increase its budget 6-fold?

SP: We’ve tried to build a business model for the long term. We have identified new areas of income (international events i.e., Battle of Chicago) and taken advantage of new and/or less cheaper technology to connect and promote our sport (televising events both on our website and channels like ESPN3 and Comcast Sport Net, making our home page a portal for news/info relevant to handball players in America, social media such as Facebook, etc. We’re trying to make the federation less dependent on one board member or one Executive Director by bringing board and staff on board with different business acumen, geographic location and ideas about sport development. We’ve forged a close relationship and accountability with USOC and multiple federations and clubs across Europe. This business foundation allows us to do more of the sport development at youth, teen and adult levels.

JR: The current Board of Directors (BoD) construct consists of 7 members with independent credentials and 2 athlete representatives. None of these directors, with the exception of the athlete reps are elected by the membership. While, I think the independent directors have given the Board a better business orientation I’m concerned that the rank and file doesn’t have much of a voice on this current board. Do you think this is true? Should it be a concern?

SP: We are adding another athlete rep who will be elected by a broader group of individuals than the AAC Rep (which is an artificially small number per USOC Bylaws). The rules for this election will be established this week. This Board member will have an important voice. Additionally, we have had guests at several board meetings now, and we will continue to facilitate that. Any rank-and-file member who wishes to voice opinions (through board members, my staff or directly to me) is encouraged to do so – and we hear from members every single day. I think our Board representation is fair and this has not been an issue to date.

JR: Some sports have a larger body (e.g. a congress) that provides input to the board in an advisory role. Do you see USATH adding that?

SP: We’ve discussed it… but until I see / hear more feedback that it is requested by the membership, it is not a priority.

JR: You’ve covered a lot of ground in this interview and I’ve found it very informative. In some respects, though, I think it only scratches the surface in terms of USATH’s plans for the future. Does the USATH have a more detailed plan which outlines objectives and includes benchmarks to measure performance? If so, can the membership see that plan and provide input?

SP: We provide a High Performance Plan to USOC annually, but they primarily want to know about our long-term Olympic prospects, not the broader plans, business model, etc. I have read several “10-year Plans” that were written in the past at USTHF, and unfortunately, none of them came to fruition. I prefer to let our work speak for itself, but there is always room for more public input and participation.

JR: In closing, I’ll ask the same question I asked you two years ago when we first met at the USA Team Handball Summit in St Louis. You had just taken the GM job and had heard 8 solid hours of discussion in regards to the challenges of developing Team Handball in this country. I asked you then if you were starting to realize just how hard it was going to be and whether there any second thoughts about taking on this challenge. You were full of optimism then. Two years later, how do you feel?

SP: No second thoughts. This sport is rich in history and tradition, inspires great passion and has unlimited potential. Is it a challenge? Absolutely. Is it exciting to be a part of the process? Without a doubt. I’m still optimistic. Go USA.

This concludes the interview, here are links to the other 3 installments.
Interview Part 1 (National Team Planning): https://teamhandballnews.com/news.php?item.1098
Interview Part 2 (Overseas Players and Future’s Program): https://teamhandballnews.com/news.php?item.1101
Interview Part 3 (Part 3: College Programs and Club Issues): https://teamhandballnews.com/news.php?item.1104

EHF Game of the Week: Barcelona tries to avoid back to back losses to German clubs

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Barcelona lost last week, 31-30, on their home floor to Germany’s Rhein-Neckar Lowen. This week they travel to Germany to take on last year’s champion Kiel. Barcelona will want to avoid going 0-2 in the standings in Group A and show a little Spanish League pride as one of the more heated ongoing debates in Handball is to whether the German or Spanish league is better. With Rhein-Neckar (arguably the 3rd best side in Germany) dispatching Reale Ademar in the Wild Card playoff and taking care of Barcelona in Barcelona, the argument appears to currently be leaning in Germany’s favor. Spain’s Ciudad Real easily dispatched Flensburg last week and few would argue against that club being one of the world’s best, but it could be that Spanish League is turning into a one horse town with Ciudad Real far outclassing even rivals like Barcelona.

Barcelona will want to show that they are still a team to be reckoned with. The oddsmakers at least still have some faith in Barcelona. Kiel is only a consensus 2 goal favorite.

