by InTrieste
Interview: Elisa Lodi, Trieste Councilor for Sports Policies, Municipality of Trieste; Flavio Bientinesi – Vice President, Italian Handball Federation (Federazione Italiana Giuoco Handball)
Italy’s national men’s handball team will return to Trieste in January 2026 for a training camp and an international friendly match against Romania, marking the team’s first appearance in the city in a decade.
The event was presented on Tuesday during a news conference at City Hall, attended by municipal sports officials and representatives of the Italian Handball Federation and Pallamano Trieste. The friendly match, scheduled for Jan. 6, 2026, will be played at the Pala Chiarbola arena and will serve as Italy’s final home game before the European Handball Championship.
The match comes as Italy prepares for a significant milestone: its return to the EHF European Championship for the first time in 20 years. The 2026 tournament will take place from Jan. 16 to Feb. 1 across Sweden, Norway and Denmark, with Italy competing in the Swedish venues.
The Italian squad, coached by technical director Bob Hanning, is expected to arrive in Trieste on Jan. 2 for a four-day training camp. The friendly against Romania is scheduled for 6 p.m. and will be broadcast live on Sky Sport.
City officials emphasized the role of the event within Trieste’s broader sports calendar. Elisa Lodi, the city councillor for sports policy, said the municipality has worked in close cooperation with local sports organizations and national federations to host a wide range of events, both national and local in scope.
According to the city, Trieste co-organized approximately 80 sporting events over the past year, including national boxing championships recently held at the same venue. Officials described the hosting of the national handball team as part of an ongoing strategy to position the city as a destination for major sporting events.
Flavio Bientinesi, vice president of the Italian Handball Federation, described the return to Trieste as symbolically significant. The city has long been associated with Italian handball, having produced numerous national titles and players over several decades. He expressed hope that the match could mark the beginning of a more sustained collaboration between the federation and local institutions.
Pallamano Trieste’s sporting director, Giorgio Oveglia, said the event represents an important step in the club’s recent efforts to rebuild its profile. Founded on a strong historical legacy, the club has been working to reestablish itself within the national handball landscape. Organizers said tickets for the match are close to selling out.
The Italy–Romania match, officially named the Trofeo Friuli Venezia Giulia, will be broadcast on Sky Sport, streamed on NOW, and made available through PallamanoTV. In coordination with regional and city authorities, organizers are also planning a stadium choreography in which spectators will receive green, white or red T-shirts to recreate the Italian flag in the stands.
The European Handball Championship brings together 24 of the continent’s top teams and is widely regarded as one of the sport’s most competitive tournaments. The 2024 edition in Germany drew more than one million spectators over 65 matches, including a record-breaking opening game attended by 54,000 fans.
In Trieste, the most valuable players of the Jan. 6 match will receive an award named in honor of Giuseppe Lo Duca, a longtime president of Pallamano Trieste and a prominent figure in the history of Italian handball.
With national team qualification secured and international attention expected, the January fixture is likely to draw fans from across northern Italy, offering Trieste a brief but visible place on the European handball map ahead of the continental championship.
