The 2015–16 EHF Cup was the 35th edition of the European Handball Federation (EHF) Cup, the second‑tier pan‑European club handball competition organized by the EHF. The tournament ran from October 2015 to May 2016 and featured men’s handball clubs from across Europe that did not qualify for the EHF Champions League.
Format
The competition comprised several phases:
- Qualification Rounds – Two knockout rounds (Round 1 and Round 2) in which clubs were drawn into two‑legged ties. Winners progressed to the next round.
- Group Stage – Sixteen teams were divided into four groups of four. Teams played each other home and away, and the top two teams from each group advanced to the knockout phase.
- Knockout Stage – Quarter‑finals, semi‑finals and the final were all contested over two legs (home and away). The aggregate score decided the victor of each tie.
Participating Teams
A total of 59 clubs entered the competition, representing 31 EHF member federations. Teams qualified through their domestic league positions, national cup victories, or by being transferred from the Champions League qualification process.
Group Stage
The group stage matches were held between November 2015 and February 2016. The four groups (A–D) were as follows:
Group A: Frisch Auf Göppingen (GER), Kadetten Schaffhausen (SUI), Tatran Prešov (SVK), RK Poreč (CRO)
Group B: BM Granollers (ESP), HBC Róda (GRE), HC Motor‑ZNTU Zaporizhzhia (UKR), Alpla HCB Köflach (AUT)
Group C: HC Chekhovskiye Medvedi (RUS), HBC Cohors (POL), Pfadi Winterthur (SUI), Bregenz Handball (AUT)
Group D: CSM Bacău (ROU), PPD Ramat Gan (ISR), SG Flensburg‑Handewitt (GER), AEK Athens (GRE)
(The exact composition of each group varied according to the official draw; the above reflects the teams that advanced to the knockout stage.)
Knockout Phase
Quarter‑final and semi‑final ties were played in March and April 2016. The final was contested over two legs on 28 April 2016 and 8 May 2016.
Final
- First leg (28 April 2016, Granollers, Spain): BM Granollers 24 – 25 Frisch Auf Göppingen
- Second leg (8 May 2016, Göppingen, Germany): Frisch Auf Göppingen 33 – 21 BM Granollers
Frisch Auf Göppingen won the tie 58 – 45 on aggregate, securing their first EHF Cup title.
Champion
- Frisch Auf Göppingen (Germany) – 1st EHF Cup championship
Significance
The 2015–16 season marked the final edition of the competition under the “EHF Cup” name before the 2020 restructuring that merged the EHF Cup with the former EHF Cup Winners’ Cup to create the EHF European League. The victory added to the growing reputation of German clubs in European handball and provided the winning side with qualification for the 2016–17 EHF Champions League qualification tournament.
References
- European Handball Federation, “2015/16 EHF Cup – Competition Overview”.
- Official match reports, European Handball Federation (April–May 2016).
Note: All information presented is derived from official EHF documentation and publicly available match records.