# 2017–18 Håndboldligaen

The 2017–18 Håndboldligaen, known as the 888ligaen for sponsorship reasons, was the 82nd season of the Håndboldligaen, Denmark's premier handball league. Nordsjælland Håndbold was the promoted team from the previous year's 1st Division.
Skjern Håndbold was declared Danish champion after they beat Bjerringbro-Silkeborg in the final.
HC Midtjylland was declared bankrupt during the season, and it was thus administratively relegated to the 2nd Division, the third tier of Danish handball.

## Team information

14 clubs competed in the Håndboldligaen during the 2017–18 season:
| Team | Location | Arena | Capacity |
| Aalborg Håndbold | Aalborg | Jutlander Bank Arena | 5,009 |
| Aarhus Håndbold | Aarhus | Ceres Arena | 5,001 |
| Bjerringbro-Silkeborg | Bjerringbro | Jysk Arena | 2,845 |
| GOG | Gudme | SU`VI:T Arena | 2,265 |
| HC Midtjylland | Herning | Messecenter Herning | 3,350 |
| KIF Kolding Copenhagen | Kolding Copenhagen | Tre-For Arena Brøndby Hall | 5,182 5,063 |
| Mors-Thy | Nykøbing Mors Thisted | Jyske Bank Mors Arena Thy Hallen | 2,296 1,284 |
| Nordsjælland Håndbold | Helsinge Hillerød | Helsinge-Hallen FrederiksborgCentret | 1,600 1,100 |
| Ribe-Esbjerg | Esbjerg Ribe | Blue Water Dokken Invactor Arena | 3,386 1,976 |
| Skanderborg | Skanderborg | Fælledhallen | 2,000 |
| Skjern | Skjern | Skjern Bank Arena | 3,264 |
| SønderjyskE | Sønderborg | Skansen | 2,200 |
| TTH Holstebro | Holstebro | Idrætscenter Vest | 3,250 |
| TM Tønder | Tønder | Tønder Sport- og FritidsCenter | 1,500 |

### Personnel and kits

Following is the list of clubs competing in 2017–18 Håndboldligaen, with their manager, kit manufacturer and shirt sponsor.
| Team | President | Head coach | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
| Aalborg Håndbold | Jan Larsen | Aron Kristjánsson | hummel | Jutlander Bank |
| Aarhus Håndbold | Henrik Lundorff | Erik Veje Rasmussen | hummel | Sparkassen Kronjylland, Jytas |
| Bjerringbro-Silkeborg | Frank Lajer | Peter Bredsdorff-Larsen | adidas | Jyske Bank, Grundfos |
| GOG | Kasper Jørgensen | Nicolej Krickau | Select | Fynske Bank, EnergiFyn |
| HC Midtjylland | Allan Witt | Jonas Wille | hummel | eptools, KP Industri |
| KIF Kolding Copenhagen | Jens Boesen | Lars Frederiksen | H2O Sportswear | Jolly Cola, EWII |
| Mors-Thy Håndbold | Johannes Søndergaard | Søren Hansen | hummel | Jyske Bank |
| Nordsjælland Håndbold | Jørgen Simonsen | Ian Marko Fog | hummel | GF Forsikring |
| Ribe-Esbjerg | Rikke Tangaa | Jan Leslie | hummel | fros |
| Skanderborg | Jens Christensen | Nick Rasmussen | Puma | AVR, Skanderborg kommune |
| Skjern Håndbold | Henning Kjærgaard | Ole Nørgaard | Puma | Skjern Bank |
| SønderjyskE | Klaus B. Rasmussen | Kasper Christensen | Diadora | SeaDane Travel |
| TTH Holstebro | Jørgen S. Hansen | Patrick Westerholm | hummel | Vestjysk Bank |
| TM Tønder | Uwe Nielsen | Torben Sørensen | hummel | Sparekassen Bredebro |

### Managerial changes

| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Replaced by | Date of appointment | Position in table |
| Ribe-Esbjerg HH | Jan Leslie | Mutual Consent | 29 November 2017 | Sune Agerschou | 29 November 2017 | 11th |

