# 2019–20 EHF Challenge Cup

The 2019–20 EHF Challenge Cup was the 23rd edition of the European Handball Federation's third-tier competition for men's handball clubs, running from 5 October 2019 to 24 May 2020. On 24 April 2020 EHF announced that the competition would be cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic.

## Overview
### Team allocation

Round 3 :
| CSM București | AHC Potaissa Turda | Madeira Andebol SAD | A.E.K. Athens H.C. |
| HC Neva SPb | Valur | Red Boys Differdange | MŠK Považská Bystrica |
| RK Gračanica | Halden Topphåndball | Donbass | RK Železničar 1949 |
| JD Techniek Hurry-Up | SGS Ramhat Hashron HC | Beykoz BLD SK | |
| Round 2 ||||
| HC Dicken | HC Dobrudja | Masheka Mogilev | VHC Šviesa Vilnius |
| KH Kastrioti | HCB Karviná | Olympia HC | Proodeftikos Paphos |
| BSV Bern | SSSCJRO-1 Tiraspol | Cassano Magnago HC | Bregenz Handball |
| ZRHK Tenax Dobele | HC Tallinn | Mahsul HC | RK Maribor Branik |
| Alingsås HK | H71 | Pas Aeropos Edessa | HC Victor |
| Handball Käerjeng | RK Sloga Doboj | Drammen HK | Odesa HC |
| RK Dinamo | Holon Yuvalim HC | IFK Handball Helsinki | Granitas Karys Kaunas |
| HC Dukla Prague | Livingston HC | HB Dudelange | HC Vogošća Poljine Hills |
| HC Kauno Azuolas-KTU | TJ Sokol Nové Veselí | | |

### Round and draw dates

All draws were held at the European Handball Federation headquarters in Vienna, Austria. On 25 March, the EHF announced that no matches will be played before June due to the coronavirus pandemic.
| Round | Draw date | First leg | Second leg |
| Round 2 | 16 July 2019 | 5–6 October 2019 | 12–13 October 2019 |
| Round 3 | 15 October 2019 | 16–17 November 2019 | 23–24 November 2019 |
| Last 16 | 26 November 2019 | 8–9 February 2020 | 15–16 February 2020 |
| Quarter-final | 18 February 2020 | 21–22 March 2020 | 28–29 March 2020 |
| Semi-finals | 18 February 2020 | 25–26 April 2020 | 2–3 May 2020 |
| Finals | 5 May 2020 | 16–17 May 2020 | 23–24 May 2020 |

## Round 2

Teams listed first played the first leg at home. The first legs were played on 5–6 October and the second legs were played on 12–13 October 2019. Some teams agreed to play both matches in the same venue.
| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| KH Kastrioti | 49–78 | HC Dukla Prague | 26–39 | 23–39 |
| BSV Bern | 53–52 | RK Dinamo | 28–24 | 25–28 |
| TJ Sokol Nové Veselí | 81–37 | HC Dobrudja | 35–23 | 46–14 |
| Drammen HK | 74–38 | Mahsul HC | 38–16 | 36–22 |
| Alingsås HK | 72–55 | Handball Käerjeng | 36–24 | 36–31 |
| HC Kauno Azuolas-KTU | 56–52 | HC Tallinn | 26–24 | 30–28 |
| Olympia HC | 26–66 | Odesa HC | 9–24 | 17–42 |
| H71 | 49–55 | RK Maribor Branik | 25–24 | 24–31 |
| Masheka Mogilev | 51–41 | RK Sloga Doboj | 30–22 | 21–19 |
| Proodeftikos Paphos | 35–72 | Pas Aeropos Edessa | 17–35 | 18–37 |
| VHC Šviesa Vilnius | 52–55 | HC Vogošća Poljine Hills | 27–24 | 25–31 |
| HC Dicken | 82–33 | Livingston HC | 40–20 | 42–13 |
| Granitas Karys Kaunas | 59–50 | SSSCJRO-1 Tiraspol | 33–24 | 26–26 |
| IFK Handball Helsinki | 53–67 | Bregenz Handball | 35–32 | 18–35 |
| HB Dudelange | 48–55 | ZRHK Tenax Dobele | 24–27 | 24–28 |
| HCB Karviná | 63–55 | Holon Yuvalim HC | 31–26 | 32–29 |
| HC Victor | 57–50 | Cassano Magnago HC | 33–24 | 26–26 |

