The handball world was shaken by the news from Germany about the serious illness of the Croatian national team member Josip Šarac (28).
His former club Göppingen released worrying news, noting that at the moment sport is completely in the background.
An emotional message from the former club
German first division Frisch Auf Göppingen announced on social networks with a message that deeply affected fans and the sports public. The details of Sarč’s health condition have not been published, but the club clearly stated that he has the most important battle of his life ahead of him.
We recently received sad news. Our former player Josip Šarac is seriously ill, which deeply affected us all. You can’t even think about handball now, the absolute priority is his recovery, announced the German club, wishing Sarac a lot of strength in the coming period.
A hero’s farewell to Göppingen
Sarac wore the Göppingen jersey for four years and left a deep mark on the club. He said goodbye last summer as one of the key playersand the fans especially remember him for his great performance in the derby against TVB Stuttgart, when he brought victory to his team with several moves in the end.
Four years in Germany, four years in Göppingen, always in the EWS Arena. It was really beautiful. Thank you, Hölle Süd, said Sarac in June last year when leaving. It was a truly beautiful periodbut now it’s time for something new.
Good start in Hungary interrupted by injury
He continued his career in Hungarian Tatabánya, where he immediately confirmed his quality. In the first nine league games he scored 27 goals, and stood out with six goals in an important game against Balatonfüred.
However, at the beginning of November last year, he injured his hand in a cup match. The club then announced that it was about torn ligaments, it says Index.hr.
He last played in a game at the end of November 2025 EHF European Cup against Swiss HSC Suhr Aarau and he hasn’t been on the field since.
The support of the current club and the handball public
At the end of March, Tatabánya also spoke out, which also did not provide details, but confirmed that the situation was serious.
Due to health reasons this season we can no longer count on Josip Sarac. Now the most important thing is that he gets well, they said from the Hungarian club. German clubs Lemgo and Füchse Berlin also sent wishes for a speedy recovery on social networks.
Silver with Croatia as a memory for life
Josip Šarac won the silver medal at the European Championship in 2020 with the Croatian national team. It was his first major competition with the national team.
I will remember the beginning of that year for the rest of my life. The European Championship with Croatia was an unforgettable experience for me. It was my first competition with the A national team and the medal arrived immediatelysilver with golden shine.
Everything was really like a dream, from our game and the atmosphere in the team and in the stands to all those receptions, first in Zagreb, then in Mostar and at the end of that the sweetest in my Ljubuški. I will definitely remember that for the rest of my lifesaid Šarac at the time.
(www.jabuka.tv | Photo: Marco Bader/DPA/Pixsell)