EHF Preview: Duel of Kings in Kiel: http://www.ehfcl.com/men/2010-11/article/13388/Duel+of+Kings+in+Kiel

Kiel v Barcelona On Demand Full Match Video: http://www.ehftv.com/ec/cl/men/2010-11/video/001157

IHF conference confirms sensible observations and ideas

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Yesterday the IHF hosted a brief conference ‘Forum for the Future of Handball’. Discussions were held on three areas of topics: Game Structure and Development, Handball on TV, and Handball and its Partners. This type of conferences often produces very little in terms of new discoveries and great ideas. And it is not realistic to pursue topics very far during just a few hours. But it is still useful to have these events, because ideas that may already exist or be rather obvious may be given some added legitimacy or momentum simply by being discussed in a highly visible forum outside the closed doors of the IHF.

The IHF has issued a brief statement commenting on the main conclusions in the three areas. http://www.ihf.info/MediaCenter/News/NewsDetails/tabid/130/Default.aspx?ID=467 I will basically focus only on the first part, leaving the issues of handball on TV and marketing for later. Generally, it is easy for me to welcome and support the conclusions regarding rules and refereeing, because I have written about many of these topics in recent time.

I am not surprised to read that “the speed of the game has reached its limit” and I fully agree. This is not out of concern for the referees, although that is one consideration, but simply because I have heard numerous top coaches and players express the same sentiment in recent years. The control and quality would suffer with increased speed. And the current pace of the game may be high enough also for the spectators to handle.

From a TV standpoint, I am not surprised to see that there was support for an additional team time-out per team and game. This makes sense, but only in games broadcast on TV. For normal games, the current situation, with one time-out per team and half should remain adequate. Additional ones would cause unwanted extensions of the game at the lower levels.
Of course, I am especially happy to see agreement that the method of ‘video review’ should be pursued in the near future, in support of referee decisions in special circumstances. Over the last year, I have written detailed articles in support of such a development. https://teamhandballnews.com/news.php?item.977 https://teamhandballnews.com/news.php?item.1052 But it will require a careful determination of appropriate procedures and safeguard, and it is obviously only realistic at levels where adequate camera coverage is available.

Otherwise I am very content that there was not a ‘flood’ of suggestions for rules changes. This tends to be the ‘easy solution’ when improvements are sought. But at this time there are no glaring problems in the rules, and stability would be important in the near term. Quite correctly, the emphasis was instead placed on measures in support of the top level referees. Also here I have written extensively and recently, https://teamhandballnews.com/news.php?item.1099 https://teamhandballnews.com/news.php?item.1095 noting that the IHF referees continue to need strong support also after they have been able to reach the World Championship level. Cognitive skills, decision-making capacity, and human relations skills are just some of the relevant aspects. And, as always, their understanding of the tactical and technical aspects of the game remains vital.

So, it is nice to be able to support what is being reported. But once again my frequent concern: why where there virtually no current top players in the Forum? Their perspective is very important!

Some comparisons between handball, basketball and volleyball

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In a ‘Report on the 26 core sports for the Games of the XXXI Olympiad’, the IOC offers some interesting information in a standardized format on each of the 26 sports. This could provide an indication of how handball stacks up in relation to some other relevant sports, such as basketball and volleyball, in some particular areas. Clearly such information could offer some food for thought when handball tries to develop strategies and methods to increase its competitiveness in relation to other sports. In this posting, I will not try to attempt an analysis. Primarily I will point you to the source, http://www.olympic.org/Documents/Commissions_PDFfiles/Programme_commission/REPORT_26_CORE_SPORTS_2016_GAMES.pdf and suggest some aspects which may need our attention. Beyond that, you may discover other numbers of interest.

One basic overview shows the number of member federations in each continent. Basketball and volleyball have a total of 205 and 204 member countries respectively, while handball has 165. Where is then the discrepancy? The answer is obvious: the big gaps are to be found in America and Oceania. Basketball and volleyball both have 42 members in the American continent, while handball has 26. The corresponding situation in Oceania is 17, 17 and 5. Of course, this fact is well known in the IHF, and we also have an ‘excuse’ in the sense that by tradition handball is a ‘non-Anglo’ sport, so this automatically affects some countries. Progress has indeed been made in America, and Venezuela is a fantastic example, but much more needs to be done and more rapidly. So the question is what more IHF can do and also if the PanAmerican Federation has the resources to do enough.

