# 2013–14 EHF Champions League

The 2013–14 VELUX EHF Champions League was the 54th edition of Europe's premier club handball tournament and the 21st edition under the current EHF Champions League format. HSV Hamburg was the defending champion. The VELUX EHF FINAL4 was played on 31 May–1 June at the Lanxess Arena in Cologne, Germany.
SG Flensburg-Handewitt won the title for the first time after defeating THW Kiel 30–28 in the final.

## Overview
### Team allocation

The labels in the parentheses show how each team qualified for the place of its starting round:
* TH: Title holders
* CW: Cup winners
* CR: Cup runners-up
* 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, etc.: League position
Group stage :
| THW Kiel (1st) | Paris Saint-Germain (1st) | Gorenje (1st) | Wacker Thun (1st) |
| Flensburg (2nd) | Dunkerque (2nd) | Celje (2nd) | Zagreb (1st) |
| Rhein-Neckar Löwen (3rd) | Aalborg (1st) | St. Petersburg (2nd) | Vive Targi Kielce (1st) |
| Barcelona (1st) | KIF Kolding (2nd) | MKB-MVM Veszprém (1st) | Vardar (1st) |
| Logroño (3rd) |
| Qualifying ||||
| Qualification tournament | Qualification tournament | Qualification tournament | Wild card tournament |
| HCM Constanța (1st) | Elverum (1st) | KRAS/Volendam (1st) | Füchse Berlin (4th) |
| Porto (1st) | Dinamo-Minsk (1st) | Handball Esch (1st) | HSV Hamburgth (5th) |
| HK Drott (1st) | AEK Athens (1st) | | Montpellier (3rd) |
| Vojvodina (1st) | Alpla HC Hard (1st) | | Pick Szeged (2nd) |
| Motor Zaporizhzhia (1st) | Tatran Prešov (1st) | | Wisła Płock (2nd) |
| Borac Banja Luka (1st) | Beşiktaş (1st) | | Metalurg (2nd) |

## Qualification stage
### Qualification tournaments

Fourteen teams took part in the qualification tournaments. Twelve were drawn into three groups of four teams, where they played a semifinal and a final or third place match, while the remaining two teams played a two-legged playoff match. The winners of the qualification tournaments and of the play-off qualified for the group stage, while the eliminated teams were transferred to the 2013–14 EHF Cup. The draw took place on 27 June 2013, at 14:00 local time, in Vienna, Austria. Matches were played on 31 August and 1 September 2013.

#### Seedings

| Pot 1 | Pot 2 | Pot 3 | Pot 4 |
| Dinamo-Minsk Borac Banja Luka HCM Constanța | Vojvodina Tatran Prešov Porto | Alpla HC Hard Elverum Beşiktaş | Motor Zaporizhzhia AEK Athens KRAS/Volendam |

#### Qualification tournament 1

This qualification tournament was hosted in Prešov, Slovakia, at the home venue of Tatran Prešov.
| Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Final | Final |
| 31 August 2013 | 31 August 2013 |
| Dinamo-Minsk | 25 |
| Dinamo-Minsk | 25 | 1 September 2013 | 1 September 2013 |
| AEK Athens | 21 | 1 September 2013 | 1 September 2013 |
| AEK Athens | 21 | Dinamo-Minsk | 29 |
| 31 August 2013 | 31 August 2013 | | Dinamo-Minsk | 29 |
| 31 August 2013 | 31 August 2013 | Tatran Prešov | 27 |
| Tatran Prešov | 32 | Tatran Prešov | 27 |
| Beşiktaş | 30 | | |
| Beşiktaş | 30 | Third place | Third place |
| | | 1 September 2013 | 1 September 2013 |
| | | AEK Athens | 34 |
| | | Beşiktaş | 30 |

#### Qualification tournament 2

This qualification tournament was hosted in Novi Sad, Serbia, at the home venue of Vojvodina.
| Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Final | Final |
| 31 August 2013 | 31 August 2013 |
| Borac Banja Luka | 18 |
| Borac Banja Luka | 18 | 1 September 2013 | 1 September 2013 |
| Motor Zaporizhzhia | 40 | 1 September 2013 | 1 September 2013 |
| Motor Zaporizhzhia | 40 | Motor Zaporizhzhia | 36 |
| 31 August 2013 | 31 August 2013 | | Motor Zaporizhzhia | 36 |
| 31 August 2013 | 31 August 2013 | Vojvodina | 24 |
| Vojvodina | 27 | Vojvodina | 24 |
| Alpla HC Hard | 26 | | |
| Alpla HC Hard | 26 | Third place | Third place |
| | | 1 September 2013 | 1 September 2013 |
| | | Borac Banja Luka | 17 |
| | | Alpla HC Hard | 25 |

