The great organizational success of the European Men’s Handball Championship (EHF EURO 2016) in Poland
The European Men’s Handball Championship (EHF EURO 2016) was held in January 2016. The matches were played in 4 Polish cities: Gdańsk, Kraków, Katowice and Wrocław. The tournament’s main arena was Tauron Arena Kraków with a capacity of 15 thousand seats. It was also the venue of the championship’s final match in which Germany beat Spain 24-17. The new Champions of Europe received their gold medals from the Polish Prime Minister Beata Szydło and the Minister of Sport and Tourism Witold Bańka both of whom watched the match between the two teams at the stadium. The host team, strongly supported by Polish fans, came 7th in the tournament.
The tournament was a great success. The EHF EURO 2016 was the largest and one of the best EHF EURO events ever – said Jean Brihault, President of the European Handball Federation (EHF). It was a great success for Poland, for our sport and handball. It was also an opportunity to work with wonderful people. We had a great time together. We would like to thank all the contributors, including the volunteers. The key winner is always handball – added Andrzej Kraśnicki, President of the Polish Handball Association and the Polish Olympic Committee.
The EHF EURO 2016 set a new attendance record: the event’s total audience exceeded 400, 000. The tournament was broadcast on 75 TV channels. The EHF official website recorded 900,000 visitors and nearly 10 million page views. This confirms the championship’s great success in terms of popularity. It was achieved thanks to the event’s good organization, as already mentioned, but also to the Host Cities’ efforts to promote the tournament. The EHF event in Poland simply could not be missed – added Jean Brihault.
The EHF EURO 2016 was a flagship event for Poland and an opportunity to promote our country through sport. Fans from many countries emphasized the great atmosphere and excellent organization of the championship. The event was also a good opportunity for promoting handball in general.
The next European Men’s Handball Championship will be held in 2018 in Croatia.