Handball Bundesliga: Füchse Berlin are German champions for the first time

Mathias Gidsel needed a moment; there was a suspicious glint in the eyes of the Danish world handball player. No matter who was there, whether board member Stefan Kretzschmar, club president Frank Steffel, or teammate Fabian Wiede, Gidsel took every opportunity to briefly hide his eyes from the cameras. The impact of the moment—his first title win in Germany with Füchse Berlin—was emotionally draining.

Shortly thereafter, however, Gidsel recovered. As if he had never won a handball title before, the Danish world champion, European champion, and Olympic gold medalist raised the championship trophy with childlike joy. Around him, his teammates from Füchse Berlin danced. After numerous attempts, they had actually brought the club its first championship title on this Whitsun Sunday, winning a hard-fought 38:33 (17:20) against the Rhein-Neckar Löwen on the final matchday.

A tough job. "It was like spending 60 minutes in the dentist's chair during a full-blown surgery without a needle," said managing director Bob Hanning, suitably exhausted. It's not Magdeburg, Kiel, or Flensburg that currently boasts the best handball team in the country, but Berlin. "It's still hard to grasp, completely surreal," said coach Jaron Siewert.

About 100 kilometers south, in Bietigheim-Bissingen, the Magdeburgers' gaze fell to the ground. SCM coach Bennet Wiegert spent a long time packing up his tactics board before his team gathered in a sad circle in the middle of the field. Magdeburg had hoped, feared, and fulfilled their duty with the 35:25 away win at SG BBM Bietigheim. But for Magdeburg to have a chance at the championship, the Berlin team would have had to slip up in Mannheim.

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There, it was more exciting than expected. Although the Rhein-Neckar Löwen were no longer at stake in the standings, they put up a strong fight against the favorites. Juri Knorr's players even led in the first half, first by four, then by five goals. This caused noticeable jitters on the Berlin side, as well as increased the pulse of Magdeburg, who had been informed of the score in the parallel game.

But in the second half, the Berliners took control with their tremendous attacking power. The three-goal deficit was eliminated after just a few minutes, and Gidsel was the decisive man in the comeback, scoring ten goals. "It was such a difficult journey," Gidsel said after the game on the Dyn microphone: "Today was the toughest game of the year. The first championship in history – I never imagined that when I joined."

For many people, this title win is very special: For CEO Hanning, who took over two decades ago with the vision of making Berlin the new handball capital. For Siewert, who had just a few days earlier won the title of "Coach of the Season." For the many young players, from Nils Lichtlein to Hákun West av Teigum, who are experiencing their first career highlights. And, of course, for Gidsel, who has won every major trophy with the Danish national team and can now also call himself German champion. "We'll be celebrating all night," he announced.

The mood in Magdeburg was different. "That hurts," said Lukas Mertens, "but congratulations to Berlin. We still had a very good Bundesliga season." Both clubs face the Champions League Final Four next weekend, and then the Berlin team will be aiming for the double in Cologne.

The relegation battle was also decided on the final matchday, and the action was even more dramatic than at the top of the table. VfL Potsdam had been confirmed as the first team to be relegated for weeks, and the search was still on for the second. SG BBM Bietigheim entered the match in 15th place, seemingly the best starting position, but suffered a decisive defeat to Magdeburg at home. And because TVB Stuttgart beat Leipzig 29:28 and HC Erlangen won 25:21 away in Wetzlar, both clubs overtook Bietigheim in the final minutes.

Both teams mourned in the hall: Magdeburg because of the missed championship title – and Bietigheim because after only one year in the Bundesliga it had to move down to the second division.

Click here for the final table of the Handball Bundesliga.