#### Qualification tournament 3

This qualification tournament was hosted in Porto, Portugal, at the home venue of Porto.
| Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Final | Final |
| 31 August 2013 | 31 August 2013 |
| Porto | 29 |
| Porto | 29 | 1 September 2013 | 1 September 2013 |
| Elverum | 28 | 1 September 2013 | 1 September 2013 |
| Elverum | 28 | Porto | 26 |
| 31 August 2013 | 31 August 2013 | | Porto | 26 |
| 31 August 2013 | 31 August 2013 | HCM Constanța | 22 |
| HCM Constanța | 34 | HCM Constanța | 22 |
| KRAS/Volendam | 25 | | |
| KRAS/Volendam | 25 | Third place | Third place |
| | | 1 September 2013 | 1 September 2013 |
| | | KRAS/Volendam | 24 |
| | | Elverum | 32 |

### Playoff

The winner qualified for the group stage and the losing team entered the 2013–14 EHF Cup second round.
| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| Handball Esch | 44–63 | HK Drott | 30–26 | 14–37 |

### Wildcard qualification

The winners qualified for the group stage and the losing teams entered the 2013–14 EHF Cup third round.
| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| Füchse Berlin | 56–57 | HSV Hamburg | 30–30 | 26–27 |
| Metalurg | 45–39 | Pick Szeged | 26–16 | 19–23 |
| Montpellier | 52–55 | Wisła Płock | 29–27 | 23–28 |

## Group phase

The draw for the group stage took place at the Gloriette in Vienna on 28 June 2013 at 20:15 local time. A total of 24 teams were drawn into four groups of six. Teams were divided into six pots, based on EHF coefficients. Clubs from the same pot or the same association could not be drawn into the same group, except the wild card tournament winner, which did not enjoy any protection.
* Pot 1
* THW Kiel
* Barcelona
* Aalborg
* Veszprém
* Pot 2
* Kielce
* Zagreb
* Paris SG
* Gorenje
* Pot 3
* Flensburg
* Wisła Płock
* St. Petersburg
* Vardar
* Pot 4
* KIF Kolding
* Wacker Thun
* RN Löwen
* Logroño
* Pot 5
* Dunkerque
* Celje
* HK Drott
* Dinamo-Minsk
* Pot 6
* Motor
* Porto
* Metalurg
* HSV Hamburg
* Key to colours in group tables
* Top four placed teams advanced to the last 16

### Group A

| Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | VES | RNL | CEL | ZAP | ZAG | PET |
| MKB-MVM Veszprém | 10 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 303 | 243 | +60 | 17 | — | 30–29 | 27–26 | 44–27 | 34–27 | 29–20 |
| Rhein-Neckar Löwen | 10 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 305 | 252 | +53 | 16 | 25–25 | — | 35–25 | 31–31 | 34–26 | 31–17 |
| Celje | 10 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 269 | 272 | −3 | 9 | 26–31 | 25–28 | — | 30–27 | 26–20 | 29–22 |
| Motor Zaporizhzhia | 10 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 277 | 296 | −19 | 9 | 25–21 | 26–32 | 29–32 | — | 31–30 | 29–24 |
| Zagreb | 10 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 267 | 282 | −15 | 8 | 22–33 | 24–28 | 24–21 | 33–27 | — | 26–24 |
| St. Petersburg | 10 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 216 | 292 | −76 | 1 | 15–28 | 23–32 | 29–29 | 18–24 | 24–35 | — |

### Group B

| Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | KIE | KOL | KSK | PLO | POR | DUN |
| THW Kiel | 10 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 298 | 268 | +30 | 17 | — | 29–26 | 28–28 | 34–25 | 30–25 | 28–25 |
| KIF Kolding | 10 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 249 | 240 | +9 | 14 | 24–26 | — | 29–24 | 23–22 | 25–20 | 26–24 |
| Vive Targi Kielce | 10 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 307 | 276 | +31 | 13 | 34–29 | 25–26 | — | 38–30 | 35–23 | 33–23 |
| Wisła Płock | 10 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 275 | 277 | −2 | 8 | 33–34 | 25–26 | 28–30 | — | 28–22 | 32–25 |
| Porto | 10 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 241 | 278 | −37 | 5 | 27–31 | 27–24 | 30–35 | 20–24 | — | 22–21 |
| Dunkerque | 10 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 237 | 268 | −31 | 3 | 21–29 | 18–20 | 30–25 | 25–28 | 25–25 | — |

### Group C

| Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | BAR | PSG | MET | VAR | MIN | THU |
| Barcelona | 10 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 348 | 256 | +92 | 17 | — | 38–28 | 35–17 | 30–23 | 35–25 | 45–26 |
| Paris Saint-Germain | 10 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 315 | 288 | +27 | 13 | 29–33 | — | 32–29 | 35–25 | 34–30 | 38–24 |
| Metalurg | 10 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 256 | 265 | −9 | 12 | 31–29 | 28–26 | — | 22–27 | 33–29 | 24–24 |
| Vardar | 10 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 269 | 263 | +6 | 10 | 29–29 | 24–24 | 18–26 | — | 30–22 | 32–25 |
| Dinamo-Minsk | 10 | 3 | 1 | 6 | 266 | 295 | −29 | 7 | 25–35 | 29–35 | 23–23 | 26–24 | — | 27–20 |
| Wacker Thun | 10 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 242 | 329 | −87 | 1 | 23–39 | 28–34 | 22–23 | 24–37 | 26–30 | — |

