Nikolaj Jacobsen

Nikolaj Jacobsen
Jacobsen with Denmark at the 2018 European Championship
Personal information
Full name Nikolaj Bredahl Jacobsen
Born (1971-11-22) 22 November 1971
Viborg, Denmark
Nationality Danish
Height 1.84 m (6 ft 0 in)
Playing position Left wing
Club information
Current club Denmark (manager)
Youth career
Years Team
1984–1990
GOG
Senior clubs
Years Team
1990–1997
GOG
1997–1998
TSV Bayer Dormagen
1998–2004
THW Kiel
2004–2007
Viborg HK
2007–2012
Bjerringbro-Silkeborg
National team
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1991–2003
Denmark 148 (584)
Teams managed
2012–2014
Aalborg Håndbold
2014–2019
Rhein-Neckar Löwen
2017–
Denmark

Nikolaj Bredahl Jacobsen (born 22 November 1971) is a Danish professional handball coach and former handballer who is currently the coach of the Danish national team. He was named World Coach of the Year in 2019 and 2021 by the IHF. He is the first manager of a national team to win four consecutive world championships (2019–2025).

As a coach, Jacobsen won the 2013 Danish Handball League with Aalborg Håndbold and led Rhein-Neckar Löwen to back-to-back German Handball-Bundesliga championships in the 2015–16 and 2016–17 seasons. He is the first Danish manager to win the German Bundesliga.

During his playing career, Jacobsen predominantly played as a left wing and most prominently represented the Danish club GOG Håndbold and the German club THW Kiel. He won three Danish Handball League championships with GOG, as well as three Handball-Bundesliga championships and two European EHF Champions League titles with Kiel. Jacobsen played 148 games and scored 584 goals for the Denmark men's national handball team from 1991 to 2003, and was named Danish Handball Player of the Year in 1993 and 1999. He holds the Danish record for the most goals scored in a single international match, with 15.