### Notes
## Round 3

A total of 32 teams entered the draw for the third qualification round, which was held on Tuesday, 15 October 2019. The draw seeding pots were composed as follows:
| Pot 1 | Pot 2 |
| RK Gračanica HC Dicken A.E.K. Athens H.C. Valur SGS Ramhat Hashron HC Red Boys Differdange JD Techniek Hurry-Up Halden Topphåndball Madeira Andebol SAD AHC Potaissa Turda CSM București HC Neva SPb RK Železničar 1949 MŠK Považská Bystrica Beykoz BLD SK Donbass | Bregenz Handball HC Vogošća Poljine Hills Masheka Mogilev HC Dukla Prague HCB Karviná TJ Sokol Nové Veselí Pas Aeropos Edessa ZRHK Tenax Dobele Granitas Karys Kaunas HC Kauno Azuolas-KTU Drammen HK HC Victor RK Maribor Branik BSV Bern Alingsås HK Odesa HC |
Teams listed first played the first leg at home. The first legs were played on 16–17 November and the second legs were played on 23–24 November 2019.
| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| CSM București | 59–56 | Masheka Mogilev | 34–28 | 25–28 |
| JD Techniek Hurry-Up | 47–69 | Alingsås HK | 21–32 | 26–37 |
| HC Kauno Azuolas-KTU | 57–69 | Halden Topphåndball | 28–32 | 29–37 |
| Madeira Andebol SAD | 54–43 | RK Maribor Branik | 31–23 | 23–20 |
| MŠK Považská Bystrica | 46–62 | HC Victor | 27–29 | 19–33 |
| Donbass | 53–61 | BSV Bern | 26–25 | 27–36 |
| HC Neva SPb | 66–39 | Pas Aeropos Edessa | 35–20 | 31–19 |
| ZRHK Tenax Dobele | 67–70 | AHC Potaissa Turda | 35–38 | 32–32 |
| HC Dukla Prague | 47–41 | RK Gračanica | 26–21 | 21–20 |
| Granitas Karys Kaunas | 56–66 | Beykoz BLD SK | 22–37 | 34–29 |
| Drammen HK | 64–53 | HC Dicken | 32–24 | 32–29 |
| SGS Ramhat Hashron HC | 63–53 | Odesa HC | 39–28 | 24–25 |
| RK Železničar 1949 | 58–61 | HCB Karviná | 30–28 | 28–33 |
| TJ Sokol Nové Veselí | 46–49 | Red Boys Differdange | 21–22 | 25–27 |
| Valur | 62–52 | Bregenz Handball | 31–31 | 31–21 |
| HC Vogošća Poljine Hills | 49–74 | A.E.K. Athens H.C. | 22–41 | 27–33 |

### Notes
## Last 16

The draw seeding pots for the Last 16 Knockout round were composed as follows: The draw for the last 16 round was held on 26 November 2019.
| Pot 1 | Pot 2 |
| A.E.K. Athens H.C. Valur Red Boys Differdange Madeira Andebol SAD CSM București AHC Potaissa Turda HC Neva SPb HC Victor | HC Dukla Prague HCB Karviná SGS Ramhat Hashron HC Halden Topphåndball Drammen HK BSV Bern Alingsås HK Beykoz BLD SK |
The first leg was scheduled for 8–9 February, while the second leg followed on 15–16 February 2020.
| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| A.E.K. Athens H.C. | 60–58 | Drammen HK | 33–31 | 27–27 |
| SGS Ramhat Hashron HC | 68–73 | HC Victor | 31–31 | 37–42 |
| Beykoz BLD SK | 55–57 | Valur | 25–26 | 30–31 |
| Halden Topphåndball | 46–45 | HC Neva SPb | 23–24 | 23–21 |
| Madeira Andebol SAD | 57–60 | HCB Karviná | 30–27 | 27–33 |
| HC Dukla Prague | 66–56 | Red Boys Differdange | 37–24 | 29–32 |
| BSV Bern | 68–69 | AHC Potaissa Turda | 33–36 | 35–33 |
| Alingsås HK | 52–53 | CSM București | 28–29 | 24–24 |

