Zoran Ilic | |
Birth Date: | 2 January 2002 |
Birth Place: | Senta, Serbia, FR Yugoslavia |
Nationality: | Serbian / Hungarian |
Height: | 1.97 m |
Position: | Right back |
Currentclub: | HSV Hamburg |
Youthyears1: | 2016–2017 |
Youthclubs1: | NEKA |
Years1: | 2017–2019 |
Clubs1: | NEKA |
Years2: | 2019–2023 |
Clubs2: | Telekom Veszprém |
Years3: | 2020 |
Clubs3: | → Wisła Płock (loan) |
Years4: | 2020–2021 |
Clubs4: | → BFKA-Veszprém (loan) |
Years5: | 2023– |
Clubs5: | HSV Hamburg |
Nationalyears1: | 2020– |
Nationalteam1: | Hungary |
Nationalcaps1: | 34 |
Nationalgoals1: | 42 |
Zoran Ilic (Serbian: Зоран Илић|Zoran Ilić; Hungarian: Ilics Zorán; born 2 Januar 2002) is a Serbian-Hungarian handball player for HSV Hamburg and for the Hungary national team.
Zoran started his career at NEKA. He made his debut in the first team in NEKA in 2018, and in that season he scored 4 goals in 9 matches in the then still Nemzeti Bajnokság I/B team. In 2019, the Hungarian record champion moved to Telekom Veszprém, where he initially played in the second team, but he was also able to play in 5 matches in the first team, in the Nemzeti Bajnokság I, in which he scored 2 goals. He could also make his debut in the EHF Champions League. In the fall of 2020, Telekom Veszprém loaned him to the Polish team Wisła Płock,[1] but after 3 months he decided to return to Hungary and finish his studies.[2] Zoran scored 21 goals in six matches in the Polish Superliga, 11 goals in 3 matches in the EHF Champions League for Wisła Płock. In the 2021/2022 season, he participated in the BL Final 4 in Cologne, where he also scored a goal in the bronze medal match.[3] At the end of the 2022/2023 season, he became champion and cup winner with Telekom Veszprém, after which he left for the German HSV Hamburg team.[4] He scored 80 goals in 44 first-class matches for Telekom Veszprém, and 17 goals in 27 matches in the EHF Champions League.
He made his debut in the Hungary men's national handball team on November 4, 2020, in the Eurocup match against the Spain men's national handball team: Hungary-Spain 32–29.[5] (Zoran did not score in the match.) He was 9th with the Hungarian team at the 2021 Youth European Championship. He was included in the large squad of the 2021 World Men's Handball Championship,[6] but in the end he will not become a member of the narrow squad. As a member of the junior national team, he participated in the 2022 Junior European Championship where the Hungarian team became the 5th.[7] He was included in the large squad of the 2022 European Men's Handball Championship,[8] but in the end he will not become a member of the narrow squad.[9] He also participated in the 2023 World Men's Handball Championship as a member of the Hungary men's national handball team. (8th place, 9 matches / 10 goals). He participated in the 2023 Junior World Championship, where Hungary won the silver medal[10] and was voted the best right back.[11] He also participated in the 2024 European Men's Handball Championship as a member of the Hungary men's national handball team. (5th place, 8 matches / 7 goals). He also participated in the 2024 Paris Olympics, where the Hungarian team finished 10th (5 matches / 9 goals).