A more telling statistic indicates what proportion of the federations is active enough to take part in Continental championships. In basketball, the percentages in Africa, America and Asia were 72, 89 and 84. In handball the corresponding percentages were 17, 33 and 29. This does not say much about the quality of the participants of course. But it suggests that while the ‘grassroots’ numbers are not so bad in handball, the ability to seriously compete at the continental level is not so widespread. This may be largely a question of money, but it may also depend on what the international federation can do to facilitate a broader participation. The new emphasis on Challenge Cup is important and promising for handball, but it may still be a slow process to get this countries fully integrated in true continental events. Of course, if the Challenge Cup is turned more fully into ‘continental qualifying’, then it may become more a question of ‘cosmetics’ or semantics.

Another interesting comparison involves the average number of daily visitors to the web sites of the international federations, both during an entire year, and during a World Championship. The numbers for handball were 2.200 and 19.500, completely dwarfed by basketball with 15.000 and 600.000, and also overshadowed by volleyball’s 28.000 and 71.000. This may say something about the perceived quality of the web sites (also after the attempted improvements in handball) but it is more likely to reflect the differences in interest on the part of the worldwide audiences. And the question then arises, could one find out what explains these huge differences and then do something about it!? And why is there such a contrast to the much better comparison in terms of the average number of TV viewers globally for each minute of coverage of the respective sport: handball 23 millions, volleyball 23 millions and basketball 33 millions.

Finally, a set of numbers that beg some explanations, because on the surface they are not so flattering: The proportion of anti-doping tests in 2007 that resulted in discovered violations: handball 0.9%, basketball 0.2% and volleyball 0.03%. Not only does the comparison look bad, but the 0.9% figure also seems mysteriously high. One would hope there is some aberration here that helps explain that the real number is not so bad? If so, the IHF should investigate and show a correction, because the image is important.

My Keynote Address to the IHF’s “For the Future of Handball” Forum (Part 1)

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In an imaginary parallel universe I’ve been invited to speak the IHF’s “For the Future of Handball” Forum that will take place this Thursday, 30 September in Germany.

Below is my planned address.

First off, I’d like to thank Adidas and Mr. Moustafa for inviting me to speak at this “For the Future of Handball” Forum. While I’m pretty certain few people on the face of this planet have written or thought more on this subject I was still surprised to get the invitation. I’ve been told that I can speak candidly. Trust me I will.

[b]Game Structure and Development[/b]

I’ll first speak briefly on the development and rules of the game. The invitation asked the following questions on this topic:
• Would more speed be fine for the game?
• Is the flood of goals a curse or a blessing?
• Are referees able to properly observe the game, covering all activities on the field, or do quick attack series overtax them?
• Would referees of professional status, as far as feasible, show far better performances?

Now I’ll ask a question of my own. Do we even need to debate questions for which the answers are all too obvious? The answer is a resounding no. If you don’t intuitively understand that more speed and goals are good for the game then you probably shouldn’t be here. Likewise, if you don’t already know that referees are challenged at higher levels of play and are underpaid find your way to the exit door. No, the questions that should be asked in this area are in regards to video replay and adding a third official. I won’t wax eloquently on these issues. My suggestion instead is find someone with experience in these areas and have them lead a forum on where to proceed in these areas. I would also argue that you would be hard pressed to find someone more capable of exploring this issue than my colleague Christer Ahl.

[b]Handball on TV[/b]

Now for a topic near and dear to me: Handball on TV. First off, let’s be very clear. It’s time to stop the self aggrandizing declaratives about how the coverage of handball has “increased enormously.” While it has increased modestly this has not been due to effective marketing. No, it has been more due to an increase in the number of channels world-wide looking for sports to broadcast. Sorry, if I offend anyone here, but a monkey could get the modest increase in exposure this great sport has gotten. Instead of patting ourselves on the back, we need to acknowledge the harsh reality is that in most countries handball is actually falling further behind other sports that are more aggressively and successfully marketing their product. In the world’s most affluent market, the U.S., the sport has virtually no presence. The same is true in the world’s largest emerging markets (India and China). Even in European countries like France, the sport is relegated mostly to Cable and satellite with only Championship finals being offered over the free airways.

[u]Internet Web Streaming[/u]

Fortunately, the methods for distributing video content are changing and changing rapidly. Not too long ago the only way to watch handball was on a few terrestrial channels. In the last 20 years or so there has been a proliferation of Cable TV and Satellite options with dozens of channels for distribution. Now thanks to the internet it is now possible to stream video virtually anywhere in the world. To the EHF’s credit (and to a lesser extent the IHF) internet web streaming is now available for major Handball tournaments (sometimes free and sometimes for a fee). We are in the Wright Brothers stage of this technology and the viewing experience has been a mixed bag in terms of quality. Fortunately the trend is steadily toward a better and better viewing experience. To give you an idea of just how good of an experience it can be, Adidas and Apple have loaned us a couple of iPads. (Hand out iPads to audience to pass around) I’ve loaded a subscription to MLB.COM www.mlb.com and you’ll see just how good a picture can be provided for a sport viewing experience. Yes, I know how boring Baseball is, but this should open your eyes as to the art of the possible.