### Matches

| 8 February 2020 18:00 | A.E.K. Athens H.C. | 33–31 | Drammen HK | O.A.C.A. Olympic Indoor Hall, Athens Attendance: 600 Referees: Sirbu, Serdiuc (MDA) |
| 8 February 2020 18:00 | Buneta 9 | (17–18) | Aalberg 8 | O.A.C.A. Olympic Indoor Hall, Athens Attendance: 600 Referees: Sirbu, Serdiuc (MDA) |
| 8 February 2020 18:00 | 2× 5× | Report | 3× 3× | O.A.C.A. Olympic Indoor Hall, Athens Attendance: 600 Referees: Sirbu, Serdiuc (MDA) |
| 16 February 2020 18:00 | Drammen HK | 27–27 | A.E.K. Athens H.C. | Drammenshallen, Drammen Attendance: 1,012 Referees: Barysas, Petrušis (LTU) |
| 16 February 2020 18:00 | Horgen 10 | (13–12) | Arampatzis 7 | Drammenshallen, Drammen Attendance: 1,012 Referees: Barysas, Petrušis (LTU) |
| 16 February 2020 18:00 | 2× 5× | Report | 1× 1× | Drammenshallen, Drammen Attendance: 1,012 Referees: Barysas, Petrušis (LTU) |
A.E.K. Athens H.C. won 60–58 on aggregate.
| 8 February 2020 19:00 | SGS Ramhat Hashron HC | 31–31 | HC Victor | Oranim Sports hall, Ramat HaSharon Attendance: 700 Referees: Mikelić, Paradina (CRO) |
| 8 February 2020 19:00 | Vejin 8 | (16–15) | three players 5 | Oranim Sports hall, Ramat HaSharon Attendance: 700 Referees: Mikelić, Paradina (CRO) |
| 8 February 2020 19:00 | 2× 2× | Report | 3× 2× | Oranim Sports hall, Ramat HaSharon Attendance: 700 Referees: Mikelić, Paradina (CRO) |
| 15 February 2020 15:00 | HC Victor | 42–37 | SGS Ramhat Hashron HC | STC Lukomore, Budyonnovsk Attendance: 900 Referees: Frieser, Haramul (CZE) |
| 15 February 2020 15:00 | Mazurov 8 | (20–16) | Pavlović 11 | STC Lukomore, Budyonnovsk Attendance: 900 Referees: Frieser, Haramul (CZE) |
| 15 February 2020 15:00 | 2× 2× | Report | 2× 4× | STC Lukomore, Budyonnovsk Attendance: 900 Referees: Frieser, Haramul (CZE) |
HC Viktor won 73–68 on aggregate.
| 15 February 2020 14:00 | Beykoz BLD SK | 25–26 | Valur | Recep Sahin Köktürk Spor Kompleksi, Istanbul Attendance: 510 Referees: Bytyqi, Kasapi (KOS) |
| 15 February 2020 14:00 | Öztürk 6 | (12–10) | Magnússon 9 | Recep Sahin Köktürk Spor Kompleksi, Istanbul Attendance: 510 Referees: Bytyqi, Kasapi (KOS) |
| 15 February 2020 14:00 | 1× 6× | Report | 1× 6× | Recep Sahin Köktürk Spor Kompleksi, Istanbul Attendance: 510 Referees: Bytyqi, Kasapi (KOS) |
| 16 February 2020 15:00 | Valur | 31–30 | Beykoz BLD SK | Recep Sahin Köktürk Spor Kompleksi, Istanbul Attendance: 550 Referees: Bytyqi, Kasapi (KOS) |
| 16 February 2020 15:00 | Jonsson, Vignisson 6 | (15–15) | three players 6 | Recep Sahin Köktürk Spor Kompleksi, Istanbul Attendance: 550 Referees: Bytyqi, Kasapi (KOS) |
| 16 February 2020 15:00 | 1× 7× | Report | 2× 7× | Recep Sahin Köktürk Spor Kompleksi, Istanbul Attendance: 550 Referees: Bytyqi, Kasapi (KOS) |
Valur won 57–55 on aggregate.
| 9 February 2020 16:00 | Halden Topphåndball | 23–24 | HC Neva SPb | Remmenhallen, Halden Attendance: 362 Referees: Kull, Tint (EST) |
| 9 February 2020 16:00 | Cordt-Hansen, Schrøder 5 | (9–14) | Nasyrov 5 | Remmenhallen, Halden Attendance: 362 Referees: Kull, Tint (EST) |
| 9 February 2020 16:00 | 2× 4× | Report | 1× 3× | Remmenhallen, Halden Attendance: 362 Referees: Kull, Tint (EST) |
| 16 February 2020 17:00 | HC Neva SPb | 21–23 | Halden Topphåndball | Interuniversity sports center (MUSC), Saint Petersburg Referees: Bozhinovski, Nachevski (MKD) |
| 16 February 2020 17:00 | Nasyrov, Turaev 5 | (12–15) | Molgaard, Nilsen-Nygaard 5 | Interuniversity sports center (MUSC), Saint Petersburg Referees: Bozhinovski, Nachevski (MKD) |
| 16 February 2020 17:00 | 2× 3× | Report | 2× 6× | Interuniversity sports center (MUSC), Saint Petersburg Referees: Bozhinovski, Nachevski (MKD) |
