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Strategic sponsorship

DEKRA Expands Involvement in Handball: Official Referee Partner at EHF EUROs 2026

Mar 19, 2025 Corporate
  • Men's tournament from January, women's championship in December
  • Shared values unite referees and technical experts
  • Positive experiences at IHF Men’s World Championship strengthen commitment

The international expert organization DEKRA is becoming the Official Refereeing Partner of the European Handball Championships. The partnership with the European Handball Federation (EHF) includes both the Men's EHF EURO in January and February 2026 and the Women's EHF EURO in December 2026. This marks an expansion of DEKRA's strategic sponsorship of handball referees, in addition to its existing partnership concerning the IHF World Championships until at least 2027.

“For 100 years, DEKRA has been working to ensure safety – with integrity, neutrality, expertise, and accuracy. It is precisely these values that connect us with the referees in sport,” says DEKRA CEO Stan Zurkiewicz. ”Our job as an independent technical expert organization is to ensure that everyone plays by the rules, just like it is the referees’ job on the field. The EHF European Championships complete our handball commitment, and we are looking forward to a strong joint presence.”
At the EHF tournaments, this involvement will be visible primarily on the referees' clothing, in the review area for video replay decisions, but also with perimeter advertising. The fair play message before each game will also be presented by DEKRA. All of this will apply at least to the European Men's Championships in January and February 2026 (in Denmark, Sweden, and Norway) and the European Women's Championships in December 2026 (in Poland, Romania, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, and Turkey).
“We are very pleased to have DEKRA as a strong partner at the EHF's side for the 2026 European Handball Championships. The EHF EURO offers numerous opportunities for companies to communicate their core messages in many markets and reach new target groups,” explains EHF President Michael Wiederer. “Together with DEKRA, we would like to work on a successful implementation of the set goals in the coming months, so that this first partnership can also lay the foundation for a longer-term collaboration.”
“Handball is the ideal platform for DEKRA, especially in Europe, where the sport is passionately lived in many countries. The values of the game, above all fair play and awareness of rules, perfectly match our position as a neutral testing and expert organization. The positive experiences at the 2025 Men's World Championship showed us how strongly and positively our commitment is perceived,” said Uta Leitner, Executive Vice President Communications and Brand Management at DEKRA. ”The partnership with the EHF at the European level is the logical next step.”
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