But, right now the sports world is merely dipping a toe in the water as the fear is that web streaming is going to take away from lucrative TV contracts. Nowhere is this more apparent than the German Bundesliga’s decision to geoblock web broadcasts outside of Germany in the oft chance that a TV contract might be signed with the country. This is simply shortsighted. Sorry, I’ve got some news for everyone here. The days of these big TV contracts are numbered and it’s only a matter of time before webstreaming will be so ubiquitous that viewers won’t be able to tell it apart from other delivery options. This may sound like very bad news, but if the Handball community chooses to embrace this coming new reality it could very well be the best thing that could ever happen. How so? Internet web streaming will change everything in that it gives you the power to cut out the middle man altogether. Instead of paying someone to coax networks in multiple countries, why not provide a high quality product via the web to everyone. No geoblocking, no fighting for terrestrial broadcasts on free TV. Instead unfettered access to all, everywhere!

Now I realize that this envisioned future isn’t quite there yet. When will it be? 5 years from now? 10 years? Who knows, but think back 15 years ago to when you sent your very first email. Did you fully comprehend the significance of that event? Now extrapolate that to webstreaming and think about the coming revolution.

[u]Total Handball[/u]

So what should the handball world do to prepare for this eventual reality? Well the first thing that could be done is to take is to take a page out of the EHF’s game of the week concept. What if that wasn’t the just for the Champions League? What if it was for all Handball world-wide? What if one week it was the Women’s World Cup final and the next week a Spanish match between Barcelona and Ciudad Real and the next week a Champions League match? Why not pool resources to create a shared platform?

I would argue that such a conglomerate could put together a pretty good package. One that would be of interest to fans both in Handball’s base in Europe and in other parts of the world where the sport is less known. This game of the week, would be the marquee event and would be used to showcase the sport. To start it should be offered for free on the internet and sold to existing networks at a very competitive price. In Europe I think you guys understand what that price should be. In the rest of the World, though, you’re going to have practically give it away. In some instance like the U.S. you may even have to (horror of horrors) pay to get it broadcasted on TV. Why on Earth should you do that? Well that leads to my next topic: Marketing this great sport.

End of Part 1

IHF: Experts discuss the future of handball – Congress in Herzogenaurach: http://www.ihf.info//MediaCenter/News/NewsDetails/tabid/130/Default.aspx?ID=456

EHF Game of the Week: Will Montpellier’s new arena capture the atmosphere of Rene Bougnol?

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ehfTV’s first game of the week (with English language commentary) on Sunday will feature two top sides, Montpellier and Hamburg, christening a brand new arena. Montpellier had previously played all of their matches in the Palais du Sport Rene Bougnol, a small arena with a capacity of 3,000. Now Montpellier will play its “big games” in a new arena, simply called l’Arena which can hold 9,000. This larger venue should help Montpellier get the revenue it needs to compete with the top clubs in the Champions League. All well and good, but will the new arena have the same atmosphere and magic as the old one?

I never stepped foot in Rene Bougnol, but as Montpellier was always (and I mean always) on TV while I was living in France it still is like saying goodbye to an old friend. With its distinctive arced stand and vocal crowd it was the scene for some remarkable Champions League games where top teams lost by a whole lot more than they should have. Most notably, it was the site where Montpellier won the Champions League in 2003 when they overcame an 8 goal aggregate deficit from the first match with a 12 goal slaying of Portland San Antonio. And it was where Montpellier annihilated a Flensburg side by a seemingly safe 14 goals in 2005. But perhaps as Chekov showed last year with their penalty shoot out win the luck of old Rene Bougnol had run its course. Will the new arena start a new run? Time will tell, but this match could be an indicator. The handicap line is 0 goals for this match.

The game will start at 1700 in France and 1100 hrs on the U.S. East Coast.
On Demand Video: http://www.ehftv.com/ec/cl/men/2010-11/video/001153

Interview: USA Team Handball General Manager, Steve Pastorino: Part 3: College Programs and Club Issues

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In part 3 of our interview, we discuss college programs and club issues in the U.S.

