Maccabi Tel Aviv Suffers European Handball Defeat; Holon Secures Victory

Maccabi Tel Aviv's handball team lost its first European Federation match on Saturday, falling to Swiss side Bern 39:25 in Switzerland. The game was the first of two between the teams in the first round of the competition, with a rematch scheduled within 24 hours in the same venue.

Bern established an early lead, going up 9:5 by the 15th minute and extending it to 19:9 by halftime. Despite efforts to close the gap in the second half, Maccabi Tel Aviv could not overcome Bern's advantage. Shnir Natzia led Maccabi with nine goals, followed by Assaf Sukolitzki with four, and Viktor Poluchenko and Itay Shamla with three each. Goalkeeper Toma Stojkovic made seven saves, and Tom Shem Tov added three.

In another European match, M.K. Holon secured a narrow 36:35 victory over Italian team Siracusa Sport in their opening game. Holon, coached by Nissim Pelach, started strong with key players Or Levi and Caio Vinicius contributing to an early 8:3 lead. The advantage grew to double digits in the first half, with Holon leading 21:12 at halftime.

Holon extended its lead to 27:15 early in the second half, but Siracusa began to mount a comeback, reducing the deficit to 29:23. Holon managed to maintain its lead, with Or Levi and Itolo scoring crucial goals. A late surge by Siracusa brought the score to 34:30, but goals from Amit Reinisberg and Or Levi sealed the 36:35 win for Holon. Or Levi was the top scorer for Holon with 10 goals, while Amit Reinisberg and Itolo added eight each.