Bojana Popović

Bojana Popović
Personal information
Born (1979-11-20) 20 November 1979
Niš, SR Serbia,
SFR Yugoslavia
Nationality Montenegrin
Height 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Playing position Left back
Senior clubs
Years Team
1994–1998
 RK DIN Niš
1998–2002
 ŽRK Budućnost
2002–2007
 Slagelse DT
2007–2010
 Viborg HK
2010–2012
 ŽRK Budućnost
National team
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2009–2016
 Montenegro 61 (315)
Teams managed
2016–2021
 Montenegro (Assistant coach)
2020–2025
 Budućnost (Head coach)
2021–2024
 Montenegro (Head coach)
2025–
 Denmark (Assistant coach)
2025–
 CSM Bucuresti
Medal record
Representing  Montenegro
Olympic Games
2012 London Team
Representing  Yugoslavia
World Championships
2001 Italy

Bojana Popović née Petrović, (born 20 November 1979)[1] is a Montenegrin handball coach and retired handballer. She is the former head coach of ŽRK Budućnost after being fired September 24. 2025,[2] and also serves as assistant coach of Helle Thomsen for the Danish national team.[3]

She is considered by many to be the best female handball player of the 2000's, despite not being given any official recognition.[4] After winning the Women's EHF Champions League with Budućnost[5] and a silver medal at the 2012 Olympic Games with the Montenegro national team,[6] Bojana Popović decided to retire from handball. However, in June 2016 Popović announced she would come out of retirement and make herself available for selection by the Montenegro national handball team to compete at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.[7][8][9]

Career

Bojana Popović started playing handball at Serbian club HC Naisa Niš when she was eleven years old.[1] She later played for Montenegrin club Budućnost Podgorica for four seasons.[2] In 2002, Popović signed a contract with Danish team Slagelse DT, at that time coached by Anja Andersen. With Slagelse, she experienced great success: three times Champions League winner, EHF Cup winner, three Danish Championship golds and one Danish Cup.

At the end of the 2006/07 season, Popović signed a contract with Viborg HK.[10] Since her arrival at Viborg, she has won two Danish Championship golds and two Danish Cups. In 2009 she won her fourth Champions League title, the first with Viborg. She left the club in 2010 to return to Montenegro due to personal reasons. At the time she had two years left on her contract.[11] She then signed at contract with ZRK Buducnost,[12] where she won the Montenegrin Championship and the Montenegrin Cup in both 2011 and 2012. After the 2011-12 season she retired.[12]

Coaching career

In August 2016 Popovic became the Interim coach for the Montenegro women's national handball team, after Dragan Adžić had left the team following a disappointing result at the 2016 Olympics. [13] Just after month Adžić came back to the position, and Popovic switched to being the assistant coach.[14]

From 2020 to 2025 she was the head coach of ŽRK Budućnost.[15] Here she won the Montenegrin Championship in 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025. Meanwhile from March 2021 until 2024, she was the head coach of the Montenegro women's national handball team.[16][17] At the 2022 European Championship she guided the Montenegrin team to a bronze medal, losing to Denmark in the semifinal and beating France in the third place play-off.[18]

In August 2025 she became the assistant coach to the Denmark women's national handball team under newly appointed Helle Thomsen. She signed a contract until 31 December 2026.[3]

December 1st 2025 she became the head coach of Romanian team CSM Bucuresti alongside being the assistant coach of the Danish national team.[19]

Achievements

As player

National team

Bronze medal EC 2022 as a coach of Montenegro NT

European

Domestic

As coach

Domestic

National team

Awards and recognition

During her handball career, Bojana Popović was considered to be the best player in the world by many.[2][10][20] She has been chosen Player of the Year by the Danish Handball Federation four times. Popović's individual awards and achievements include:

Private

Bojana Popovic' husband Petar Popovic is a professional basketball player.[11] In 2013 the couple got a daughter.[26]