[b]College Programs[/b]

JR: What’s the USATH plan for college programs?

SP: We work with interested college students, club sports organizers, athletic departments, etc. On a case-by-case basis, we are trying to build programs. We try to identify an advocate everywhere we go. Success stories include: Texas A&M, Ohio State, Florida Atlantic, Oregon State, Gallaudet, Cal Lutheran – all of which participated in events last year. This coming year we are working with many schools including: Claremont Colleges, Utah, BYU, Colorado State, University of Illinois-Chicago, Western Kentucky, Penn State, Pitt, several Florida and Georgia schools. We don’t have an advocate / see a path to get it done more quickly on an intercollegiate/conference/regional basis.

JR: This year’s tournaments didn’t have a lot of college teams participating. What steps are being taken to expand the number of college clubs? Long term, how many clubs do you think the U.S. will have?

SP: I think we can get to 24 schools by 2012, with roughly half west of the Rockies. One key is to develop them in clusters, so they have nearby competition. I think the idea of College Nationals is ahead of its time; and we’d be better served with College West and College East championships, but for now, it’s worthwhile to protect and continue the tradition of one collegiate champion. I loved having Nationals outdoors in Myrtle Beach – it attracted a lot of attention and was a fun Spring Break type destination for our athletes, but it’s an expensive place to get to by air. We’re looking at similar environments near hub airports in the future.

JR: There was a short snippet in one of the Board’s Meeting minutes highlighting Cal Lutheran in Southern California as becoming a training site. What exactly is planned for that program?

SP: Cal Lutheran is one of USA Water Polo’s training centers so there’s precedent for their relationship with an NGB. They have lined two gyms with permanent handball lines and purchased equipment. They have supported the formation of a student club. They are making dorm space and gym space available to us on an annual basis for tryouts, clinics and/or camps. We will likely hold residential camps in the summer there as soon as 2011. We’re talking to University of Utah to do the same; and to schools in Central and Eastern time zones as well.

JR: Funds are limited and choices have to be made. Are college clubs seen as a cornerstone for USA development or a “nice to have”? In other words where does it fall in terms of priorities?

SP: They are a cornerstone. But we felt that we needed to establish a base of high schoolers playing first so we could begin to direct them to college programs starting in 2012 or so. We’ve spent more time on HS programs (futures and other grassroots) but always had our eye on colleges that would complement our other programs.

JR: Are there any plans to get Team Handball back on the NCAA Emerging Sports list? Could we even envision it as a fully sanctioned NCAA sport?

SP: It could be sanctioned NCAA sport sooner on the women’s side – which is why the Futures program was launched for girls one year before boys. But there’s a lot of work to do. We need dozens of established clubs before we can even think about Varsity status. When we have 10-20 solid clubs on men’s or women’s side, then we’ll revisit the idea of being an Emerging Sport again.

JR: Some sports federations, (USA Rugby for example) have a full time college director. Is that a possibility for USATH?

SP: Some day.

[b]Club Issues[/b]

JR: A lot of our discussion has focused on the end goal of a competitive National Team. But, this is not necessarily a priority for many members of the rank and file that just want to play the sport. How do you balance developing national teams while serving the needs of the membership base? Which has a greater priority and what’s a rough percentage as to how the USATH splits its efforts between those needs?

SP: I ask our regional directors (currently Brian and Dominique) to focus on clubs, members, grassroots – and as little as possible on National Teams. Mariusz and Dan spend time split between National Teams and Clubs. In Mariusz’ case, he oversees Coaching, Referees, Domestic competition, National Team organization, etc., so he’s pulled in many directions. Dan spends a significant chunk of time managing our Membership, but also helps communicate with the National Team pools and spending a few weeks a year with National Teams (where he doubles as our trainer).

Our members and their heritage as handball’s core supporters in America are still a huge priority. But we ask them to demonstrate that they are building a bridge to the next generation – incorporating young players into their clubs; coaching/mentoring kids; helping us with clinics/tryouts or other developmental activities. I think we’ve found a good balance between sustaining traditional competition, managing developmental programs and establishing a structure for National Teams.

JR: With a few exceptions, the current demographics for U.S. clubs tend to be older and international. How big a concern is this and what can be done to get to change those demographics to more and younger Americans playing?

