dpa. Due to some damage to the roof of the Olympiahalle in Munich's Olympic Park (Olympiapark), the sports facility will have to remain closed until mid-October. Unfortunately this means that the Handball Super Cup will not be being played on Munich soil.

In a press statement, Handball-Bundesliga GmbH CEO Frank Bohmann expressed "shock" at the announcement. The Olympiapark had informed them only a few days before that no events, sporting or otherwise, would be taking place in the Olympiahalle from now until at least 19 October.

Until Wednesday last week, Olympiapark GmbH was under the impression that the Olympiahalle might still have been able to host events whilst undergoing its construction work. However, this timeframe proved to be overly optimistic when it was announced that all subsequent events over the coming few months would be cancelled due to safety reasons. 

As a result, 6,000 tickets for the Super Cup 2012 are to be refunded. Alternatively, ticket holders can be given credit for tickets to an unspecified future event. After the news was announced, ticket sales were immediately halted. Bohman stated that, '...a solution needs to be found quickly...' and that once it has been found, the customers and media will be duly informed.

The Handball League Association is now searching for an alternative sports facility suitable to host the Super Cup, yet this could prove a to be a difficult search at such short notice.