Halden Topphåndball won 46–45 on aggregate.
| 9 February 2020 19:00 | Madeira Andebol SAD | 30–27 | HCB Karviná | Funchal Playing Hall, Funchal Attendance: 400 Referees: Harabagiu, Stănescu (ROU) |
| 9 February 2020 19:00 | Pedroso 7 | (15–13) | Monczka 9 | Funchal Playing Hall, Funchal Attendance: 400 Referees: Harabagiu, Stănescu (ROU) |
| 9 February 2020 19:00 | 1× 3× | Report | 2× 5× 1× | Funchal Playing Hall, Funchal Attendance: 400 Referees: Harabagiu, Stănescu (ROU) |
| 16 February 2020 10:30 | HCB Karviná | 33–27 | Madeira Andebol SAD | Sportovni hala házené STARS, Karviná Attendance: 1,950 Referees: Rauchs, Linster (LUX) |
| 16 February 2020 10:30 | Bruna, Monczka 6 | (14–12) | three players 5 | Sportovni hala házené STARS, Karviná Attendance: 1,950 Referees: Rauchs, Linster (LUX) |
| 16 February 2020 10:30 | 2× 3× | Report | 3× 2× | Sportovni hala házené STARS, Karviná Attendance: 1,950 Referees: Rauchs, Linster (LUX) |
HCB Karviná won 60–57 on aggregate.
| 9 February 2020 19:30 | HC Dukla Prague | 37–24 | Red Boys Differdange | DHC Sport Hall SK Slavia Praha, Prague Attendance: 400 Referees: Loshak, Shajbakov (UKR) |
| 9 February 2020 19:30 | Klíma, Patzel 8 | (18–14) | Batinović 7 | DHC Sport Hall SK Slavia Praha, Prague Attendance: 400 Referees: Loshak, Shajbakov (UKR) |
| 9 February 2020 19:30 | 3× 6× | Report | 2× 5× | DHC Sport Hall SK Slavia Praha, Prague Attendance: 400 Referees: Loshak, Shajbakov (UKR) |
| 15 February 2020 18:00 | Red Boys Differdange | 32–29 | HC Dukla Prague | Centre Sportif De Differdange, Oberkorn Attendance: 500 Referees: Yovchev, Yonchev (BUL) |
| 15 February 2020 18:00 | Batinović 9 | (16–14) | Klíma 7 | Centre Sportif De Differdange, Oberkorn Attendance: 500 Referees: Yovchev, Yonchev (BUL) |
| 15 February 2020 18:00 | 2× 4× | Report | 3× 4× | Centre Sportif De Differdange, Oberkorn Attendance: 500 Referees: Yovchev, Yonchev (BUL) |
HC Dukla Prague won 66–56 on aggregate.
| 9 February 2020 17:00 | BSV Bern | 33–36 | AHC Potaissa Turda | Mobiliar Arena, Gümlingen Attendance: 450 Referees: Beqiri, Krasniqi (KOS) |
| 9 February 2020 17:00 | Gerlich 7 | (17–17) | four players 6 | Mobiliar Arena, Gümlingen Attendance: 450 Referees: Beqiri, Krasniqi (KOS) |
| 9 February 2020 17:00 | 4× 3× | Report | 3× 5× | Mobiliar Arena, Gümlingen Attendance: 450 Referees: Beqiri, Krasniqi (KOS) |
| 16 February 2020 17:00 | AHC Potaissa Turda | 33–35 | BSV Bern | Sala de sport Gheorghe Bariţiu, Turda Referees: Carmaux, Mursch (FRA) |
| 16 February 2020 17:00 | Szőke 9 | (19–18) | Gerlich 10 | Sala de sport Gheorghe Bariţiu, Turda Referees: Carmaux, Mursch (FRA) |
| 16 February 2020 17:00 | 1× 4× | Report | 1× 4× | Sala de sport Gheorghe Bariţiu, Turda Referees: Carmaux, Mursch (FRA) |
AHC Potaissa Turda won 69–68 on aggregate.
| 8 February 2020 16:00 | Alingsås HK | 28–29 | CSM București | Estrad Alingsas, Alingsas Attendance: 2,155 Referees: Weijmans, Wolbertus (NED) |
| 8 February 2020 16:00 | three players 5 | (13–15) | Rotaru 7 | Estrad Alingsas, Alingsas Attendance: 2,155 Referees: Weijmans, Wolbertus (NED) |
| 8 February 2020 16:00 | 2× 3× | Report | 3× 5× | Estrad Alingsas, Alingsas Attendance: 2,155 Referees: Weijmans, Wolbertus (NED) |
| 15 February 2020 16:00 | CSM București | 24–24 | Alingsås HK | Dinamo Polyvalent Hall, Bucharest Attendance: 2,000 Referees: Chrzan, Janas (POL) |
| 15 February 2020 16:00 | Teixeira 6 | (10–10) | Claar 5 | Dinamo Polyvalent Hall, Bucharest Attendance: 2,000 Referees: Chrzan, Janas (POL) |
| 15 February 2020 16:00 | 2× 3× | Report | 2× 3× | Dinamo Polyvalent Hall, Bucharest Attendance: 2,000 Referees: Chrzan, Janas (POL) |
CSM București won 53–52 on aggregate.