### Group D

| Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | HAM | FLE | GOR | AAH | RIO | HKD |
| HSV Hamburg | 10 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 330 | 266 | +64 | 18 | — | 32–27 | 41–32 | 28–20 | 34–27 | 39–30 |
| Flensburg | 10 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 314 | 272 | +42 | 17 | 27–24 | — | 35–31 | 31–27 | 37–25 | 33–25 |
| Gorenje | 10 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 307 | 320 | −13 | 8 | 29–36 | 23–28 | — | 25–30 | 33–28 | 35–33 |
| Aalborg | 10 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 275 | 265 | +10 | 8 | 26–28 | 26–27 | 23–28 | — | 28–24 | 37–24 |
| La Rioja | 10 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 292 | 320 | −28 | 8 | 24–33 | 32–32 | 34–31 | 25–23 | — | 38–34 |
| HK Drott | 10 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 289 | 364 | −75 | 1 | 24–35 | 27–37 | 32–40 | 26–35 | 35–35 | — |

## Knockout stage
### Last 16

The draw was held on 25 February 2014 at 12:00 in Vienna, Austria. The first legs were played on 20–23 March, and the second legs on 29–31 March 2014.

#### Seedings

| Pot 1 | Pot 2 | Pot 3 | Pot 4 |
| MKB-MVM Veszprém THW Kiel Barcelona HSV Hamburg | Rhein-Neckar Löwen KIF Kolding Paris Saint-Germain Flensburg | RK Celje Vive Targi Kielce Metalurg Skopje Gorenje | Motor Zaporizhzhia Wisła Płock Vardar Aalborg |

#### Matches

| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| Motor Zaporizhzhia | 56–71 | THW Kiel | 28–31 | 28–40 |
| Aalborg | 42–60 | Barcelona | 22–29 | 20–31 |
| Vardar | 58–57 | HSV Hamburg | 28–28 | 30–29 |
| Wisła Płock | 60–64 | MKB-MVM Veszprém | 34–33 | 26–31 |
| Gorenje | 55–62 | Paris Saint-Germain | 30–28 | 25–34 |
| Celje | 53–55 | Flensburg | 26–25 | 27–30 |
| Metalurg Skopje | 53–43 | KIF Kolding | 23–17 | 30–26 |
| Vive Targi Kielce | 55–55 | Rhein-Neckar Löwen | 32–28 | 23–27 |

### Quarter-finals

The draw was held on 1 April 2014 at 12:15 in Vienna, Austria. The first legs were played on 19–21 April, and the second legs on 26–27 April 2014.

#### Seedings

| Pot 1 | Pot 2 |
| MKB-MVM Veszprém | Rhein-Neckar Löwen |
| THW Kiel | Metalurg Skopje |
| Barcelona | Paris Saint-Germain |
| Vardar | Flensburg |

#### Matches

| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| Rhein-Neckar Löwen | 62–62 | Barcelona | 38–31 | 24–31 |
| Flensburg | 49–49 | Vardar | 24–22 | 25–27 |
| Metalurg Skopje | 47–65 | THW Kiel | 21–31 | 26–34 |
| Paris Saint-Germain | 52–59 | MKB-MVM Veszprém | 26–28 | 26–31 |

### Final four

The draw was held on 29 April 2014.
| Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Final | Final |
| 31 May | 31 May |
| Barcelona | 39 |
| Barcelona | 39 | 1 June | 1 June |
| Flensburg (pen.) | 41 | 1 June | 1 June |
| Flensburg (pen.) | 41 | Flensburg | 30 |
| 31 May | 31 May | | Flensburg | 30 |
| 31 May | 31 May | THW Kiel | 28 |
| MKB-MVM Veszprém | 26 | THW Kiel | 28 |
| THW Kiel | 29 | | |
| THW Kiel | 29 | Third place | Third place |
| | | 1 June | 1 June |
| | | Barcelona | 26 |
| | | MKB-MVM Veszprém | 25 |

## Awards

| Position | Player |
| Goalkeeper | Niklas Landin Jacobsen (Rhein-Neckar Löwen) |
| Right wing | Luc Abalo (Paris Saint-Germain) |
| Right back | Kiril Lazarov (Barcelona) |
| Centre back | Mikkel Hansen (Paris Saint-Germain) |
| Left back | Momir Ilić (MKB-MVM Veszprém) |
| Left wing | Timur Dibirov (RK Vardar) |
| Pivot | Renato Sulić (MKB-MVM Veszprém) |
| Final four MVP | Aron Palmarsson (THW Kiel) |
| Best defender | Timuzsin Schuch (MKB-MVM Veszprém) |
* Landin
* Dibirov
* Sulić
* Abalo
* Ilić
* Hansen
* Lazarov
* Best Defender : Timuzsin Schuch
* Final four MVP: Aron Palmarsson