2017–18 Women's EHF Champions League explained

Women's EHF Champions League
Year:	2017–18
Sport:	Handball
Start Date:	9 September 2017
End Date:	13 May 2018
Teams:	16 (group stage) 22 (qualification)
Website:	ehfcl.com
Champions:	Győri Audi ETO KC
Runners-Up1:	HC Vardar
Matches:	96
Goals:	5014
Top Scorer:	Cristina Neagu (110 goals)
Previous:	2016–17
Next:	2018–19

The 2017–18 EHF Champions League was the 25th edition of Europe's premier club handball tournament.

Győri Audi ETO KC defended their title by defeating HC Vardar in the final.^[1]

Competition format

16 teams participated in the competition, divided in four groups who played in a round robin, home and away format. The top three teams in each group qualified for the main round

Main roundThe 12 qualified teams were divided in four groups who played in a round robin, home and away format. The points gained against the qualified teams in the first round were carried over. The top four teams in each group qualified for the quarterfinals.

Knockout stageAfter the quarterfinals, the culmination of the season, the WOMEN'S EHF FINAL4, will continue in its existing format, with the four top teams from the competition competing for the title.

Team allocation

14 teams were directly qualified for the group stage.^[2]

Group stage
FC Midtjylland	Nykøbing Falster Håndbold	Brest Bretagne Handball	Metz Handball
SG BBM Bietigheim	FTC-Rail Cargo Hungaria	Győri Audi ETO KC	HC Vardar
ŽRK Budućnost	Larvik HK	Vistal Gdynia	CSM București
Rostov-Don	RK Krim
Qualification tournaments
Hypo Niederösterreich	HC Gomel	Podravka Koprivnica	Thüringer HC
Vipers Kristiansand	CB Atlético Guardés	H 65 Höör	Kastamonu Belediyesi

Round and draw dates

The qualification draw was held in Vienna, Austria, the group stage draw in Ljubljana, Slovenia and the final four draw in Budapest, Hungary.^{[3] [4] [5]}

Phase	Draw date
Qualification tournaments	29 June 2017
Group stage	30 June 2017
Knockout stage
Final Four	17 April 2018

Qualification stage

See main article: 2017–18 Women's EHF Champions League qualifying. The draw was held on 29 June 2017. The two winners of the qualification tournaments advanced to the group stage.^[6]

Qualification tournament 2

Group stage

See main article: 2017–18 Women's EHF Champions League group stage. The draw was held on 30 June 2017.^[7]

In each group, teams played against each other in a double round-robin format, with home and away matches.

Group D

Main round

See main article: 2017–18 Women's EHF Champions League main round. The top three teams of each preliminary group advance. Points obtained against qualified teams from the same group are carried over.

In each group, teams play against each other in a double round-robin format, with home and away matches.

Group 2

Knockout stage

See main article: 2017–18 Women's EHF Champions League knockout stage. The first four placed teams from the main round qualified for the knockout stage.

Final four

Final

Awards and statistics

All-Star Team

The all-star team and awards were announced on 11 May 2018.^[8]

• Goalkeeper:
• Right wing:
• Right back:
• Centre back:
• Left back:
• Left wing:
• Pivot:

Other awards

• MVP of the Final Four:
• Best coach:
• Best young player:
• Best defence player:

Top goalscorers

Rank	Player	Club	Goals
1	Cristina Neagu	CSM București	110
2	Iveta Luzumová	Thüringer HC	105
3	Andrea Penezić	HC Vardar	92
4	Veronica Kristiansen	FC Midtjylland	91
5	Johanna Westberg	Nykøbing Falster	76
6	Ana Gros	Metz Handball	74
7	Milena Raičević	ŽRK Budućnost	72
8	Anita Görbicz	Győri Audi ETO KC	70
9	Andrea Lekić	HC Vardar	69
10	Nerea Pena	FTC-Rail Cargo Hungaria	66
	Anna Vyakhireva	Rostov-Don
	Isabelle Gulldén	CSM București

External links

• Official website

Notes and References

1. Web site: A perfect farewell for Martin: Györ become first to defend FINAL4 title. 13 May 2018. ehfcl.com.
2. Web site: Top flight participants for 2017/18 confirmed. ehfcl.com. 24 June 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170624162650/http://www.ehfcl.com/women/2016-17/article/29007/Top+flight+participants+for+2017/18+confirmed. 24 June 2017. dead.
3. Web site: EHF receives 25 registrations for the 25th season of Women's EHF Champions League. 12 June 2017. ehfcl.com. 19 June 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170616222908/http://ehfcl.com/men/2016-17/article/28934/EHF+receives+25+registrations+for+the+25th+season+of+Women's+EHF+Champions+League. 16 June 2017. dead.
4. Web site: Ljubljana hosts draw for the 25th season of EHF Champions League. 13 June 2017. ehfcl.com.
5. Web site: Follow the Women's EHF FINAL4 2018 Draw live. 17 April 2018. ehfcl.com.
6. Web site: Former champions avoid a clash in the qualification. 29 June 2017. eurohandball.com.
7. Web site: Defending champions in the group with the EHF Cup winners Rostov. 30 June 2017. ehfcl.com.
8. Web site: Women's EHF Champions League All-star team revealed on the eve of EHF FINAL4. 11 May 2018. eurohandball.com. 11 May 2018. 16 May 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180516073958/http://www.eurohandball.com/article/30665. dead.