Füchse Berlin lose Champions League final to Barcelona and continue to wait for their first title

Semifinal win against Magdeburg as a confidence booster

The tournament had begun promisingly from a Berlin perspective. In the semifinal on Saturday, the club had avenged the previous year's final loss against defending champions SC Magdeburg, sweeping the champions aside 40:35 (19:17). By advancing to the final, the team – which had been operating under interim arrangements and new coach Nicolej Krickau since the separation from championship-winning coach Jaron Siewert and sporting director Stefan Kretzschmar just a few weeks after the start of the season – underlined its claim to the European trophy.

Krickau had taken over the duties in September that had previously been distributed across four shoulders, and led the team through a turbulent sporting season to the DHB Cup victory, the German vice-championship, and back into the Champions League final. The separation from Siewert and Kretzschmar had caused unrest in September, but the Dane stabilized the team and forged a powerful unit.

Nielsen's saves shape the final

The final itself developed from the outset into a fast-paced match in which neither team gave anything away. But Barcelona goalkeeper Emil Nielsen proved to be the decisive factor: with a total of 14 saves – including six in the first 15 minutes at a save rate of 50 percent – the Danish netminder repeatedly defused Berlin's attacks. In particular, World Handball Player Mathias Gidsel, normally Berlin's most reliable scorer, remained listless initially and did not score until the 25th minute, making it 12:16.

Thanks to several strong saves by Nielsen, the Spaniards opened up a three-goal lead for the first time at 8:5 after ten minutes. Gidsel committed several passing errors in this phase, allowing Barcelona to extend the lead to 9:14 (22nd minute). In his first timeout (18th minute), Füchse coach Krickau demanded more width and urged: "Keine Zweifel vorne, geht einfach durch." It barely worked. Also thanks to saves by the Serbian national goalkeeper, the Füchse, playing in neon green, were able to cut the deficit to 8:9 in a phase full of technical errors, before Barça quickly pulled away again to 14:9.

Red card briefly awakens the Füchse

Shortly before halftime, Nielsen, who later also found the net with the buzzer to make it 16:20, made further attacking contributions. With a near-perfect performance in the first 30 minutes, the Catalans beat the Füchse at their own game. "Wir haben alles probiert und gekämpft, deswegen stehen wir hier auch alle und sind leer," said Gidsel, who appeared visibly drained on DAZN.

The start of the second half provided encouragement. Berlin stopped the first two attacks and cut the deficit to 18:20 (33rd minute). In the 46th minute, Barcelona's Ludovic Fabregas received a time penalty after a red card – and the Füchse woke up again. They fought their way back to 30:32 and seemed to be turning the rhythm of the match.

But then Nielsen turned it on again, and Barcelona rebuilt its lead (19:25/38th minute). The Spaniards pulled away with a 4:0 run to 25:19 and remained dominant thanks to a strong-performing Nielsen. Barcelona, led by captain Dika Mem, who will play for Berlin from the 2027/28 season onwards after the end of his contract, only briefly faltered when the Füchse came back to within two goals. In the end, it was a deserved 37:34 victory for the Catalans.

Gidsel was Berlin's top scorer with eight goals. For his performance throughout the premier competition, he was also named the competition's top scorer. "Ich bin leer, körperlich und emotional," said the Danish Olympic, World, and European champion after the match. Of the opposing goalkeeper, he found clear words: "Er ist mit Abstand der beste Torhüter der Welt."

Gidsel as the premier competition's top scorer

Captain Max Darj emphasized after the final that the club must be doing something right – as a team, as a club, as fans. Year after year. "Wer zweimal in Folge das Finale der Champions League erreicht, gehört nicht zufällig dorthin," the club was quoted as saying. In fact, it was the first time since the Final Four format was introduced in 2010 that a German team lost an international final.

Coach Krickau remained combative despite the disappointment: "Zweimal hintereinander das Finale zu erreichen, sei eine Mega-Leistung. Wir haben Hunger auf mehr. Und zwei Finale in Folge muss man auch nutzen als noch mehr Diesel für die Zukunft." And he looked ahead: "Aber wir kommen definitiv zurück. Wenn wir nächstes Jahr wieder hier in Köln sind, sind wir bereit, unsere Chance zu nutzen."

Magdeburg secures bronze

It had already become apparent on Saturday that the German handball final could be a repeat of the previous season. Back then, the Füchse had lost the final against Magdeburg, before taking revenge in the semifinal of the 2026 Final Four. The great stories of German handball are now being written by Berlin and Magdeburg, wrote author Franziska Staupendahl in her piece.

Looking to the future: homegrown players take over

Magdeburg consoled itself with bronze. In the third-place match, the German champions and previous year's winners prevailed clearly 32:26 (17:11) over Danish club Aalborg Handbold, featuring German national team player Juri Knorr. In Hamburg, the team from northern Hesse had previously defeated THW Kiel 24:23 in the final – in a different competition.

For the Füchse, the weekend of the youth teams was also mixed: the club's U18 also lost the final of the Youth Club Trophy in the Cologne arena on Sunday, falling 26:32 to the Danish side GOG. Nevertheless, the club is looking to the future: even after the departures of key players such as Lasse Andersson and Dejan Milosavljev, homegrown talents Matthes Langhoff and Lasse Ludwig are already ready to take on bigger roles. Andersson, speaking after his last match for the club, was convinced: "Als Füchse-Fan bin ich mir sicher, dass noch andere Final Fours folgen und sie in den nächsten vier, fünf Jahren auch mit einer Medaille dastehen werden."

Of course, the first Champions League title in the club's history would have been the crowning achievement. Instead, after the weekend in Cologne, the realization remains that the Füchse can compete on equal terms with Europe's top team – but were unable to beat them on this evening. The season is over, the disappointment is great, but the hunger for more is clearly unbroken.