SP: The overwhelming majority of participants in all of our new programs (Futures, urban programs in NYC/ATL/CHI, recently established clubs, grassroots programs) are individuals with US citizenship. We need to get the sport into the psyche of young American people and let them grow into our future. I know the demographics are changing, but you can’t tell yet by the rosters at Nationals. We are discussing an Olympic Sports Festival style event in 2011 that is for Youth & Junior National team candidates only.

JR: USATH has implemented a qualifying system for the Elite Championships. Are you satisfied with the current system? Do you expect it to continue to evolve?

SP: I’m sure it will evolve. For now, I think it’s what the member clubs want.

JR: There’s a real lack of legitimate Women’s clubs in the U.S. How is this being addressed?

SP: The Futures program introduced 150 young female athletes to the sport – and that number will hopefully double in 2010-11. As they get older and move on to college, they will be the core athletes that will comprise our next generation of college programs. If we form a dozen strong women’s collegiate programs, I think women’s clubs will follow. NYC THC, DC & Philadelphia are to be commended for starting women’s teams in 2009-10. Army, UNC, Furman Boston and Chicago continue to provide opportunities for women. The Futures program is primarily in the West right now, where opportunities have been especially thin.

JR: Many clubs in the U.S. put forth either no effort or only a token effort in regards to broadening their club to include youth and women teams. Is this a concern? How can these clubs be encouraged to do more?

SP: This is an old generalization, based upon “old clubs” in a club structure that is somewhat archaic. New clubs are putting more of an emphasis on broader development (Denver, Minnesota, DC, Philadelphia, Colorado Springs, Salt Lake, Chicago all come to mind). There will be a place for all of these clubs in the future… but we hope the majority of clubs become broader based.

JR: The National Championship Tournament has evolved to include a Men’s Elite and Open Division. Do you foresee this format continuing? Are you concerned that the open tournament might get too big?

SP: I hope we can continue the format… and I hope the Open tournament gets so big that it challenges us in every way. More clubs and competition is good – we all have to work collectively to make sure we can sustain and fund the growth.

JR: The Houston Firehawks Women’s team which dominated the Women’s Championship was almost entirely composed of Mexican citizens living in Mexico. Will USATH rewrite the rulebook to preclude non-American teams participating in the U.S. National Championships?

SP: Our Championships are open to teams that adhere to the Rulebook and meet the established criteria. There are no plans to overhaul the Rulebook. If we elevate the level of women’s handball in the USA, the Firehawks’ makeup won’t be the issue.

JR: U.S. sanctioned events now charge foreign clubs an extra $100 to participate. This has upset some Canadian clubs that were never charged before. What’s behind this policy? Is the extra revenue worth the ill will it may have caused?

SP: The more teams that compete in events in the USA, the higher the costs are for the organizers and USATH (referees, sanctioning, insurance, facilities, etc.) It’s a modest fee to ask (roughly $5-$10/player) when we ask our own players to pay $60 to compete. In Minnesota next month, we are waiving the fee because Canada is supplying some referees. If Canadian teams/players would rather register as USATH members, they can avoid the $100 fee. It is not intended to cause long-term strife between us and our friends in Canada.

In the 4th and final part of our interview, we discuss USATH’s organizational structure and financial status.

Links to Parts 1 and 2:
Interview Part 1 (National Team Planning): https://teamhandballnews.com/news.php?item.1098
Interview Part 2 (Overseas Players and Future’s Program): https://teamhandballnews.com/news.php?item.1101

IHF and the Clubs — satisfaction with the money but not with the competition calendar?

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As we reported yesterday, the IHF has just agreed to pay compensation in different forms to the clubs and federations whose players participate in the Men's World Championships. The overall amount is in the order of 3.8 million Swiss Francs, and the compensation scheme will be implemented starting with the Championship in January 2011.

The details are now also a bit more clear. First it should be noted that the estimated costs for insuring the players against injuries related to their Championship participation is included in the overall amount quoted; this amounts to about 1/2 million Swiss Francs. Similarly included is a 'host fee' in the order of 1.2 million Swiss Francs. Another chunk of money is distributed in the form of prize money to the federations of the top four teams (200.000, 150.000, 75.000 and 25.000 Swiss Francs respectively). In addition, each of the 24 participating federations get a 'qualification bonus' of 25.000 Swiss Francs each, presumably as a gesture in consideration of the expenses incurred for their participation.

This leaves almost exactly 1 million Swiss Francs as a total compensation for the clubs. There is first a 'daily compensation fee' which is paid per player and day, and then a lump sum per player as a 'bonus for training and education'; this bonus also depends on the placement of the teams in the Championship. In total, the clubs of the players on the top four national teams receive 6.000 Swiss Francs per player, while the amount for teams placed 5th-8th is 3.800, for teams placed 9th-16th 2.100, and for teams placed 17th-24th 1.000 Swiss Francs.