## Quarterfinals

The draw event was held at the EHF Office in Vienna on Tuesday 18 February 2020. The draw will determine the quarter-final and also the semi-final pairings. Teams listed first will play the first leg at home. For the quarter-finals, there is no seeding as all eight teams will be drawn from the same pot one after another. There will be also no country protection applied in the draw. The semi-final draw will follow using the quarter-final pairings.
The first quarter-final leg is scheduled for 21–22 March, while the second leg will follow on 28–29 March 2020.
The European Handball Federation announced on 13 March 2020, that the Quarter-final matches will not be held as scheduled due to the ongoing developments in the spread of COVID-19 across Europe. On 24 April 2020 the matches were cancelled.
| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| HC Victor | M1 | CSM București | – | – |
| HCB Karviná | M2 | HC Dukla Prague | – | – |
| A.E.K. Athens H.C. | M3 | AHC Potaissa Turda | – | – |
| Halden Topphåndball | M4 | Valur | – | – |

### Matches

| HC Victor | Cancelled | CSM București |
| CSM București | Cancelled | HC Victor |
| HCB Karviná | Cancelled | HC Dukla Prague |
| HC Dukla Prague | Cancelled | HCB Karviná |
| A.E.K. Athens H.C. | Cancelled | AHC Potaissa Turda |
| AHC Potaissa Turda | Cancelled | A.E.K. Athens H.C. |
| Halden Topphåndball | Cancelled | Valur |
| Valur | Cancelled | Halden Topphåndball |

## Final four

The first semi-final legs was scheduled for 25–26 April 2020, while the second legs was supposed to follow on 2–3 May 2020, but it will be rescheduled and is foreseen to be played in an EHF FINAL4 format in one venue over two playing days. On 24 April 2020 the matches were cancelled.

### Bracket

| Semifinals | Semifinals | Final | Final |
| | | Third place | Third place |

### Semifinals

| TBD | Cancelled | TBD |
| TBD | Cancelled | TBD |

### Third place game

| LSF1 | Cancelled | LSF2 |

### Final

| WSF1 | Cancelled | WSF2 |

## Top goalscorers

    As of 16 February 2020
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
| 1 | Damir Batinović | Red Boys Differdange | 34 |
| 2 | Milan Pavlović | SGS Ramat Hasharon HC | 30 |
| 3 | Matěj Klíma | HC Dukla Prague | 28 |
| 3 | Marek Monczka | HCB Karviná | 28 |
| 3 | Yakup Yasar Simsar | Beykoz BLD SK | 28 |