04.12.2013, 06:05
ehfTV live stream EHF Cup Group Phase draw

DRAW PREVIEW: Representatives of 16 clubs will meet in Vienna on Thursday to learn the fate of their teams in the EHF Cup Group Phase. All handball fans can watch the event starting at 12:00 hrs local time live on ehfTV.

ehfTV live stream EHF Cup Group Phase draw

The EHF Cup Group Phase Draw on Thursday, 5 December will be the last live action shown on ehfTV.com in year 2013. The draw will start at 12:00 hrs and all handball fans can follow the event on various channels.

There will be a live streaming from the draw venue – Gartenhotel Altmannsdorf 2 in Vienna on www.ehfTV.com, which will also cover the draw of the Men's Challenge Cup Last 16 at 11:00 hrs local time. Thanks to the streaming the fans will be also able to follow the post-draw reactions of club representatives present at the draw.

Furthermore, the up-to-the-second coverage of both draws will be available via liveticker on www.eurohandball.com and on @ehfmedia Twitter channel.

Several top clubs in four pots

Remaining 16 teams in the second edition of the reformed competition will learn names of their next opponents.

Based on the competition's ranking four pots have been determined with four teams in each.

There will be a country protection applied during the draw as two teams from the same country cannot meet in the same group. France has three sides, while Germany, Hungary, Slovakia and Sweden have a double representation in the top 16.

There are several household names of European handball in all four pots. The star-studded pot1 includes the 2003 EHF Champions League winners Montpellier Agglomeration HB, the 2012 VELUX EHF FINAL4 participants and the upcoming EHF Cup Finals hosts Füchse Berlin and another regulars from the European top flight Pick Szeged accompanied by the German newcomers TSV Hannover-Burgdorf.

In Pot 2 there are two more participants of the 2012/13 VELUX EHF Champions League – Reale Ademar Leon and HCM Constanta together with two-time Challenge Cup winners Skjern Handbold and Tatran Presov, who are just one of two teams, which played in the EHF Cup Group Phase last season.

The other one are the runners-up of the previous season HBC Nantes, who also hosted the premiere edition of the EHF Cup Finals. Their domestic rivals and another frequent EHF Champions League team Chambery Savoie Handball are also in Pot 3.

First round on 8/9 February

Just two weeks after the gold medal match of the EHF EURO in Denmark the EHF Cup Group Phase action will start with the Round 1 matches. The group phase will be played in a round-robin system with six rounds.

According to the competition’s regulations and as in the previous season, the host of the EHF Cup Finals can qualify directly for the EHF Cup Finals semi-finals from the Group Phase if they finish in first place in their group or as one of the three best-ranked second placed teams.

In this case only three quarter-final matches will be played and the worst second ranked team will be eliminated. Only results from matches against group winners and third ranked teams will be counted in the ranking of teams from second positions.

If the event organiser finishes as the worst second placed team then they must play in the quarter-finals to qualify.

If Berlin finish third or fourth in their group, there will be also four quarter-finals. Füchse will not take part at the final tournament, but still they will host the event, which will take place on 17/18 May in the Max-Schmeling-Halle.

Seedings for the EHF Cup Group Phase Draw (Thursday, 5 December, 12:00 hrs local time):
Pot 1: Pick Szeged (HUN), Montpellier Agglomeration HB (FRA), Füchse Berlin (GER), TSV Hannover-Burgdorf (GER)
Pot 2: Tatran Presov (SVK), Skjern Haandbold (DEN), HCM Constanta (ROU), Reale Ademar Leon (ESP)
Pot 3: Lugi HF (SWE), Chambery Savoie Handball (FRA), HBC Nantes (FRA), HC Zomimak-M (MKD)
Pot 4: IFK Kristianstad (SWE), Csurgoi KK (HUN), Sporta Hlohovec (SVK), Sporting CP (POR)

Draw procedure:
Step 1: 4 teams of Pot 1 are placed to row 1
Step 2: 4 teams of Pot 2 are placed to row 2
Step 3: French teams of Pot 3 are placed to row 3 to avoid the group with Montpellier
Step 4: Last two teams of Pot 3 are placed to row 3 in remaining groups
Step 5: Teams of Pot 4 are placed one by one to row 4 to avoid groups with opponents from the same country. (If there is a group consisting of Szeged, Presov and Lugi after Step 4, Sporting CP will be directly placed to this group)

TEXT: EHF / br