All four teams who ended up in the President's Cup Group I – Chile, Saudi Arabia, Uruguay and the Republic of Korea – not only finished last in their preliminary groups, but also failed to take a single point and lost all their matches.

But now they hope to redeem themselves in the consolation tournament, and at least two of these teams are certain to earn their first points on Wednesday.

• 15:30 Chile vs Saudi Arabia

Chile have never advanced from the preliminary group at the World Championship, as they have moved to the President's Cup on seven straight occasions since their debut at Sweden 2011.

The current event was not an exception, as although the Chileans hoped to finally reach the main round, they failed to grab any points in Group A. In the opening match, they were frustrated by a one-goal defeat against the Islamic Republic of Iran (24:25). Following a 26:34 loss against Spain, they fought hard in the crucial battle against Montenegro, but lost again (33:35).

Now Chile will face Saudi Arabia and it is hard to name a clear favourite for this clash. In Group B, the Asian side had no chance against Slovenia (19:33) and France (23:41), but were close to making a major surprise and reaching the main round. In the decisive battle against co-hosts Poland, they stayed in the fight until the end and lost by just three goals (24:27).

Similar to Chile, Saudi Arabia have never progressed from the preliminary group, with their best result being 19th place in 2003 and 2019. The two sides have met twice at this level, both times in the group stage, and while Saudi Arabia narrowly won 26:25 at France 2017, Chile took revenge at Denmark/Germany 2019 (32:27). 

• 18:00 Uruguay vs Republic of Korea  

Two years ago in Egypt, Uruguay made their debut at the World Championship and lost six of their seven matches, but a 10:0 walkover against Cape Verde, who withdrew due to COVID-19 problems, saw them reaching the main round.

The South Americans could not emulate that success, losing against Cape Verde, Brazil and Sweden in Group C with an overall "-54" goal difference. While the opening match against Cape Verde (25:33) probably played a key role, the match against Sweden on Monday (12:47) was a tough lesson to learn.

Despite all the setbacks, the team coached by Nicolás Guerra hopes to do better in the President's Cup, where there are no big teams around. However, there is also tough competition at this level and it will not be easy for Uruguay to snatch points from the much more experienced Koreans on Wednesday.

The Asian side, who are playing their 14th World Championship, recorded their worst result two years ago when they finished 31st. Just like Uruguay, they lost all their matches at Egypt 2021 and were granted a 10:0 forfeit win against Cape Verde in the 31/32 Placement Match. 

And now the Koreans – again similar to their next rivals – failed to take any points in the preliminary round as they faced Portugal, Iceland and Hungary in a competitive Group D. But like all the other participants of the President's Cup, they hope to finally make their fans happy.