This means that for someone who is a key player on his club team but happens to play for a relatively weak national team, the club is certainly not getting a very large amount in relation to the time spent on national team duty. (At this point in time, the value of the Swiss Francs and the U.S. Dollar are almost exactly the same). So it is easy to understand that the reactions vary between comments about a merely symbolic 'compensation' and the importance of having at least the principle of compensation finally established.

What has been kept more quiet is another important agenda item, where the outcome was presumably not what the clubs had hoped for, viz. the international competition calendar. Generally speaking, there have been many concerns expressed along the lines that [u]five[/u] major events in a [u]four-year[/u] period (Olympics, two World Championships and two Continental Championships) is at least one too many, at least from the perspective of Europe. However, no progress appears to have been made on this front, which is perhaps primarily a matter of 'negotiation between the IHF and the continents'.

Moreover, one competition that from a club perspective has been a particular irritant, namely the special qualification tournaments for the Olympic Games, appears to remain for the time being. This means that, just like in 2008, there will be a set of qualifying groups played in early April 2012 for the men and late May 2012 for the women. The timing, which has been protested as particularly awkward for the national men's leagues, is said to be related to "demands from the IOC". Perhaps there can be differences of opinion about the optimal timing, but it seems 'strange' that the IOC would insist on knowing the participating men's handball teams so early. Basketball holds its equivalent events in late June and early July. Indoor volleyball is scheduled for late May, and beach volleyball for July….

IHF meets with representatives of European top men’s clubs – participants appear satisfied

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Last month I indicated https://teamhandballnews.com/news.php?item.1081 that the IHF had called a meeting to discuss compensation fees for clubs and insurance coverage for their players who are participating in IHF World Championships. This meeting was held on September 17. Significant was that, for the first time, IHF gave recognition to the entities (FCH and GCH) formally representing these clubs, by inviting the FCH and GCH presidents to attend, in addition to representatives from the top national federations.

This IHF meeting comes after significant progress had already been made at the continental level, between the EHF and the clubs. It also comes at a time when similar strong pressures exist in football, where the club representatives are satisfied with UEFA but express strong dissatisfaction with the IHF’s counterpart, FIFA. http://www.groupclubhandball.com/?p=941

Judging from the relatively few comments that have appeared in sports media so far, following the official IHF announcement today, http://www.ihf.info//MediaCenter/News/NewsDetails/tabid/130/Default.aspx?ID=458 the initial reactions from the club representatives are quite favorable. As indicated in greater detail in the IHF announcement, the IHF is prepared to set aside substantial amounts from the World Championship revenue.

There will be compensation payments in the order of 1 million Swiss Francs, qualification payments, prize money and insurance coverage approaching in aggregate an amount of close to 4 million Swiss Francs for each Men’s World Championship. There are, however, no indications regarding the intentions with regard to the Women’s Championships.

Interview: EHF’s Uli Gutweniger on ehfTV

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Ulrich "Uli" Gutweniger, is EHF Marketing’s Head of Media. In this email interview he provides some insight in regards to their web streaming platform, ehfTV.

John Ryan: The EHF has been a trailblazer when it comes to providing web streaming of handball matches. Why has the EHF been so aggressive in promoting web streaming?

Uli Gutweniger: The ehfTV.com platform has offered us the chance to show matches from both the VELUX Men’s EHF Champions League and the EHF Women’s Champions League worldwide. This means extensive coverage of the competitions – and for handball fans the chance to see teams play that they perhaps wouldn’t normally see on TV at home. This service is a boon too for our clubs because they get the chance to analyse the performance of every team in the competition.

JR: The matches via ehfTV are provided free of charge, but I’m sure it’s not free for the EHF to provide this service. What exactly is the business model here?

U?: We launched the ehfTV.com platform with the aim of getting the competitions watched by more people in more markets. I think we’ve achieved this, and now we’re looking at how we can further improve the product to make it more and more attractive to handball fans. The “behind the scenes” video reports from the EHF FINAL4 in Cologne were one example and now we’re introducing our “Match of the Week” with full commentary in English.

JR: The matches, except for the occasional restrictions in countries where it’s being shown on live TV, are available all over the world. Does the EHF keep an eye on what countries are tuning in? Which countries have the most viewers? Are there a few countries that have been a surprise in terms of interest or lack thereof?