## Regular season
### Standings

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| 1 | Skjern Håndbold | 26 | 20 | 3 | 3 | 739 | 674 | +65 | 43 | Championship Play-Off + Advance to Champions League |
| 2 | GOG Håndbold | 26 | 20 | 2 | 4 | 759 | 632 | +127 | 42 | Championship Play-Off |
| 3 | Bjerringbro-Silkeborg | 26 | 20 | 0 | 6 | 789 | 668 | +121 | 40 | Championship Play-Off |
| 4 | Aalborg Håndbold | 26 | 16 | 0 | 10 | 711 | 656 | +55 | 32 | Championship Play-Off |
| 5 | TTH Holstebro | 26 | 14 | 3 | 9 | 694 | 660 | +34 | 31 | Championship Play-Off |
| 6 | KIF Kolding København | 26 | 11 | 3 | 12 | 713 | 719 | −6 | 25 | Championship Play-Off |
| 7 | Nordsjælland Håndbold | 26 | 10 | 4 | 12 | 726 | 745 | −19 | 24 | Championship Play-Off |
| 8 | Århus Håndbold | 26 | 11 | 1 | 14 | 732 | 737 | −5 | 23 | Championship Play-Off |
| 9 | Mors-Thy Håndbold | 26 | 11 | 1 | 14 | 691 | 715 | −24 | 23 | |
| 10 | Ribe-Esbjerg HH | 26 | 9 | 4 | 13 | 719 | 708 | +11 | 22 | |
| 11 | SønderjyskE Herrer | 26 | 8 | 1 | 17 | 693 | 741 | −48 | 17 | |
| 12 | Skanderborg Håndbold | 26 | 8 | 1 | 17 | 642 | 691 | −49 | 17 | Relegation Play-Off |
| 13 | HC Midtjylland | 26 | 6 | 1 | 19 | 606 | 778 | −172 | 13 | Relegation Play-Off |
| 14 | TM Tønder Håndbold (R) | 26 | 5 | 2 | 19 | 654 | 744 | −90 | 12 | Relegated |
! There's a new relegation playoff made in November 2014

### Schedule and results

| Home \ Away | AAL | AAR | BSV | GOG | HCM | KIF | MTH | NSH | REH | SKA | SKJ | SØN | TTH | TØN |
| Aalborg Håndbold | | 29–24 | 24–23 | 27–25 | 28–26 | 30–20 | 25–21 | 33–29 | 29–25 | 23–26 | 25–27 | 28–24 | 25–26 | 31–28 |
| Århus Håndbold | 20–24 | | 32–34 | 24–31 | 33–15 | 33–26 | 27–28 | 28–28 | 30–26 | 24–30 | 26–29 | 33–29 | 27–29 | 29–22 |
| Bjerringbro-Silkeborg | 36–28 | 38–28 | | 24–25 | 38–19 | 31–28 | 40–31 | 30–31 | 30–27 | 28–22 | 26–19 | 28–20 | 27–25 | 31–15 |
| GOG Håndbold | 30–26 | 33–23 | 21–19 | | 41–13 | 24–22 | 31–22 | 24–21 | 31–23 | 28–27 | 26–31 | 32–22 | 28–23 | 34–22 |
| HC Midtjylland | 17–36 | 26–30 | 32–30 | 30–35 | | 23–24 | 25–23 | 20–34 | 27–26 | 26–21 | 21–27 | 25–41 | 17–27 | 27–25 |
| KIF Kolding København | 23–22 | 25–28 | 28–34 | 32–31 | 37–24 | | 35–31 | 33–28 | 31–27 | 29–23 | 24–28 | 29–30 | 26–26 | 27–27 |
| Mors-Thy Håndbold | 18–24 | 28–33 | 26–30 | 23–29 | 27–28 | 31–28 | | 29–22 | 29–23 | 24–23 | 24–24 | 38–33 | 20–19 | 29–23 |
| Nordsjælland Håndbold | 30–28 | 32–25 | 24–36 | 25–34 | 30–30 | 31–29 | 32–31 | | 27–27 | 32–28 | 29–32 | 26–26 | 27–22 | 31–26 |
| Ribe-Esbjerg HH | 23–25 | 24–26 | 27–30 | 33–23 | 29–16 | 23–24 | 29–25 | 34–32 | | 33–22 | 29–29 | 30–28 | 21–21 | 25–25 |
| Skanderborg Håndbold | 24–23 | 25–29 | 24–20 | 23–30 | 20–19 | 29–29 | 22–29 | 26–25 | 31–34 | | 19–26 | 27–19 | 22–32 | 29–19 |
| Skjern Håndbold | 31–29 | 32–27 | 30–31 | 29–29 | 25–24 | 25–24 | 30–26 | 31–27 | 33–29 | 31–30 | | 27–22 | 34–23 | 26–22 |
| SønderjyskE Herrer | 28–35 | 27–31 | 21–30 | 26–30 | 26–24 | 23–28 | 30–33 | 30–26 | 26–28 | 28–20 | 24–21 | | 29–26 | 23–28 |
| TTH Holstebro | 26–24 | 32–31 | 26–28 | 18–18 | 29–26 | 32–35 | 32–22 | 31–22 | 33–29 | 23–22 | 30–31 | 27–31 | | 27–24 |
| TM Tønder Håndbold | 26–30 | 35–31 | 31–32 | 24–36 | 36–26 | 25–27 | 18–23 | 22–25 | 25–35 | 28–27 | 28–31 | 26–23 | 24–29 | |
No. 1-8 from the regular season divided into two groups with the top two will advance to the semifinals

