Füchse Berlin are crowned Supercup winners against THW Kiel!

Füchse Berlin are crowned Supercup winners against THW Kiel!

Last night in cool weather in Munich, handball fans were treated to a nerve-wracking finale: the two heavyweights THW Kiel and Füchse Berlin faced off in the Supercup. At 6 p.m. the first whistle blew for a game that surprised the spectators with unexpected twists and turns.

The defending champion Füchse Berlin, led by the brilliant Mathias Gidsel, who had the best performance of his team with eight goals, went into the game as favorites. They had already won the Supercup against SC Magdeburg last year and wanted to secure the title again this time, while THW Kiel tried to regain its former supremacy after a disappointing last championship. THW coach Filip Jicha had explained in advance that his team needed a world-class performance to be able to survive against the Berliners and emphasized that a win would be good for the morale of the players, some of whom had to struggle with injury problems.

A thrilling game

After a fast-paced start, the 10,298 fans in the stadium experienced an exciting first half. Kiel held on well until 10:10, but the following minutes belonged to the Foxes, who were able to pull away to 19:14. The THW had to deal with a strong goalkeeper Dejan Milosavljev, who saved several seven-meter shots from Kiels and kept his team on track. Despite a low phase in the first half, Kiel showed an impressive turnaround after the break and fought back until the game ended in a draw 31:31.

The pressure was high for the Kiel team as they wanted to aim for their 14th Supercup title in their 25th participation - a challenge that was not to be achieved that night. In the decisive seven-meter throw, the Füchse managed to win 3-2. While Mathias Gidsel was ultimately denied by Kiel's goalkeeper Andreas Wolff, Kiel's Lasse Ludwig saved the decisive penalty throw and thus secured the second Supercup title in the history of Füchse Berlin.

Outlook and expectations

THW Kiel is now moving on as quickly as possible, as the Bundesliga season starts next Thursday with a game against HC Erlangen. However, the injury problem that plagues the team - Hendrik Pekeler is out due to a torn Achilles tendon and Gonzalo Perez des Vargas due to a torn cruciate ligament - will remain a challenge. Lukas Laube was signed for Pekeler at short notice, and everyone in the team hopes that the team will soon recover from the setback.

In summary, the game was a reflection of the ups and downs in handball. Despite a strong performance from everyone involved, the record champion was ultimately unable to completely convince. The Füchse Berlin proved more than once that they are really in high demand in this form and did not let their dream of a second title be taken away from them, while the Kiel team are now required to react quickly. NDR reports that the expectations at Kiel are high and the upcoming games will show how the team deals with its current situation.

Here is a summary of the most important key details of the game:

So it remains to be seen how the season will develop for both teams. One thing is clear: anything is possible in handball and after a game like this, the signs for the coming Bundesliga season are more than exciting. More about this in the reports from ZDF and Sports show.