Bruno Martini (handballer)

Bruno Martini
Bruno Martini (left) during an interview with a beIN Sports presenter in 2015
Personal information
Born	(1970-07-03) 3 July 1970 (age 54) Salon-de-Provence, France
Nationality	French
Height	197 cm (6 ft 6 in)
Playing position	Goalkeeper
Club information
Current club	Retired
Youth career
Team
–	SSMC Miramas
–	SMUC Marseille
Senior clubs
Years	Team
-1989	SMUC Marseille
1989-1994	OM Vitrolles
1994-1995	Istres Provence Handball
1995-1996	OM Vitrolles
1996-1997	SD Teucro
1997-1998	Spacer's Toulouse
1998-1999	CB Cangas
1999-2000	HC Wuppertal
2000-2003	Montpellier Handball
2003-2005	Paris Handball
2003-2005	USAM Nîmes
2009	THW Kiel
National team
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1990-2007	France	202	(0)
Medal record World Championships 1995 Iceland 2001 France 2003 Portugal 2005 Tunisia

Bruno Martini (born 1970) is a French former team handball goalkeeper. He was a part of the French national team that won the 1995 World Championship; the first time France ever won a major international tournament.

Career

Martini played for the OM Vitrolles between 1991-1994, where he won the EHF Cup Winners' Cup in 1993 and the French Championship in 1994. In 1994 he joined Istres Provence Handball, where he played for a year before returning to OM Vitrolles. Here he once again won the French championship, before leaving for Spanish SD Teucro, when OM Vitrolles went bankrupt and were administratively relegated.

After a year in Spain he returned to France and played for Spacer's Toulouse. Here he won the Coupe de France in 1998, before joining Spanish team BM Cangas. In the 1999-2000 season he joined German Bundesliga side HC Wuppertal.

From 2000 to 2003 he played for Montpellier Handball, where he won the French championship and Cup in 2002 and in 2003. At the end of his career he also played for Paris Handball and USAM Nîmes.

In March 2009 he came back from retirement to join German side THW Kiel to replace the injured Andreas Palicka. ^[1] In that season he won both the Bundesliga and the DHB-Pokal.

National team

Martini played a total of 202 national team games for France. He debuted in 1990, a month after turning 20, against the Soviet Union. ^[2]

With France he won the 1995 and 2001 World Championships. At the 1997 and 2003 World Championships he won bronze medals with the French team. He also competed at the 1996 Summer Olympics, where he placed 4th with the French team, and also at the 2000 Summer Olympics, where the team placed 6th. ^[3]

Post playing career

Together with his wife, Sonia, he had the Markerting company MP Sport, which works with the French league and several French clubs.

From 2010 Until January 15th, 2021 he was the General Manager at Paris Saint-Germain. ^[4]

In November 2021 he was elected as the President of the French handball league, Ligue Nationale de Handball. ^[5]

Sexual abuse trial

In January 2023 it became public that Martini was under investigation of sexual abuse against a minor and of possession of child pornography. He agreed to a 1 year suspended sentence as a Plea bargain and withdrew from the presidency of the French league. ^{[6] [7]} He was replaced by David Tebib. ^[8]

He had been made a knight of the French Legion of Honour, but was excluded following the trial. ^[9] .

References

1. "THW verpflichtet ehemaligen französischen Nationaltorhüter Martini" [THW signs former French national team goalkeeper Martini]. archiv.thw-handball.de (in German). THW Kiel . Retrieved 2 September 2020.
2. "Mondial 2023 de handball. Record de précocité pour Charles Bolzinger avec les Bleus" (in French). ouest-france.fr. Retrieved 2023-01-20.
3. "Bruno Martini". Sports-reference.com. Archived from the original on 17 April 2020. Retrieved 29 January 2011.
4. "Thierry Omeyer appointed as General Manager of Paris Saint-Germain Handball". en.psg.fr. Paris Saint-Germain. 30 December 2020. Retrieved 18 January 2020.
5. "Bruno Martini prend la tête de la LNH !" (in French). handnews.fr. 29 November 2021. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
6. "Démission de Bruno MARTINI" (in French). Ligue Nationale de Handball . Retrieved 2023-01-25.
7. "Frankreichs Justiz ermittelt gegen Ex-Handballer und Liga-Präsident" (in German). Der Spiegel. 26 January 2023. Retrieved 19 February 2025.
8. Orup Kristensen, Oliver (23 January 2023). "Fransk håndbold ramt af skandale midt under VM" (in Danish). TV2 Danmark . Retrieved 19 February 2025.
9. Décret du 2 janvier 2024 prononçant une peine disciplinaire à l'encontre d'un membre de la Légion d'honneur

External links

• Bruno Martini at the European Handball Federation
• Bruno Martini at THW Kiel (in German)
• Bruno Martini at Olympedia