Austria — Handball

Handball in Austria has a long tradition rooted in field handball, which was popular in Central Europe during the early 20th century. Today, Handball is organised around the WHA Women, featuring 76 clubs across 5 competitions.

While Austria is not among Europe's handball powerhouses, the domestic league maintains a competitive standard, and Austrian clubs occasionally appear in European club competitions.

Field handball was widely played in Austria from the 1920s, with the Austrian Handball Federation established in 1928. Austria was among the nations that competed in field handball at the 1936 Berlin Olympics.

The transition to indoor handball took hold in the late 1950s and 1960s. The modern professional league structure was formalised in the 1990s, and Austrian handball has since focused on developing youth talent and improving domestic competition standards.

The Austrian Handball Federation (Osterreichischer Handballbund, OHB) governs handball in Austria. Founded in 1928, it is a member of the European Handball Federation (EHF) and the International Handball Federation (IHF), overseeing domestic leagues, cup competitions, and national teams.

The Austrian handball league system is headed by the Handball Liga Austria, the top division of men's club handball. The Austrian Handball Cup provides additional knockout competition, and the league pyramid includes lower regional divisions feeding into the top flight.

Austria's national handball team has participated in various European and World Championship qualifiers but has not been a regular fixture at major tournament finals. The country's historical connection to handball includes participation in field handball at the 1936 Olympics.