U16 Regional Challenge CupHandball · Season 2026/27
Competition Regulations
Season 2026/27 · Players born 2010 or later · Boys and Girls · 12 participating associations
- 12
- Associations
- 4+4
- Groups M+W
- 3
- Teams / group
- 4
- Windows
- 3
- Finals
Participating associations
The following twelve national associations are confirmed participants. Group compositions differ between boys and girls, reflecting the different competitive levels in each category.
| Group | Association | Seed |
|---|---|---|
| A | Slovenia | A1 |
| Croatia | A2 | |
| Slovakia | A3 | |
| B | Bosnia & Herzegovina | B1 |
| Serbia | B2 | |
| Romania | B3 | |
| C | Montenegro | C1 |
| North Macedonia | C2 | |
| Kosovo | C3 | |
| D | Turkey | D1 |
| Bulgaria | D2 | |
| Greece | D3 |
| Group | Association | Seed |
|---|---|---|
| A | Slovenia | A1 |
| Bosnia & Herzegovina | A2 | |
| Slovakia | A3 | |
| B | Croatia | B1 |
| Montenegro | B2 | |
| Serbia | B3 | |
| C | Kosovo | C1 |
| Romania | C2 | |
| Bulgaria | C3 | |
| D | Turkey | D1 |
| Greece | D2 | |
| North Macedonia | D3 |
Kosovo restriction: Kosovo is not placed in the same group as Serbia or Bosnia & Herzegovina in either the boys or the girls draw.
Article 1 — Competition format
Twelve associations per category, drawn into four groups of three. Separate draws for boys and girls.
Group stage
- All teams within a group play each other once (round robin), spread across three separate tournament windows.
- Each window is one tournament hosted by one of the group's member associations.
- Six group matches per team in total. There are no bye weekends — every team plays in every window.
- Three match days per tournament: the host plays on the first and the last day, the two visiting teams meet on the middle day.
Final window
- After the three group-stage windows, the final window hosts three parallel tournaments determined by group finishing positions.
- Cross-group seeding applies: Group A against Group D · Group B against Group C.
- Two semi-finals on day one, then the final and the third-place match on day two.
- Every team finishes the season with a definitive placement between first and twelfth.
| Final | Places | Semi-finals (day 1) | Day 2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Final A | 1–4 | A1 v D1 · B1 v C1 | Final + 3rd place |
| Final B | 5–8 | A2 v D2 · B2 v C2 | Final + 3rd place |
| Final C | 9–12 | A3 v D3 · B3 v C3 | Final + 3rd place |
Cross-group seeding: Group A against Group D · Group B against Group C.
Article 2 — Hosting obligations
Each of the twelve participating associations hosts exactly one group-stage tournament during the season, organising all matches within its group for that window.
| Window | Group A host | Group B host | Group C host | Group D host |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tournament 1 6–8 Nov 2026 | Slovenia | Bosnia & H. | Montenegro | Turkey |
| Tournament 2 8–10 Jan 2027 | Croatia | Serbia | N. Macedonia | Bulgaria |
| Tournament 3 12–14 Mar 2027 | Slovakia | Romania | Kosovo | Greece |
| Finals 1–12 6–8 May 2027 | — | — | — | — |
| Window | Group A host | Group B host | Group C host | Group D host |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tournament 1 23–25 Oct 2026 | Slovenia | Croatia | Kosovo | Greece |
| Tournament 2 27–29 Nov 2026 | Bosnia & H. | Montenegro | Bulgaria | N. Macedonia |
| Tournament 3 4–6 Dec 2026 | Slovakia | Serbia | Romania | Turkey |
| Finals 1–12 8–10 Apr 2027 | — | — | — | — |
Host association obligations
- Provide a suitable indoor venue with a minimum capacity of 200 spectators.
- Ensure changing rooms, medical assistance and basic media facilities.
- Arrange accommodation for visiting teams upon request, or provide a hotel list.
- Appoint a local organising committee and a tournament director.
- Submit a venue confirmation form to U16@rr-liga.com no later than 60 days before the tournament.
- Provide match officials in coordination with the national referee commission.
- Report results to the competition office immediately after each match day.
Season calendar
The detailed season calendar, including preparation weeks and exact match days, is provided in the accompanying document “Season Calendar 2026/27”. A summary is given below.
| Window | Boys | Girls |
|---|---|---|
| W1 | Tournament 1 — 6–8 Nov 2026 | Tournament 1 — 23–25 Oct 2026 |
| W2 | Tournament 2 — 8–10 Jan 2027 | Tournament 2 — 27–29 Nov 2026 |
| W3 | Tournament 3 — 12–14 Mar 2027 | Tournament 3 — 4–6 Dec 2026 |
| W4 | Finals 1–12 — 6–8 May 2027 | Finals 1–12 — 8–10 Apr 2027 |
Article 3 — Scoring and ranking
| Win | Draw | Loss |
|---|---|---|
| 3 points | 1 points | 0 points |
Points system
- A win is worth 3 points, a draw 1 point and a loss 0 points.
Group stage ranking
- In the event of equal points between two or more teams, the tiebreaker criteria are applied in order until the tie is broken.
- A team that fails to appear for a scheduled match without a valid, documented reason receives a technical defeat of 0:3 and 0 points. Repeated no-shows may result in exclusion from the competition.
Tiebreaker criteria
- 1.Total points accumulated across all three group-stage tournaments
- 2.Goal difference — all matches
- 3.Total goals scored — all matches
- 4.Head-to-head points between the tied teams
- 5.Head-to-head goal difference between the tied teams
- 6.Draw conducted by the Regional Handball League
Qualification for the final window
- 1st place in each group → Final A (places 1–4)
- 2nd place in each group → Final B (places 5–8)
- 3rd place in each group → Final C (places 9–12)
Article 4 — Final tournament hosting
Hosting rights for each final tournament (Final A, B and C) are awarded to one of the four qualified associations in that final.
- Available indoor venue — minimum 500 spectators for Final A, 200 spectators for Finals B and C.
- Confirmed accommodation for four delegations.
- Previous experience organising international handball events.
- Hosting application submitted no later than 30 days after the conclusion of the third window.
- Boys and girls final tournaments are hosted separately, on different weekends. An association may apply to host both if it has sufficient venue capacity.
Article 5 — General provisions
Eligibility
- Players must be born in 2010 or later (U16 category, season 2026/27) — younger players are eligible, older are not.
- Players must hold the nationality of the association they represent and be eligible under EHF and IHF regulations.
- Each association enters one boys team and one girls team.
- Each association may register a squad of up to 16 players per gender per tournament.
- Players may not represent more than one association during the season.
Match rules
- Matches are played under the current IHF Rules of the Game as adopted by the EHF.
- Standard match duration is two halves of 30 minutes with a 10-minute half-time interval.
- In group-stage matches a draw stands — there is no overtime or shootout.
- In final-window semi-finals and finals, a draw is decided by 2 × 5 minutes of overtime, then a penalty shootout.
- IHF-approved match balls are provided by the host association.
Officials and referees
- Each tournament is officiated by referee pairs approved by the host national federation.
- The Regional Handball League may assign or approve officials for the final window.
Disputes and appeals
- Protests must be submitted in writing to the match commissioner within 30 minutes of the final whistle.
- Decisions on protests are made by the Regional Handball League within 24 hours.
- Appeals may be referred to the competent arbitration body under EHF statutes.