This season speaks for Győr, history for Larvik

The rematch of Győri Audi ETO KC vs. Larvik HK will decide the winner of the Women’s EHF Champions League season 2012/13. Győr have won the first leg 24:21 at Larvik and can win their first ever European trophy on Saturday in Veszprém. Here are some facts and figures about the current season and the history of Women’s EHF Champions League finals.

2012/13 season

94 matches of the 2012/13 season have been played in the female flagship club event by now: 17 matches in the qualification + 48 matches in the Group Matches + 24 matches in the Main Round + 4 semi-finals – 1 final by now.

Since the start of the Group Matches only one match ended in a draw (20:20 in the Main Round match Randers vs. Budućnost Podgorica). 41 matches in Group Matches and Main Round were home victories, 30 matches in those stages were won by the away teams.

Since the start of the semi-finals all (!) home teams lost their matches, all four semi-finals and the first leg of the final ended by away victories.
11 national champions from 11 different countries had directly qualified for the Group Matches, five teams from five different countries made in the qualification, but only two of them (FTC and Zvezda) “survived” this stage and qualified for the Main Round.

Hungary was the only country with two teams in the Main Round (FTC and Győr). The four semi-finallists came from four countries (Norway, Slovenia, Hungary and Romania).

The season records of both finalists are quite different:

Győr won all their six games both in the Group Matches and in the Main Round each and arrived in the semi-finals by 12 victories from 12 matches. After the semis and the first final the record is 14 victories – 0 draw – 1 defeat (against Vâlcea on home ground in the second semi). The goal difference in t

hose 15 matches by now is 412:324.

Larvik lost already five matches by now – and four of them against Hungarian teams: Against FTC in the Group Matches, twice against Győr in the Main Round and again against Győr in the first leg of the final. The fifth defeat was at home against Krim the semi first leg. The overall goal difference of Norwegian champions is 413:356.

The top scorer ranking of this season seems to be decided before the second leg of the final, as Zsuzsana Tomori (FTC) is topping the table by 95 goals ahead of Katarina Bulatovic (Vâlcea/90) and Milena Knežević (Buducnost/86). Fourth ranked are those two players, who can add more goals on their tally, but Anita Görbicz (Győr, top scorer of the previous season) and Linn-Kristin Riegelhuth Koren (top scorer of the EHF EURO 2008) are already 20 goals below Tomori.

Previous finals and seasons:

Veszprém is the venue of an EHF Champions League final for the third time, but neither men’s team MKB Veszprém (2002 against Magdeburg) nor women’s

team of Győr (2009 against Viborg) managed to win the title in the re-match at home.
Győr’s line player Heidi Löke plays her third straight Champions League final after winning the trophy 2011 with Larvik and losing against Podgorica in the last season.

The 19 previous winners of the Women’s EHF Champions League come from ten different countries – with six trophies for Danish teams (Slagelse and Viborg each three)  - and four for Austria by Hypo Niederösterreich, the team which is still record holder in trophies. Slovenian side Krim took two titles, while teams from Montenegro, Norway, Russia, FYR Macedonia, Hungary, Spain and Croatia are each listed once.
The past three winners came from three different nations: Podgorica (Montenegro), Larvik (Norway), Viborg (Denmark).

By looking upon the nations of the finalists (including the 2013 series), the ranking is as follows:

Denmark 8, Hungary 6, Austria 6, Slovenia 5, Spain 4, FYR Macedonia 3, Croatia 2, Norway 2, Russia 2, Romania 1, Montenegro 1
Slovenia and Spain are the only countries, from where teams won the men’s and women’s EHF Champions League.
Győr are finalists for the third time after 2009 (Viborg) and 2012 (Podgorica), Larvik for the second time after winning the trophy 2011 in the finals against Itxako (Spain).

Since the 2006/07 season Győr reached at least the semi-finals of this competition (seven times).
Larvik have reached semi-finals of this competition six times by now.
The biggest aggregate gap in Women’s EHF Champions League finals (two matches) was nine goals twice:

1997/98: Hypo vs. Mar Valencia 56:47
2004/05: Slagelse – Kometal Skopje 54:43

The closest ever gap in aggregate were zero goals in the 2011/12 season, when Budućnost became Champions League winner thanks to the bigger number of away goals scored (27:29 at Győr, 27:25 at home = 54:54 in aggregate).

Six times in history those teams who won the first leg, failed to lift the trophy, including current finalist Győr twice and Hungarian teams three times in total. The biggest ever gap which was erased were four goals in 1996.

1995: Koprivnica – Hypo 17:14, 19:26
1996: Hypo – Koprivnica 17:13, 20:25
2002: FTC Budapest – Skopje 27:25, 22:26
2003: Valencia – Krim 30:27, 28:36
2009: Győr – Viborg 26:24, 22:26
2011: Győr – Budućnost 29:27, 25:27

Further information
Follow the match live and free of charge on ehftv.com and on the dedicated twitter channel @ehfcl.