UG: In general interest in matches comes from those countries where we also get good television ratings and where handball is already hugely popular, countries such as Hungary, Poland, Germany and Romania count amongst the nations using our service most.

JR: What matches have had the most viewership? How many viewers total?

UG: We find that the top matches each season are hugely popular and of course the finals are watched by many, many people. Our on-demand service in particular has proven to be very popular.

JR: While I enjoy watching matches live I often find it impossible to do so with the time zone difference and family commitments. As such, I really enjoy the on-demand availability to watch when I want to. How do the numbers compare between live and on-demand viewership?

UG: This is exactly the reason we decided to include the VOD Service, we find that we have very good viewing figures for matches on-demand. We also have a large database of matches and clips available on-line, fans can still watch full matches from as far back as the 2007/2008 season.

JR: Alright, while I love ehfTV and I can’t complain about the price, I do have one big complaint as an on-demand viewer. For the most part when I select a match for on-demand viewing there is a non-descript picture from the match. I simply click on the picture and watch the match oblivious to the final outcome. But for the EHF Champions League final the last two years there’s been a picture of the celebrating team. This has been a crushing disappointment for me as I really don’t like to know who’s won the match before I watch it. Can I get a commitment that this won’t happen again for the 3rd year in a row?

UG: Well, this is quite difficult for us as the official website of the EHF, this is our biggest moment of the year and we want to celebrate this with our fans. We try to offer as many pictures and articles so that fans at home get a feeling for the event. Of course this is true for ehfTV.com too, but we will see what we can do!

JR: OK. I’ve got one more quibble here. And again I feel a little sheepish about asking, because it’s not costing me a penny, but are there any plans to provide higher quality video?

UG: This would only be possible if we began charging for our service and we have always tried to keep the service free of charge for handball fans. We have to bear in mind too that not all of our viewers worldwide have the technology and high-speed internet to watch our service if we increase the stream rate.

JR: What about the possibility of a premium service? I know that I would immediately pull out my credit card to watch matches with a better picture. I think others would as well.

UG: Right now this isn’t planned but we’re open to ideas and may look at this again in the future if the demand is there.

JR: What about TV broadcasting deals with more countries around the world? Is the EHF actively working to get Champions League broadcast in non-traditional handball countries like the U.S., China, India, etc.?

UG: This is something we are working actively on. It is our aim to see the VELUX EHF Champions League seen in as many markets as possible but of course the time difference and the lack of knowledge of the game in certain markets makes this difficult for us. We would love to see players from China, USA or India playing in the EHF Champions League, this would make life much easier for us!

JR: I know that many Europeans often don’t fully comprehend just how minor a sport Handball is in some countries. These broadcasts have not only been a godsend to diehard fans, but they have also become a great education tool for promoting the sport. Anytime, I’ve needed to explain the sport to someone I’ve gone to the ehfTV.com website. A picture says a thousand words, moving pictures say 10,000 words. I don’t know if it’s intended or not, but does the EHF realize what an invaluable service they are providing?

UG: Our aim through ehfTV.com was to offer as many opportunities to watch top-class handball as possible. So far we have concentrated mainly on the EHF Champions League but we hope to be able to offer other competitions and content in the future.

JR: I’ve seen the weekly magazine show evolve over the past few years. I particularly like the feature interviews that are mixed in with the highlights. This would seem to be a marketable product for TV viewing. Any chance it might get air time on regular TV?

UG: We are delivering the magazine to all interested parties and a lot of our TV partners are showing this programme and those highlights. Eurosport aired the show in 43 European countries for example. In a lot of territories the interviews we provided have proved very popular and I am sure will continue to do so in the future. It is in our interest to strengthen the product and it is clear that we need to focus more on the stars of our game – the players.

JR: Is the “Match of the Week”, with English language commentary, intended to further broaden the appeal of the EHF Champions League?

UG: Of course. We are looking to promote one top match in each round of the VELUX EHF Men’s Champions League, both through reports on our website ehfCL.com and with the English commentary of each match. We want to increase our exposure in the English speaking world and in Tom O’Brannigain we have found a handball-mad professional for the job. People are still talking about his enthusiastic commentary from the EHF FINAL4 last season and I think he will bring a new excitement and level of interest to ehfTV.com. We’re all very much looking forward to the launch of this new feature.

EHF (20 Sep 10): "Match of the Week" launches this weekend: http://www.eurohandball.com/article/13332