Both quarter-finalists in Group IV have already been determined, but Spain and Brazil, who have enjoyed a perfect record at the World Championship so far, will battle for the top position in the group, while the four remaining teams will try to end the championship on a high. 

Argentina vs Japan 15:30 CET

For Argentina, progressing to the main round for the first time in history was already quite an achievement, and although the South American team went on to lose both matches against Croatia and Brazil, they can be definitely proud of their performance at Spain 2021.

"I'm happy with the development of my team in recent years.  We are a young team who is working for the future," said Argentina coach Eduardo Gallardo.

The Japanese can also be satisfied with their results at the World Championship. Although the Asian team lost a chance to progress to the quarter-finals, they are third-placed with four points and will stay in this position if they avoid a defeat on Sunday.

On Friday, Japan had a slow start in the match against Austria, but ultimately snatched two points in a close battle, 32:30.

"We stuck together and fought really hard. I hope we'll make a step forward in the next match and will fight again," their coach Shigeo Kusumoto said.

It will be already the sixth meeting of the two sides at a Women’s World Championship – and Japan won five times, including the most recent encounter at Japan 2019, 24:20. Argentina's only victory dates back to 2009, when they narrowly won 25:24. 

Austria vs Croatia 18:00 CET

This will be a meeting of the teams who have been hit hard by COVID-19 during the current event.

Austria's coach Herbert Müller could not even travel to Spain after testing positive, and seven players of the team had to go on quarantine already during the competition.

Two of them have already managed to return to the court, as goalkeeper Petra Blazek and line player Stefanie Kaiser took part in the match against Japan, in which their team fought hard but ultimately suffered a defeat.

"We played a good first half, but didn't have enough power and energy after the break," their left back Ines Ivancok said.

In the last game against Croatia, some other players like Sonja Frey and Katarina Pandza might return to the squad after a quarantine, and it could improve Austria's chances to end the championship on a high. 

While the Austrians are playing at the World Championship for the first time since 2009, their Balkan rivals made their comeback after a 10-year hiatus. 

Croatia, who surprisingly won bronze at the EHF EURO 2020, also faced COVID-19 problems as three of their players were sidelined during the tournament. 

They opened the main round with a win against Argentina, but a 23:27 defeat against Spain left them with no chance of reaching the quarter-finals.

Now the team's only goal is to end the competition with a victory. 

"The girls will be motivated against Austria. I hope we will win this match and end the tournament with a 50/50 balance, three victories and three defeats," their coach Nenad Sostaric said.  

Spain vs Brazil 20:30 CET

Both teams have maintained a 100% record at the competition so far, but at least one of them will end their winning streak after their meeting on Sunday. As Spain have a better goal difference, a draw will be enough for them to finish top of the group, while Brazil need a win to reach that goal.

However, both sides have already sealed their quarter-final berths and can be happy with their performance at the World Championship.

"I'm very proud of the team, because we deserved to be among top eight teams. I hope we will continue winning, and now our goal is to finish top of the group," Spain's coach Jose Ignacio Prades said after his team beat Austria on Friday.

On the same day, Brazil claimed two points against Argentina in a hard-fought and emotional South American derby. For the first time after 2013, when the Brazilians won the title, they managed to progress to the quarter-finals.

Goalkeeper Barbara Arenhart stood like a wall on Friday, as her 17 saves and 49% save rate played a crucial role in her team's victory.

"I'm very happy to reach the quarter-finals. We have been working hard for a long time, and I'm proud of the team. Now we will have some time to prepare for the match against Spain," she said.

This year, Spain and Brazil have already faced each other at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, where the European team had the upper hand and won 27:23. However, both sides occupied the last two places in their group and were not able to progress to the quarter-finals – but they have improved a lot since then. 

Photo: RFEBM / J. L. Recio