References

  1. ^ a b "Spillerprofiler, damer - Bojana Popovic" (in Danish). Viborg HK A/S. Archived from the original on 5 February 2009. Retrieved 31 March 2009.
  2. ^ a b c Jončić, Saša (21 November 2007). "Popovic experiences Moraca's atmosphere again". European Handball Federation. Archived from the original on 9 August 2012. Retrieved 31 March 2009.
  3. ^ a b "Bojana Popovic bliver ny assistenttræner for Håndboldkvinderne" (in Danish). Danish Handball Federation. 28 August 2025. Retrieved 28 August 2025.
  4. ^ "Bojana Popovic retires from club handball". EHF. Archived from the original on 9 February 2014. Retrieved 25 May 2012.
  5. ^ "Buducnost win the EHF Women's Champions League 2011/12". EHF. Archived from the original on 16 August 2016. Retrieved 25 May 2012.
  6. ^ "Norway beat Montenegro to women's gold". BBC Sport. Retrieved 25 May 2012.
  7. ^ "Popovic returns to play in Rio". EHF. Archived from the original on 7 August 2016. Retrieved 24 July 2016.
  8. ^ "EHF Champions League 2008/09 - Bojana Popovic". European Handball Federation. Archived from the original on 18 February 2009. Retrieved 30 April 2009.
  9. ^ "Spisak "lavica" - od 1979. do 1997. godišta". Vijesti. 17 July 2016. Archived from the original on 23 December 2017. Retrieved 25 July 2016.
  10. ^ a b c Bruun, Peter (4 May 2007). "Popovic: Player of the Year". European Handball Federation. Archived from the original on 16 July 2011. Retrieved 31 March 2009.
  11. ^ a b Lars Abildgaard (2 July 2010). "Popovic-exit trækker spor til Randers" (in Danish). Randers Amtsavis. Retrieved 28 November 2025.
  12. ^ a b "Podgorica nach CL-Sieg mit Personalentscheidungen" (in German). handball-world.com.
  13. ^ "Popovic wird Montenegros neue Nationaltrainerin" (in German). handball-world.com. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  14. ^ "Montenegro: Alter neuer Trainer und ohne sieben Rio-Fahrerinnen" (in German). handball-world.com. Retrieved 30 September 2016.
  15. ^ "Bojana Popović novi trener Budućnosti". zrkb.me (in Montenegrin). Retrieved 29 November 2020.
  16. ^ "Kvalificerede landet til OL – nu er Rasmussen vraget". sport.tv2.dk (in Danish). TV2 Danmark. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
  17. ^ "Montenegro präsentiert Nachfolgerin von Bojana Popovic" (in German). handball-world.news. Retrieved 25 August 2024.
  18. ^ "Montenegro win extra-time battle for bronze". eurohandball.com. 20 November 2022. Retrieved 20 November 2022.
  19. ^ Rasmus Lomholt Leth (28 November 2025). "Popović-nyhed glæder sportschef – ser fordel for Danmark" (in Danish). TV2 Danmark. Retrieved 29 November 2025.
  20. ^ Jončić, Saša (24 March 2009). "Successful operation". European Handball Federation. Retrieved 31 March 2009.
  21. ^ "Bojana årets kvindelige håndboldspiller". Viborg HK (in Danish). 10 January 2009. Archived from the original on 1 January 2009. Retrieved 21 August 2009.
  22. ^ "Topscorere siden 1965 - Damer" (in Danish). Danish Handball Federation. 9 July 2008. Archived from the original on 21 March 2009. Retrieved 15 March 2009.
  23. ^ "Golden Goodbye of Top Scorer". European Handball Federation. 22 May 2007. Archived from the original on 16 July 2011. Retrieved 1 April 2009.
  24. ^ "Pokalfightere gennem tiden" (in Danish). Danish Handball Federation. 6 January 2009. Archived from the original on 28 March 2009. Retrieved 1 April 2009.
  25. ^ "LEGENDARY PLAYERS ENTER THE HALL OF FAME OF EUROPEAN HANDBALL". www.eurohandball.com. European Handball Federation. 26 June 2023. Retrieved 27 June 2023.
  26. ^ "Bojana Popovic becomes a mother!". handball-planet.com. Retrieved 9 December 2013.
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