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Alexander Petersson

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This is an Icelandic name. The last name is patronymic, not a family name; this person is referred to by the given name Alexander.
Alexander Petersson
Personal information
Born (1980-07-02) 2 July 1980 (age 45)
Riga, Latvia SSR
Nationality Latvian/Icelandic
Height 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
Playing position Right back
Senior clubs
Years Team
–1998
 Riga
1998–2003
 Grótta/KR
2003–2005
 HSG Düsseldorf
2005–2007
 TV Großwallstadt
2007–2010
 SG Flensburg-Handewitt
2010–2012
 Füchse Berlin
2012–2021
 Rhein-Neckar Löwen
2021
 SG Flensburg-Handewitt
2021–2022
 MT Melsungen
2023–2025
 Valur
2023
 → Al Arabi
National team
Years Team Apps
Latvia 40
2005–2021
 Iceland 186 (725)
Medal record
Olympic Games
Silver medal – second place 2008 Beijing Team
European Championship
Bronze medal – third place 2010 Austria Team

Alexander Petersson (Latvian: Aleksandrs Pētersons; born 2 July 1980) is a Latvian-born Icelandic former handball player. He was a member of the Icelandic national team from 2005 to 2021, appearing in 186 games.[1][2] Before that he played for the Latvian national team.

Alexander was voted the Icelandic Sportsperson of the Year in 2010 by the Icelandic Sport Press Association. He is of Latvian and Baltic German origin.[3]

Early life

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Alexander was born in Riga in Latvia SSR in 1980.[4] He emigrated to Iceland aged 18 in 1998 to play for Grótta/KR.

Career

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In 2003 Petersson joined German team HSG Düsseldorf, followed by TV Großwallstadt in 2005 and SG Flensburg-Handewitt in 2007. In 2010 he joined Füchse Berlin. The same year he was named Icelandic sportsperson of the year.[3] In 2012 he joined Rhein-Neckar Löwen.[5] In his first season with the club he won the 2012–13 EHF Cup. After two seasons, where he finished 2nd in the Bundesliga both times, he won the league in 2016 and 2017 and the DHB-Pokal in 2018. He also won the DHB-Supercup in 2016 and 2018.

In January 2021 he returned to Flensburg-Handewitt.[6] The following summer he joined MT Melsungen.[7] On 13 November 2021 he played his 500th game in the Bundesliga. After the 2021-22 season he retired.[8]

In July 2023 he returned to handball and signed a one-year contract with Valur.[9] Here he won the Icelandic cup[10] and the EHF European Cup.[11] This was the first time an Icelandic club won a European tournament.

In November 2023 he joined Qatari team Al-Arabi on a one-month loan deal.[12] At the age of 44 he won another Icelandic championship title in the 2024-25 season.[13]

In July 2025, he announced his retirement.[14]

Seasonal statistics

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Season Team League Games Goals Penalty goals Outfield goals
2004/05 HSG Düsseldorf Bundesliga 32 154 0 154
2005/06 TV Großwallstadt Bundesliga 29 139 26 113
2006/07 TV Großwallstadt Bundesliga 31 188 25 163
2007/08 SG Flensburg-Handewitt Bundesliga 29 111 0 111
2008/09 SG Flensburg-Handewitt Bundesliga 10 28 1 27
2009/10 SG Flensburg-Handewitt Bundesliga 34 84 0 84
2010/11 Füchse Berlin Bundesliga 33 119 0 119
2011/12 Füchse Berlin Bundesliga 28 96 0 96
2012/13 Rhein-Neckar Löwen Bundesliga 33 142 0 142
2013/14 Rhein-Neckar Löwen Bundesliga 26 90 0 90
2014/15 Rhein-Neckar Löwen Bundesliga 30 118 0 118
2015/16 Rhein-Neckar Löwen Bundesliga 32 87 0 87
2016/17 Rhein-Neckar Löwen Bundesliga 34 116 0 116
2017/18 Rhein-Neckar Löwen Bundesliga 33 82 0 82
2018/19 Rhein-Neckar Löwen Bundesliga 27 94 0 94
2019/20 Rhein-Neckar Löwen Bundesliga 22 47 0 47
2020/21 Rhein-Neckar Löwen Bundesliga 11 21 0 21
2020/21 SG Flensburg-Handewitt Bundesliga 15 10 0 10
2021/22 MT Melsungen Bundesliga 33 35 0 35
2004–2022 Total Bundesliga 522 1757 52 1705

National team

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Petersson initially played for the Latvian national team before optaining Icelandic nationality in 2004.[15] In 2005, he played for the Iceland men's national handball team for the first time.[16]

At the 2007 World Championship he finished 8th with Iceland, and was in the top ten goal scorers list. The following year he won silver medals at the 2008 Olympics, losing to France in the final. At the 2010 European Championship he won bronze medals.

