USA Men’s Development Team — European Tour 2026

Over the past six months, the USA Men’s Development Program has connected with more than 200 athletes across the United States through recognition camps and development opportunities, while establishing a full-time training base in Fort Pierce, Florida.

The program began in January, when five selected athletes arrived in Fort Pierce to train at the newly established USATH National Training Site. Developed in partnership with Indian River State College and with the support of Florida’s Treasure Coast and the Play Treasure Coast Sports Tourism Commission, the site has since continued to grow.

Four additional athletes relocated to Fort Pierce in April. Since then, six military athletes participating through the U.S. Army World Class Athlete Program have also relocated to Fort Pierce as part of the USA Development Program.

That development has already begun translating to the senior level.

Gary Phillips, Cyrus Moseni and Charlie Jones recently represented the United States at the Pan American Games Qualifier in Iowa, helping Team USA qualify for the 2027 Pan American Games with 40–18 and 40–23 victories over Canada on August 7 and 8.

The Purpose of the Development Program

The USA Men’s Development Program is not intended as an endpoint or as a substitute for club competition in the United States or abroad.

It is designed primarily for athletes who are new to handball, or who have played domestically but have not yet experienced a professional-style training environment. The goal is to accelerate their development, refine the details of their game and determine whether they have the ability and commitment to compete at increasingly higher levels.

Athletes learn the nuances of the sport, train in a more demanding environment and gain a clearer understanding of what is required to develop into players capable of contributing at the highest levels of competition.

An important part of that process is competing outside the United States.

Short-term European tours expose athletes to different levels and styles of play while giving them experience in handball environments that remain difficult to replicate domestically. The trips also allow USATH to strengthen relationships with European clubs and create potential pathways abroad for American players from across the U.S. handball community.

Over the past six months, Development Program athletes have traveled to compete in Denmark, Sweden, Spain and Greece.

The Next Step: Netherlands, Belgium & Denmark

Thirteen athletes are now taking part in a 12-day European tour through the Netherlands, Belgium and Denmark, timed to coincide with European clubs’ preseason preparations.

The tour opens, today, August 13 against Quintus in the Netherlands, followed by an August 14 matchup in Volendam against Icelandic champion Valur.

From there, the group travels to Belgium to face Sporting Pelt on August 15 before continuing to Denmark.

On August 17, the Development Team will face Sønderborg, which competes in Denmark’s third league, before returning the following day for a joint training session with the club.

The training session provides a different form of development from match play, giving athletes an opportunity to take repetitions across a wide range of situations alongside and against European players while experiencing the daily environment and expectations of a European club.

The Danish leg concludes August 19 against Tønder, a club that finished near the top of its league last season.

The group will then return to the Netherlands to close the tour in Amsterdam against Aalsmeer, a Dutch finalist and Final Four participant.

Across nearly two weeks, the athletes will encounter different opponents, systems, playing styles and training environments—exactly the variety the tour is designed to provide.

The Journey Matters

For the 13 athletes taking part, the tour represents the latest stage of a development process that has asked for a significant commitment of both time and resources.

The athletes have paid for their own flights and have committed substantial time to training and travel in pursuit of further development opportunities. Participation in the tour does not guarantee selection to the U.S. Senior National Team, nor is that the immediate purpose of the trip.

Instead, the tour is intended to give players another opportunity to test themselves in demanding environments, evaluate their progress and better understand the areas of their game that still need to develop.

The potential next steps will differ from athlete to athlete. Some may eventually earn opportunities with the Senior National Team. Others may develop relationships with European clubs that lead to training or playing opportunities abroad. Some will return to the United States with a clearer picture of the additional development required to reach the next level.

Each of those outcomes is part of the purpose of the program.

For USATH, the broader objective is to create more opportunities for developing American players to experience higher-level training and competition, while building pathways between the domestic handball environment and clubs overseas.

The results of that work will not always be measured by an immediate roster selection or a single match result. For athletes still relatively early in their handball careers, exposure to different coaches, opponents, training environments and expectations can itself be an important part of their progression.

The Netherlands, Belgium and Denmark tour is another opportunity to provide that exposure—and another step in determining where each athlete can go from here.

Meet the 13 Athletes Representing the USA Development Team 🇺🇸 on the 2026 European Tour:

Ashton Charles — Left Wing
Former NCAA Division II basketball player whose 6'7" frame provides unusual size and athleticism at left wing.

Riley Kirby — Left Wing / Left Back
A 6'4" Auburn University graduate who played handball at Auburn and continues his development at both left wing and left back.

Cade Johnson — Left Back
Former professional baseball player whose throwing background and 6'4" frame have translated to the left back position.

Jacobo Garcia — Left Back / Center Back
At 6'2", Garcia has been one of the most consistent USA Beach Handball players over the past decade and is continuing to develop his indoor game at left back and center back.

Buck Coors — Center Back
A 6'1" former University of Wyoming football player who played quarterback and strong safety before transitioning to handball.

Parkman Cook — Center Back
A 6'2" UNC graduate and four-year collegiate handball player at North Carolina who continues his development at center back.

Gary Phillips — Right Back
A current USA National Team right back and West Point graduate who also played two years of college football as a quarterback. Phillips recently helped the United States qualify for the 2027 Pan American Games.

Charlie Jones — Right Back / Right Wing
Former NCAA Division I basketball player at American University in Washington, D.C. Jones recently represented the United States at the Pan American Games Qualifier and can contribute at both right back and right wing.

Matt Bourdon — Right Back
Former NCAA Division I baseball player and pitcher who has transitioned his athletic ability and throwing background to the right back position.

Chris Mann — Right Wing / Right Back
A 6'5" former West Point basketball player and team captain who now plays both right wing and right back.

Will Considine — Backcourt
A 6'4" former standout handball player at West Point who was also an All-State football player in high school.

Charlie Pettersen — Pivot
At 6'10", Pettersen is a former center for the West Point basketball team who is now developing as a pivot with the USA Development Team.

Harrison Stier — Goalkeeper
A 6'10" former high school basketball player who has transitioned to goalkeeper and continues to develop at the position.

For the athletes on this tour, the next 12 days represent another opportunity to compete, learn and determine what comes next.

Contributions directly support continued development opportunities for American handball players.

Support the USA Development Team Directly:
https://gofund.me/90ee6be44