| EHF European League | |
| Year: | 2020–21 |
| Sport: | Handball |
| Teams: | 51 (qualification stage) 24 (group stage) |
| Website: | ehfel.com |
| Champions: | SC Magdeburg |
| Runners-Up1: | Füchse Berlin |
| Top Scorer: | Emil Jakobsen (111 goals) |
| Mvp: | Jannick Green |
| Previous: | 2019–20 |
| Next: | 2021–22 |
The 2020–21 EHF European League was the 1st edition of the EHF European League, replacing the EHF Cup as the second most important European handball club competition organised by the European Handball Federation (EHF), which had been in existence for 39 years.[1]
A total of 51 teams from 21 countries participated in the 2020–21 EHF European League.[2]
The schedule of the competition was as follows.
| Phase | Round | Draw date | First leg | Second leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Qualification | First qualifying round | 28 July 2020 | 29-30 August 2020 | 5-6 September 2020 |
| Second qualifying round | 8 September 2020 | 22 September 2020 | 29 September 2020 | |
| Group stage | Matchday 1 | 1 October 2020 | 20 October 2020 | |
| Matchday 2 | 27 October 2020 | |||
| Matchday 3 | 17 November 2019 | |||
| Matchday 4 | 24 November 2020 | |||
| Matchday 5 | 1 December 2020 | |||
| Matchday 6 | 8 December 2020 | |||
| Matchday 7 | 9 February 2021 | |||
| Matchday 8 | 16 February 2021 | |||
| Matchday 9 | 23 February 2021 | |||
| Matchday 10 | 2 March 2021 | |||
| Knockout phase | Round of 16 | No draw | 23 March 2021 | 30 March 2021 |
| Quarter-finals | 13 April 2021 | 20 April 2021 | ||
| Final four | 27 April 2021 | 22–23 May 2021 | ||
A total of 30 teams were involved in the first qualifying round draw, they were divided into three geographical zones, each one with two pots of five teams, to limit travel distances and to reduce possible travel restrictions amid the COVID-19 pandemic.[3] Teams from the same country could not be drawn into the same tie.[4]
| Zone 1 | Zone 2 | Zone 3 | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| width=17% | Seeded | width=17% | Unseeded | width=17% | Seeded | width=17% | Unseeded | width=16% | Seeded | width=16% | Unseeded | |
| valign=top | valign=top |
| valign=top | valign=top | valign=top | valign=top | ||||||
|}
A total of 24 teams were involved in the second qualifying round draw, 15 advancing from the previous round and 9 teams entering this round. Teams were divided in two pots and were drawn without any restrictions.[5]
| width=50% | Seeded | width=50% | Unseeded | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| valign=top | valign=top |
|}
The 24 teams were divided into six pots of four teams, with a team from each pot being drawn to each group. Teams from the same country could not be drawn into the same group.[6]
| width=17% | Pot 1 | width=17% | Pot 2 | width=17% | Pot 3 | width=17% | Pot 4 | width=16% | Pot 5 | width=16% | Pot 6 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| valign=top | valign=top | valign=top | valign=top | valign=top | valign=top |
Teams were ranked according to points (2 points for a win, 1 point for a draw, 0 points for a loss), and if tied on points, the following tiebreaking criteria were applied, in the order given, to determine the rankings:
The pairings for the last 16 and the quarter-finals are based on group stage standings, according to the following bracket.[7] This assures teams from the same group can only play each other again in the final four.
The last 16 first legs were scheduled for 23 March 2021, while the second legs followed on 30 March 2021.[8] |}
The quarter-finals first legs were scheduled for 13 April 2021, while the second legs followed on 20 April 2021.[9] |}
The EHF Finals Men 2021 was played on 22 and 23 May 2021 in Mannheim, Germany and comprised one leg semifinals, final and third-place match. The pairings for the semifinals were decided by drawing of lots.[10]
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| Rank | Player | Club | Goals[11] |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Emil Jakobsen | GOG Håndbold | 111 |
| 2 |  Ómar Ingi Magnússon | SC Magdeburg | 94 |
| 3 | Halil Jaganjac | RK Nexe | 80 |
| 4 |  Adam Nyfjäll | IFK Kristianstad | 74 |
| Jerry Tollbring | Rhein-Neckar Löwen | ||
| 6 |  Alexander Kotov | Chekhovskiye Medvedi | 72 |
| 7 |  Hugo Descat | Montpellier HB | 71 |
| 8 | Mathias Gidsel | GOG Håndbold | 69 |
| 9 | Hans Lindberg | Füchse Berlin | 68 |
 Gonzalo Pérez Arce | CB Ademar León | ||
 Zoltán Szita |  Orlen Wisła Płock |
