43 national and international titles meet in the final
This season’s CL finalists THW Kiel and BM Ciudad Real met only once before. This happened at the bronze match of the 2001 EHF Champions Trophy where Ciudad Real won by 32:20.
In the Champions League they never met before. Both clubs are the current leaders of their domestic leagues and they are the reigning champions. Also both teams have just won their national cup competitions. Looking at the national and international titles and numbers of participations at the Champions League, Kiel dominates the comparison.
National titles:
THW Kiel (22):
German champion: 13 (1957, 1962, 1963, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2005, 2006, 2007)
German Cup winner: 5 (1998, 1999, 2000, 2007, 2008)
German Supercup winner: 4 (1995, 1998, 2005, 2007)
BM Ciudad Real (10):
Spanish champion: 2 (2004, 2007)
Spanish Cup winner: 4 (2003, 2006, 2007, 2008)
Spanish League Cup winner: 2 (2004, 2007)
Spanish Supercup winner: 2 (2005, 2007)
International titles:
THW Kiel (5):
Champions League winner: 1 (2007)
EHF Cup winner: 3 (1998, 2002, 2004)
Champions Trophy-winner: 1 (2007)
BM Ciudad Real (6):
Champions League winner: 1 (2006)
Cup Winners’ Cup winner: 2 (2002, 2003)
Winner Champions Trophy: 2 (2005, 2006)
World Cup winner: 2007
In the Champions League
THW Kiel (11 participations):
1994/95: group phase
1995/96: group phase
1996/97: semi-final (eliminated by Zagreb)
1998/99: quarterfinal (eliminated by Portland)
1999/00: final (eliminated by Barcelona)
2000/01: semi-final (eliminated by Barcelona)
2002/03: quarterfinal (eliminated by Ljubljana)
2004/05: quarterfinal (eliminated by Barcelona)
2005/06: quarterfinal (eliminated by Flensburg)
2006/07: CL winner (finals against Flensburg)
2007/08: final against BM Ciudad Real
BM Ciudad Real (5 participations):
2003/04: semi-final (eliminated by Celje)
2004/05: final (eliminated by Barcelona)
2005/06: CL winner (finals against Portland)
2006/07: quarterfinal (eliminated by Portland)
2007/08: finals against Kiel
Current Champions League season:
The two teams had an absolutely parallel season: Ciudad Real and Kiel both won all of their six matches in the first group stage and both lost one match in the Main Round (Kiel against Leon, Ciudad against Montpellier). Both teams won their home match in the semi-finals and lost the away match in the second leg. Also, both clubs have won all their home matches this season.
Ciudad Real will meet all four German CL participants this season: they won both matches against Flensburg (group phase) and Gummersbach (Main Round). They won one game against Hamburg in the semi-finals.
Kiel will meet their third Spanish opponent of the season: They have beaten Leon (Main Round) and Barcelona (semi-finals), but they also suffered defeat from these two Spanish sides.
TEXT:
Björn Pazen