At the 2011 World Championship he was a part of the all star team, when Iceland finished 6th.[17]

He also represented Iceland at the 2012 Olympics where Iceland was knocked out in the quarterfinal by Hungary.

He had to withdraw from the 2013 World Championship due to a shoulder injury. He was replaced by Olafur Stefansson.[18]

At the 2015 World Championship he was however back in the team.[2]

Personal life

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Alexander's wife is Eivor Pála Blöndal who played 13 games for the Iceland women's national handball team.[19][20] His son Lúkas Petersson is a professional footballer in Germany.[21]

Individual awards

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References

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  1. ^ Hjörvar Ólafsson (12 June 2022). "Glæsilegum ferli Alexanders lauk í kvöld". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 12 June 2022.
  2. ^ a b "2015 World Championship Roster" (PDF). IHF. Archived from the original (PDF) on 18 December 2014. Retrieved 15 January 2015.
  3. ^ a b c Ingi Þór Ágústsson (26 May 2022). "Alexander Petersson leggur skóna á hilluna". RÚV (in Icelandic). Retrieved 12 June 2022.
  4. ^ Atli Arason (25 May 2022). "Alexander Petersson leggur skóna á hilluna". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 12 June 2022.
  5. ^ "Alexander Petersson wechselt 2012 zu den Rhein-Neckar Löwen" (in German). HM - Das Handball-Magazin. Archived from the original on 8 May 2011.
  6. ^ "Rückkehr eines alten Bekannten" (in German). SG Flensburg-Handewitt. Retrieved 21 January 2021.
  7. ^ "Wechsel zur MT Melsungen: Alexander Petersson "noch immer nicht satt"" (in German). handball-world.news. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
  8. ^ "Ein ganz Großer verlässt die HBL-Bühne": Alexander Petersson beendet Karriere" (in German). handball-world.news. Retrieved 26 May 2022.
  9. ^ "Alexander ætlar að ljúka ferlinum á Íslandi" (in Icelandic). mbl.is. 13 July 2023. Retrieved 13 July 2023.
  10. ^ "„Ég gat labbað og þá getur maður hlaupið"" (in Icelandic). visir.is. 12 March 2024. Retrieved 24 August 2024.
  11. ^ "Valur crowned EHF European Cup winners following a penalty shoot-out". ehfec.eurohandball.com.
  12. ^ "Alexander Petersson per Leihe von Valur nach Katar" (in Icelandic). handball-world.news. 31 October 2023. Retrieved 31 October 2023.
  13. ^ "45 ára á næsta ári en spilar áfram með Val: „Heppinn að vera með skrokk sem heldur"" (in Icelandic). visir.is. Retrieved 24 August 2024.
  14. ^ Anna Sigrún Davíðsdóttir (1 July 2025). "Alexander Petersson hættur". RÚV (in Icelandic). Retrieved 1 July 2025.
  15. ^ "Icelandic player of 2010 – Alexander Petersson". Handball-Planet. 28 December 2010. Retrieved 22 June 2025.
  16. ^ "Alexander Petersson". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). 29 December 2010. Retrieved 12 January 2020.
  17. ^ a b IHF.info - all star team 2011
  18. ^ "Alexander Petersson to miss WCh 2013 – Olafur is back!". Handball-planet. 27 December 2012. Retrieved 22 June 2025.
  19. ^ Ívar Benediktsson (8 January 2021). "HM: Alexander Petersson". Handbolti.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 15 July 2023.
  20. ^ Ívar Benediktsson (5 April 2007). "Allt lagt í sölurnar til að fara upp". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). p. D1. Retrieved 15 July 2023.
  21. ^ PlÖsser, Kai (16 August 2023). "Lúkas Petersson: Auf Umwegen zum Torwart bei der TSG Hoffenheim II". Mannheimer-Morgen (in German). Retrieved 28 February 2024.
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