The main round of the 2026 IHF Women's Junior World Championship is about to finish on Tuesday, 30 June, but six of the eight teams progressing to the quarter-finals have already been determined.

The situation is not clear only in Group IV, where all four teams are level on two points and have a chance to go through. In the three other groups, the future quarter-finalists will face off for the top position, and the other teams will fight for a place in the Placement Matches 9-12.

The President's Cup group stage will also wrap up, and Tuesday's matches will decide which teams will stay in the fight for the consolation trophy.

MAIN ROUND

Group I
18:30 CST — France v Serbia
20:45 CST — Sweden v Austria

Group II
16:15 CST — Germany v Spain
18:30 CST — Romania v Republic of Korea

Group III
16:15 CST — Denmark v Montenegro
18:30 CST — People's Republic of China v Czechia

Group IV
16:15 CST — Poland v Japan
18:30 CST — Hungary v Norway

PRESIDENT'S CUP

Group I
11:45 CST — Egypt v Angola
14:00 CST — India v Paraguay

Group II
11:45 CST — Brazil v Argentina
14:00 CST — Canada v Türkiye

Group III
11:45 CST — Algeria v Iceland
14:00 CST — Guinea v United States of America

Group IV
11:45 CST — Tunisia v Faroe Islands
14:00 CST — Chinese Taipei v Croatia

Germany v Spain – 16:15 CST

Last year, the two teams met in the W19 EHF EURO 2025 final, and Germany won 34:27 to claim the title. Now the rivals will face off in their last main round game, with both sides already having sealed their quarter-final berths.

Germany showed their attacking power at the group stage, taking big wins against Brazil and Canada before defeating Romania 37:31. At the start of the main round, they extended their winning run with a 40:22 victory against the Republic of Korea, and they boast the best attack at China 2026, having scored 162 goals under their belt, an average of 40.5 per match.

Spain also have a perfect record at the tournament, but their attack has been less efficient, ranking seventh among all teams with 126 goals. However, they have done slightly better in defence, having conceded 83 goals compared with Germany's 86.

At the opening stage of the competition, the Spanish team beat Argentina, Türkiye and the Republic of Korea to finish top of Group D. On Monday, they also defeated Romania, 32:25, to secure progression to the quarter-finals, and now will play Germany for the top position in Main Round Group II.

Denmark v Montenegro – 16:15 CST

These two teams have also secured their quarter-final tickets with one main round match to go, and now they will fight for the top position in Main Round Group III. As Denmark have a better goal difference, +39 compared with Montenegro's +10, even a draw will be enough for them to stay in first place.

So far, Denmark have done well at China 2026. After wins against Guinea, Algeria and People's Republic of China at the group stage, they faced a fellow European team for the first time at the tournament on Monday — Czech Republic — and celebrated another confident victory, 40:18.

Just like in all the previous matches, Kirstine Emilie Hoppe stole the show for Denmark, scoring 12 goals this time, and she consolidated her top position in the tournament's scoring chart, now having 40 goals, eight more than her closest rival, Zuzanna Zimnicka from Poland.

Montenegro's leading scorer Maja Ceklić ranks just 19th in that list with 20 goals, but her team has the third-best attack in the entire tournament with 149 goals. The Balkan side have also claimed four wins in four matches, including 31:25 against China on Monday, and they are hungry for more.

Poland v Japan – 16:15 CST

Both sides won their respective groups at the opening stage of the tournament and carried over two points to the main round, but started it with defeats. While Poland had a perfect record at the group stage, they failed to extend their winning run on Monday, losing 23:29 against Norway.

The Polish team had a 53% shooting efficiency in this match, making a lot of mistakes in attack. Even their leading scorer Zuzanna Zimnicka converted only five of her 11 attempts, but she still ranks second in the tournament's scoring chart with 31 goals.

Japan suffered their second straight defeat at China 2026. While a setback in the last group match against Croatia did not deny them a top position in Group H, a 25:32 defeat against Hungary on Monday may affect their chances for a quarter-final berth negatively.

Still, both Poland and Japan have their destiny in their own hands — a win in their mutual encounter will secure either team a quarter-final spot, while a draw will be more favourable for the Europeans, who have a slightly better goal difference.

Hungary v Norway – 18:30 CST

In the other Main Round Group IV match, the situation is basically the same, as either side is certain to progress to the quarter-finals with a victory. In case of a draw, Hungary are in a slightly better position, as they have a +5 goal difference, while Norway have +4.

At the group stage, Hungary won two matches against Chinese Taipei and Tunisia before narrowly losing to Poland, 25:27. Despite progressing to the main round with no points in hand, they improved their chances for a quarter-final spot with a well-deserved win over Japan, 32:25.

Norway were also runners-up in their group, as they defeated Croatia and Faroe Islands but lost to Japan. Similar to Hungary, they reached the main round without any points, but stayed in contention for a top-eight place with an important Monday victory against Poland, 29:23.

Hungary boast the fifth-best attack at China 2026, having scored 135 goals, while Norway have recorded just 107 goals and rank only 17th in that list. At the same time, both sides are equal in terms of conceded goals (86), so a hard-fought match can be expected.