On 17 November 1991, the European Handball Federation was founded in Berlin, Germany. Its first employee was Michael Wiederer, who was previously the Secretary General of the Austrian Handball Federation and took the same position at the newly founded EHF at the age of 36. After 25 years as Secretary General, Wiederer was elected EHF President in 2016 and now is in his second term of office until 2025.

In this two-piece interview on eurohandball.com (the second will be released on 21 November), Wiederer first looks back on the early days and the development of structures, competitions and events, then takes a deep look into his crystal ball to envision the future of European handball.