## Top goalscorers

    As of matches played on 4 June 2018

## Winner's playoff
### Group 1

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Aalborg Håndbold | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 186 | 166 | +20 | 11 | Advance to semifinals |
| 2 | Skjern Håndbold | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 173 | 174 | −1 | 8 | Advance to semifinals |
| 3 | TTH Holstebro | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 172 | 168 | +4 | 7 | |
| 4 | Aarhus Håndbold | 6 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 155 | 178 | −23 | 1 | |
| Home \ Away | AAL | AAR | SKJ | TTH |
| Aalborg Håndbold | | 28–27 | 33–30 | 35–23 |
| Aarhus Håndbold | 29–35 | | 26–33 | 21–29 |
| Skjern Håndbold | 26–25 | 26–28 | | 35–30 |
| TTH Holstebro | 31–27 | 27–27 | 32–22 | |

### Group 2

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | GOG Håndbold | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 191 | 181 | +10 | 10 | Advance to semifinals |
| 2 | Bjerringbro-Silkeborg | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 181 | 170 | +11 | 9 | Advance to semifinals |
| 3 | KIF Kolding København | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 182 | 185 | −3 | 7 | |
| 4 | Nordsjælland Håndbold | 6 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 174 | 192 | −18 | 1 | |
| Home \ Away | BSV | GOG | KIF | NSH |
| Bjerringbro-Silkeborg | | 28–29 | 31–28 | 30–30 |
| GOG Håndbold | 32–32 | | 29–29 | 38–31 |
| KIF Kolding København | 27–32 | 33–32 | | 39–36 |
| Nordsjælland Håndbold | 24–28 | 28–31 | 25–26 | |

## Playoff
### Semifinal

| Date | Date | Date | Home team in the 1st match & 3rd match | Home team in the 2nd match | Results | Results | Results |
| 1st match | 2nd match | 3rd match | Home team in the 1st match & 3rd match | Home team in the 2nd match | 1st match | 2nd match | 3rd match |
| 10-05-18 | 13-05-18 | 16-05-18 | Skjern Håndbold | GOG Håndbold | 28–31 | 24–23 | 38–30 |
| 10-05-18 | 13-05-18 | 16-05-18 | Bjerringbro-Silkeborg | Aalborg Håndbold | 28–20 | 32–28 | – |
! Best of three matches. In the case of a tie after the second match, a third match is played. Highest ranking team in the regular season has the home advantage in the first and possible third match.

### 3rd place

| Date | Date | Date | Home team in the 1st match & 3rd match | Home team in the 2nd match | Results | Results | Results |
| 1st match | 2nd match | 3rd match | Home team in the 1st match & 3rd match | Home team in the 2nd match | 1st match | 2nd match | 3rd match |
| 21-05-18 | 28-05-18 | 31-05-18 | GOG Håndbold | Aalborg Håndbold | 25–26 | 37–31 | 25–22 |
! Best of three matches. In the case of a tie after the second match, a third match is played. Highest ranking team in the regular season has the home advantage in the first and possible third match.

### Final

| Date | Date | Date | Home team in the 1st match & 3rd match | Home team in the 2nd match | Results | Results | Results |
| 1st match | 2nd match | 3rd match | Home team in the 1st match & 3rd match | Home team in the 2nd match | 1st match | 2nd match | 3rd match |
| 20-05-18 | 29-05-18 | | Skjern Håndbold | Bjerringbro-Silkeborg | 29–29 | 27–26 | – |
! Best of three matches. In the case of a tie after the second match, a third match is played. Highest ranking team in the regular season has the home advantage in the first and possible third match.

## Relegation playoff

No. 5 from the relegation playoff and winner, of the playoff match between 2nd and 3rd, from the first division is meet each other for the last seat. The winner stays in the league. the loser relegated to Division 1.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| 1 | SønderjyskE Herrer | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 95 | 81 | +14 | 7 | |
| 2 | Mors-Thy Håndbold | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 92 | 95 | −3 | 6 | |
| 3 | Ribe-Esbjerg HH | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 84 | 91 | −7 | 3 | |
| 4 | Skanderborg Håndbold | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 83 | 87 | −4 | 2 | |
| 5 | HC Midtjylland | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Relegated |
* ↑ HC Midtjylland was excluded from the relegation playoff on 23 April 2017 due to license violation. The results were abandoned.
| Home \ Away | HCM | MTH | REH | SKA | SØN |
| HC Midtjylland | | DQ | DQ | DQ | DQ |
| Mors-Thy Håndbold | DQ | | 32–31 | 27–26 | |
| Ribe-Esbjerg HH | DQ | | | | 22–28 |
| Skanderborg Håndbold | DQ | | 31–31 | | |
| SønderjyskE Håndbold | DQ | 38–33 | | 29–26 | |

## Number of teams by regions

| | Region | No. teams | Teams |
| 1 | Midtjylland | 6 | Aarhus Håndbold, Bjerringbro-Silkeborg, HC Midtjylland, Skanderborg Håndbold, Skjern Håndbold, TTH Holstebro |
| 2 | Syddanmark | 5 | KIF Kolding København, GOG, Ribe-Esbjerg HH, SønderjyskE, TM Tønder |
| 3 | Nordjylland | 2 | Aalborg Håndbold, Mors-Thy Håndbold |
| 4 | Hovedstaden | 1 | Nordsjælland Håndbold |