Denmark cruised to the main round of the 2023 IHF Women’s World Championship with a straightforward win against Chile, 46:11, which set a new record for the number of goals scored in a single match in the competition for the Scandinavian side, breaking the previous one by two goals.

GROUP E
Chile vs Denmark 11:46 (5:20)

The last time Denmark conceded only such a low number of goals in the first half of a match at the IHF Women’s World Championship, the Scandinavian side cruised to one of their largest wins in history in the world handball flagship competition, 37:12 against Australia at Japan 2019.

It was not the largest-ever win for Denmark, not even setting the record for the largest number of goals scored in a single match in the world handball flagship competition, but the Scandinavian side had some aces upon their sleeve this time against Chile in the Jyske Bank Boxen in Herning.

It was not necessarily the best performance in the first half for Denmark, especially as the two sides were tied after six minutes, 2:2, but Jesper Jensen’s side did their utmost to deliver a full show for the fans in the Boxen, especially by scoring easy goals on the fast breaks. 

While Denmark’s shooting efficiency was 75% in the first half, boosted by a strong finish, after the game started with five turnovers in the first 15 minutes for the co-hosts, the gap was already unassailable at the break, 20:5, as Denmark really started to play stronger defence, feeding their wings for excellent fast breaks.

After 11 minutes in the second half, Denmark had already scored 14 goals, as the gap grew to 28 goals, 34:6, as by that time Jesper Jensen’s side scored 14 goals via fast breaks in the whole match, while future star Julie Scaglione opened her account at the IHF Women’s World Championship, finishing the match with seven goals.

Denmark failed to break the record for their largest win in history, set in 1999, also on their home court, 42:5 against Argentina, but did break the record for the largest number of goals scored in a single match in the world handball flagship competition, which was set against the People’s Republic of China in 2013, 44.

With their 46:11 win, Denmark continue to pursue their title dream on Tuesday, with the toughest challenge so far, the game against Romania, in a match where the winner will take the points into the main round, still a huge objective for the Scandinavian side.

Chile have the last match in the preliminary round against Serbia, but it will be difficult to think that the South American side, which has conceded 90 goals so far, will be able to secure the win needed to progress to the main round.

hummel Player of the Match: Anna Kristensen (Denmark)