Welcome to “Sascha Staat Unplugged”. Sascha is a German freelance sports journalist. He started working for a local radio station when he was 19 years old and has hosted radio shows in both Germany and Italy, talking mainly about handball, football, baseball, and ice hockey.
He’s specifically known for hosting “Kreis Ab”, a weekly German handball podcast, and has been awarded the Herbert-Zimmermann-Preis in 2015 for outstanding journalistic performances.
Here, Sascha will focus on handball and share his thought-provoking articles.
By Sascha Staat Nobody expected Sweden to go all the way to the final at the 2018 European championship, in Croatia, but they did so anyway. As the next big tournament – the 2019 World Cup in Germany and Denmark – is just around the corner, there is no way that the Scandinavian handball powerhouse can escape the spotlight. I …
By Sascha Staat INTERVIEW – It’s been a rough start to the new EHF Champions League season for Thüringer HC. On Monday, the German club lost their fourth match in as many attempts, against defending champion, Györ, although the final result (31-28) was a massive improvement from the 16-goal loss in the first game against the Hungarians. I talked to …
By Sascha Staat INTERVIEW – For the past two seasons Jesper Nielsen was part of the star ensemble of Paris Saint-Germain. He reached the Final4 of the VELUX EHF Champions League twice, but ended up empty-handed on both occasions. Now, he is back in Germany wearing the jersey of Rhein-Neckar Löwen. I talked to the Swedish international about missed opportunities …
By Sascha Staat INTERVIEW – Emily Bölk’s move from Buxtehude to Thüringen was one of the most anticipated transitions this summer, including her debut in the EHF Champions League. Having scored a total of seven goals in the first three matches, she has yet to reach full potential, just like the rest of the team. Right now, Thüringer HC is …
By Sascha Staat INTERVIEW – Ever since Kim Naidzinavicius entered the spotlight after winning the junior World championship in 2008, she has continuously progressed and today she is a key player, in her club, Bietigheim, and in Germany’s national handball team. During her teenage years – she already played in the Bundesliga – everyone expected her turning into an international …
By Sascha Staat When Jannik Kohlbacher joined Rhein-Necker Löwen this past summer, nobody was in doubt that he would fit in well with the reigning German cup champion. But the line-player has exceeded expectations during his first few weeks in Mannheim, and instantly clicked with playmaker Andy Schmid. I spoke to the 23-year old about the new experience in the …
By Sascha Staat INTERVIEW – He is considered one of the biggest talents on the goalkeeper position in all of Europe and prior to this season he transferred from Danish Holstebro to the German champion, SG Flensburg – meet Torbjorn Bergerud. Following his new team’s 33:26 loss at the 2018 PIXUM Super Cup in Duesseldorf, he had this to say. …
By Sascha Staat INTERVIEW – Magnus Jøndal is already 30 years old, an experienced Norwegian national team player but this year he decided to try the DKB Handball-Bundesliga together with SG Flensburg-Handewitt. Right before the official start of the season, I talked to him about his move, why his timing maybe perfect and what he is expecting to achieve during …
By Sascha Staat Sometimes you think you have seen it all – that it’s hardly possible that the underdog(s) will prevail again, that it will be boring. I let my 2018 VELUX EHF Champions League FINAL4 impressions sink in for a while. The three French teams that took part this year had many people worry about a strange atmosphere and …
By Sascha Staat It was the first time I spoke to Bruno Martini, the general manager of French handball giant, Paris Saint-Germain (PSG). The former goalkeeping star now has his hands full in making sure PSG wins as many titles as possible, after failing to lift the Champions League trophy the last couple of years. Here is what Martini had …
