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France produced an impressive victory over Portugal in the second round of the EHF EURO 2026 main round, setting a new record for the most goals scored in a single match.
Les Bleus stormed into the game, taking a huge 10:4 lead after just 10 minutes. As the half progressed, France looked increasingly confident and clinical, and by the 18th minute the scoreboard showed a remarkable 18:8 — with an astonishing stat: the French were perfect in shooting at that moment, hitting 18/18.
France did not slow down. A real showcase of attractive handball followed, while Portugal’s trademark energy was nowhere to be found on the other side. The dominance of Guillaume Gille’s team in the opening 30 minutes was crowned with a historic achievement: France scored 28 goals in the first half, breaking the European Championship record previously held by Poland, who had netted 26 against Belarus in 2014 at the tournament hosted in Denmark.
The winner was effectively decided by halftime, but the questions remained: how big would the margin be, and could France break yet another record — becoming the team with the most goals scored in a single match at continental championships? In the end, they were just one goal short of surpassing their own record, recently set against Ukraine when they scored 46 times. This result also set a new all-time record for the most combined goals in a match at the EHF EURO: after the incredible Slovenia vs Montenegro thriller (41:40) that produced 81 goals, France and Portugal went one better this time with 84 goals in total.
France’s attacking efficiency was highlighted by the fact that almost the entire squad — with the exception of Aymeric Zepfel — got on the scoresheet, led by Dika Mem, who finished with eight goals. For Portugal, Viktor Iturriza was the top scorer with five.
France – Portugal 46:38 (28:15)
Mandatory Credit © Eva Manhart / kolektiff
