Greek Men's Handball Championship
The Greek Men's Handball Championship, or Handball Premier, is the most important competition of Greek handball. The competition which is organised by Hellenic Handball Federation (Greek: ΟΧΕ) started in 1979–80 season. The most successful team is Ionikos Nea Filadelfeia who has won ten titles. The last title was won by AEK (3rd).
Current season, competition or edition: | |
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| Countries | Greece |
|---|---|
| Confederation | EHF |
| Founded | 1979 |
| Number of teams | 12 |
| Relegation to | A2 Ethniki Handball |
| Level on pyramid | Level 1 |
| Domestic cup(s) | Greek Cup |
| International cup(s) | EHF Cup EHF Challenge Cup |
| Current champions | AEK (2020) |
| Most championships | Ionikos Nea Filadelfeia (10 titles) |
| TV partners | ERT |
| Website | handball.org.gr |
Evangelos Kalfarentzos, fitness director of the Panhellenic Gymnastics Association of Athens (Panellinios), physical education teacher and author, recognized as rapporteur of the sport in Greece.
Competition Format
The season begins with a tournament between the twelve teams. The first six teams qualify for a play-off round, while the last three plays play-out. The top two teams of the play-off round qualifies directly to the semifinals, while the others four plays the top two teams of the play-out round in quarterfinals.
2019/20 Season participants
The following 12 clubs compete in the Handball Premier during the 2019–20 season.
| Team | City | Arena |
|---|---|---|
| AEK | Athens | G. Kassimatis Indoor Hall |
| Aeropos Edessa | Edessa | Edessa Indoor Hall |
| Aris Nikaias | Piraeus | Platonas Indoor Hall |
| ASE Douka | Athens | Dais Indoor Hall |
| Diomidis Argous | Argos | Argos Indoor Hall |
| Drama 86 | Drama | Dimitris Krachtidis Indoor Hall |
| Faiakas Kerkyras | Corfu | Kerkyra Indoor Hall |
| Filippos Veria | Veria | Filippio Indoor Hall |
| Ionikos Nea Filadelfeia | Athens | Zacharias Alexandrou Indoor Hall |
| Olympiacos | Piraeus | Melina Merkouri Indoor Hall |
| PAOK | Thessaloniki | Neapoli Indoor Hall |
| Pylaia | Thessaloniki | EAK Mikras |
Greek Men's Handball Championship past champions
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Panhellenic Championship (1979–80 to 1981–82)
Alpha Ethniki (1982–83 to 1988–89)
A1 Ethniki (1989–90 to 2014–15)
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Handball Premier (2015–16 to present)
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Performances
By clubs
| Club | Titles | Seasons |
|---|---|---|
| Ionikos Nea Filadelfeia | 10 | 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1987, 1992, 1993, 1999 |
| Filippos Veria | 9 | 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1994, 1995, 2003, 2016 |
| Panellinios | 5 | 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2007 |
| ASE Douka | 3 | 1998, 2001, 2008 |
| PAOK | 2009, 2010, 2015 | |
| AEK | 2011, 2013, 2020 | |
| Diomidis Argous | 2 | 2012, 2014 |
| Olympiacos | 2018, 2019 | |
| ESN Vrilissia | 1 | 1996 |
| GE Veria | 1997 | |
| Athinaikos | 2005 | |
| IEK Xini DIKEAS | 2017 |
By cities
12 clubs have won the championship, from a total of 5 cities.
| City | Number of Titles | Clubs |
|---|---|---|
| Athens (7) | 24 | Ionikos Nea Filadelfeia (10), Panellinios (5) ASE Douka (3), AEK (3), ESN Vrilissia (1), Athinaikos (1) IEK Xini DIKEAS (1) |
| Veria (2) | 10 | Filippos Veria (9), GE Veria (1) |
| Thessaloniki (1) | 3 | PAOK (3) |
| Argos (1) | 2 | Diomidis Argous (2) |
| Piraeus (1) | 2 | Olympiacos (2) |
EHF coefficient ranking
National leagues for season 2018/2019[1]
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EHF Club Ranking, as of 17 February 2020:[2]
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Greek handball clubs in European competitions
| Team | Semifinals |
|---|---|
| Filippos Veria | 1993 |
EHF Challenge Cup:
| Team | Winner | Runners-up | Semifinals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diomidis Argous | 2012 | ||
| AEK | 2018 | 2019 | |
| Filippos Veria | 2003 | ||
Sources
References
External links
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| National teams | |
| League Competitions | |
| Cup Competitions | |