The new trophy: Fresh, dynamic and exciting

After more than a decade it was the time for a facelift of the Women’s EHF Champions League trophy that had been received by the competition’s winners since the 1993/94 season.

With the Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design Budapest the European Handball Federation had found a partner which had given the task to come up with a design to six teams comprised of former students.

On Thursday these teams presented their suggestions to members of the EHF, the university and the Hungarian Handball Federation – and it was not an easy decision for the jury to make.

The winning design will be presented to the public at the draw for the Women’s EHF FINAL4 on 14 April. It will then be lifted for the first time on the night of 10 May 2015 when the Women’s EHF FINAL4 comes to an end and the winning team will be known.

However, even though the new trophy cannot be shown in full yet, it can be talked about. First and foremost it is: fresh, dynamic and exciting.

"All six projects were really interesting. Not only because of their quality, but also because such different results were produced despite the fact that all teams started with the same guidelines," said EHF General Secretary Michael Wiederer.

"Eventually the jury decided on the basis of three different elements: We wanted to go away from the traditional form of trophies, we took in account the competition’s female element and we wanted it to connect optically with elements of the Women’s EHF Champion League.”

Eight different designs were presented to the jury which eventually went for the suggestion of winning duo Krisztián Ádám and Balázs Sipos.

"We felt that our task was to design a trophy that breaks with stereotypes. We built the concept on the dynamics of the game," they said. For example, swift passes and the movement of the ball on court served as an inspiration.

"We don’t have a lot of time to create it. We will start working on it as soon as possible and we hope that we will be there when the captain of the winning team lifts our trophy."

Despite there being only one winner, there was consensus among all participants that the contest itself was a great honour and an exciting challenge as well as opportunity.

"It is a very good feeling when we see an object like a trophy making someone happy.

"We intended to make the trophy delighting the winner after a hard series of matches because the teams are not just receiving an object, they fight for it.

"We are a kind of touched by getting a little piece of this happiness back through our work," said András Szilos and Imrei Boglárka.

"Movement, speed, twisting, spins and passing: These words influenced our work to create a trophy which makes the closing ceremony more spectacular, an event that is exciting for both the audience and the winner.

"The ball is in the centre of attention of players and spectators and our plan. Another important aspect is the shape. We used the dynamics of the game, but still stayed close to the conventional cup shape," said Júlia Koller and Gergő Káldi who received an honourable mention from the jury.

"Its popularity and the intensive interest in the Women’s EHF Champions League have made this competition really special.

"All projects consisted of individualism and had their own values which made it hard for the jury to decide – all design suggestions were of high quality. The winning trophy will be feminine, exciting and beautiful," said university rector József Fülöp.

Together with Fülöp, Ákos Lipóczki, the Head of the Art and Design Department and Pál Koós, Head of the Design Institute as invited expert, formed the jury members coming from MOME.

"We are really happy that the European Handball Federation was open for this idea and that the creativity of Hungarians produced something new. This trophy progressive and shows the way to the future," said Gábor Mátrai from the Hungarian Handball Federation.

Tickets to the event

Up to 12,000 spectators will be able to follow the 2015 Women’s EHF FINAL4 on 9/10 May in Budapest.

Tickets can be purchased via the official website, www.ehfFINAL4.com , and are available in four different categories. All tickets are always valid for both playing days.

Category 1: 39,990 HUF (approx. 130 €); Category 2: 27,990 HUF (approx. 90 €); Category 3: 19,990 HUF (approx.65 €); Category 4: 9,990 HUF (approx. 35 €)

Photos: Gergő Gosztom