2025-07-17 10:58

After nearly a decade and a half in the Bundesliga, 35-year-old goalkeeper Mikael Appelgren, a Swedish international with more than 100 caps, will continue his career at One Veszprém HC from the summer on a 1+1 year contract.

Mikael Appelgren started his professional career in his native Sweden, but moved to Germany at the age of 22 and spent three years in Melsungen, Germany. In 2015 he joined Rhein-Neckar Löwen, where he played for ten years, winning the German championship in his first two seasons and the German Cup in 2018 and 2023. In 2017 he was voted the best handball player in his country and in the 2017/2018 season he was voted the best goalkeeper in the Bundesliga with a save percentage of 36.77%.

Mikael Appelgren started his professional career in his native Sweden, but moved to Germany at the age of 22 and spent three years in Melsungen, Germany. In Appelgren's first standout performance at the national level came at the 2009 U21 World Cup in Egypt, where he made 42.8 percent of his saves, which was better than any other goalkeeper, and he also saved 10 of 20 penalties during the whole tournament. In 2011, he was given a chance to play for Sweden's senior national team, which he has since played more than 100 times, at the 2016 Rio Olympics and at all the World and European Championships between 2017 and 2020 - he won silver with the team at the 2018 European Championships and was even in the squad for the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Mikael Appelgren has all the experience One Veszprém needs, with which he has signed an 1+1 year contract.

Mikael Appelgren: "I'm very excited to fight for one of the best clubs in the world, a team that wants to win everything, whether it's a domestic league, domestic cup or international series. In Veszprém, it's all about winning. I'm looking forward to being there again and experiencing the atmosphere of the Veszprém Arena, I've been there as an opponent and it was a great experience, but of course it's different when the fantastic fans of the team are cheering us on. I'm sure it will be a wonderful time, I'm looking forward to the new challenges, the matches, the training sessions, working with the best players and coaches in a fantastic club with a great tradition. It will be fantastic to discover a new country, a new city and a wonderful nature, I have heard a lot about Lake Balaton. My girlfriend and I can't wait to be in Veszprém!"

Dr. Csaba Bartha, CEO of Veszprém Handball Team Zrt.: "We had to change the goalkeeper position for the next season and we wanted to strengthen our team with a reliable player, who is experienced on international level, who can provide the right support from the goal and who can help us to achieve our goals. We felt that Mikael Appelgren, with all his record and success, having fought and won many big battles, would be the right choice, his popularity shows how quickly he can fit into the team and his statistics show that he has played at the highest level in the Bundesliga, the strongest league in the world for a decade, winning it twice, and has always been one of the best goalkeepers in the league." 

Welcome to Veszprém, Mikael!

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