IHF Congress in Cairo: Moustafa Vs. three Europeans
The Electoral Congress of the International Handball Federation (IHF) will be held from 20 to 22 December in Cairo, with heightened interest from the sports public due to the large number of candidates for the top post in the sport’s governing body.
“The Eternal Egyptian” Hassan Moustafa, who will turn 82 next July, is seeking another term at the helm of the IHF, a position he has held since 2000. Europe, as the most developed handball continent, is particularly interested in breaking with the current practice and introducing new initiatives in the sport—something reflected in the fact that there are as many as three European challengers.
One of the challengers is Gerd Butzeck, one of the most influential figures in world handball as the chair of the Forum Club Handball—an organization that brings together top clubs and is an indispensable partner in shaping the lifeblood of European club competitions. The German has secured the backing of the sport’s biggest nation, the German Handball Federation (DHB), and for months has been trying to convince delegates that his “Handball deserves more” platform is the right way to ensure handball’s visibility and security within the Olympic family of sports.
Franjo Bobinac, President of the Slovenian Olympic Committee, former head of the Slovenian Handball Federation, and for many years a key figure in handball as a successful businessman from the Gorenje company (now Hisense), will also take part in the race. An impeccable business and sporting CV, along with a “manifesto” offering fresh ideas and approaches to resolving long-standing issues that the current IHF leadership has failed to answer, give Slovenia a certain hope of—after Aleksander Čeferin at the head of UEFA—gaining another top-level sports official on the biggest possible stage.
Finally, the fourth candidate is Dutchman Tjark de Lange, a 58-year-old who served as president of the Dutch federation from 2011 to 2021 and is credited with the boom in Dutch handball. He is also a member of the EHF Executive Committee in its new composition, as well as the director of the BENE-League.
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THE FRENCH ARE CLEAR: “MOUSTAFA IS THE BEST”
The candidates for Vice President of the International Handball Federation (IHF) are the head of French handball, Philippe Bana, and Bahrain’s Ali Mohamed Eshaqi. Bana has already stated that France will vote for Moustafa because “there is no better candidate,” while media reports suggest that behind the stance of the controversial Frenchman according to the letter published on gohandball.com—lies the idea that he himself would succeed Moustafa, after a two-year term in which Moustafa would transfer powers to the Vice President.
IHF ON PAPER LIKE FIFA
However, Europe’s potential lack of unity—with 52 member federations—is not the biggest problem for those who want the IHF to get a new face at the top after 25 years. The IHF, although far less developed than football, has the same number of members as FIFA—211. According to research by gohandball.com, as many as 126 national federations practically do not exist: there are no traces of their activities, no web or social media presence, no teams, players, or coaches. That reduces Europe’s influence to roughly a quarter, and by that logic a huge voting machine of virtually non-existent handball nations can push elections in one direction or the other.
Moustafa’s strongholds in Asia, Africa, and South America have tipped the balance in the past, and whether that will be the case again remains to be seen next weekend.
One thing is certain: handball needs development outside Europe—serious projects, new disciplines such as an urban 3×3 (3×4) version, simplified rules, and new solutions that would bring the sport closer to consumers worldwide.
