Another excellent performance from Japan saw the Asian side finish ninth in the final standings at Romania 2026, with their 38:31 win against France being decisive in that regard.

Elsewhere, Germany and Sweden secured wins to clinch the 13th and the 15th place respectively, while Algeria clinched their maiden win of the competition against Fiji, to end up 31st.

Placement Match 9/10
France vs Japan 31:38 (19:18)

France and Japan were both aiming to finish their 2026 IHF Women's Youth World Championship campaign on a high. After an evenly contested start, Japan were the first to open a two-goal lead, but France quickly responded, first levelling the score before taking their first lead at 5:4.

Manon Lemeiter led the French attack and helped her side edge two goals clear around the 20th minute, although they could not fully capitalise on Japan's defensive struggles. The Japanese goalkeepers failed to register a save in the opening half, while even a switch to a 3-2-1 defence did little to slow France.

However, Japan stayed in touch thanks to their attack, with Hina Miura and Miina Nakasuji combining for 10 first-half goals as France carried a narrow 19:18 lead into the break. However, that half-time advantage proved to be the French side's last.

Japan dominated the second half, forcing France into a total of 19 turnovers and opening up a 26:21 lead just 10 minutes after the restart. Despite France's attempts to fight back, including switching to seven-on-six in attack, they never came closer than four goals, at 31:27.

Hina Miura and Miina Nakasuji finished with 13 and nine goals respectively for Japan, while Estitxu Ellissèche led France with seven. The victory secured Japan their third-best finish at the IHF Women's Youth World Championship, after seventh and eighth places. Meanwhile, France equalled their second-lowest finish in the competition, ending 10th for the second time after 2018.

Player of the Match: Hina Miura (Japan)

Placement Match 11/12
Romania vs Netherlands 27:33 (13:14)

After their quarter-final disappointments, Romania and the Netherlands were both eager to end their campaigns with a victory. Strong defensive displays dominated the opening minutes, with the first goal arriving only in the third minute.

Romania briefly led 2:1, but a series of attacking errors allowed the Dutch to punish them in transition and build a three-goal advantage. Goalkeeper Camay Berkhout once again played an important role for the Netherlands, but Romania found their answer through Elena Alexandra Coserea Pîtiu, whose saves sparked a comeback.

The hosts gradually erased the deficit, and the match returned to a nip-and-tuck battle before the teams went into half-time separated by just one goal. The balance remained much the same after the restart, with the Netherlands holding only a slender advantage.

The decisive spell came in the 47th minute, when Lisa Smink sparked a Dutch run that finally created some breathing room. The Netherlands reeled off a series of unanswered goals while keeping Romania scoreless for five minutes and, once again backed by Camay Berkhout, who finished with 14 saves and a 41% save efficiency, stretched the gap to seven goals and never looked back. Romania reduced the deficit in the closing stages, but the Netherlands comfortably secured 11th place with a 33:27 victory.

The result marked an improvement on the Netherlands' 16th-place finish at the previous edition, while Romania also bettered their results from the last two championships, having finished 14th and 17th, although the hosts had hoped for more.

Player of the Match: Jelena Ostojić (Netherlands)

Placement Match 13/14
Republic of Korea v Germany 26:34 (16:20)

There was no question about the winner in this match, as Germany, who still finished 13th in the final standings, after ending up fifth two years ago, totally outplayed the Republic of Korea, especially in attack.

The European side looked more prepared, especially for Korea’s aggressive 3-2-1 or 3-3 defences, managing to take an early lead, 8:4, after eight minutes. A brief comeback from Korea cut the gap to one goal, but Meggan Rusko and Luna Külker ensured that Germany were ahead throughout the whole match.

The pair combined for 13 goals between them, as Germany took a 20:16 lead at the break and increased it in the second half, thanks to an 8:0 run which spanned between the 43rd and the 52nd minute, basically deciding the match.

Korea, winners in 2022, finished on the 14th place, with their losses against Egypt and Denmark by a single goal determining the final standings.

Player of the Match: Meggan Rusko (Germany)

Placement Match 15/16
Sweden v Slovenia 26:25 (13:18)

Winners in 2012, Sweden finished on the lowest place in the final standings in their IHF Women’s Youth World Championship appearances, ending up on the 15th place, after a hard-fought 26:25 win against Slovenia in their last match.

Slovenia led by as many as five goals at the break, fueled by an excellent performance from Katja Štukelj, who had 10 goals, to improve her overall tally to 45 goals, and were looking in the driver’s seat for most of the match.

Seven missed shots from left wing Tuva Schmidinger really hampered Sweden, but as they started rolling all their players on the court, things got better in the second half, with all but one outfield player scoring at least one goal/

Left back Jenny Sjöstrand scored three goals and assisted six other, as Sweden mounted a comeback, only for Slovenia to have a chance to push the match to penalties. However, Liana Vuković missed a penalty at the buzzer and Sweden clinched a 26:25 win.

Player of the Match: Maja Ström (Sweden)

Placement Match 21/22
Czechia v Serbia 31:23 (14:12)

The battle of the European sides which did not progress to the President’s Cup final saw Czechia edge out Serbia, after the latter side had little fuel left in the second half and eventually conceded the loss.

It was a battle of turnovers between the two sides, but Serbia fell down in the second part and lost the ball too many times from favourable situations, turning the ball over 30 times.

While Czechia were down 9:8 after 21 minutes, they finished the first half strong, with a 6:3 run to take the lead and from that moment on they never looked back. 

Markéta Königová was their top scorer and best assist provider, with nine goals and six assists, and fueled Czechia’s excellent second half, as the 31:23 win brought her team on the 21st place, while Serbia conceded their second loss in a row and ended up 22nd.

Player of the Match: Markéta Königová (Czechia)

Placement Match 23/24
Kazakhstan v Argentina 18:32 (10:16)

Argentina did have their share of issues in the preliminary round, when they lost three matches on the trot against European opposition, but they got back on their winning ways and finished the competition on a high, with a big win over Kazakhstan.

While this 23rd finish is a small downgrade from the 18th place in the previous edition, it is an uptick from the 25th place in 2022, and Argentina secured it with their third win in seven matches.

It was a collective effort from the outfield players, but goalkeepers Maia Cielo Pecnik (nine saves for a 43% saving efficiency) and Victoria Rocio Trebini (six saves for a 50% saving efficiency) stole the show, constantly hampering Kazakhstan’s efforts.

Eventually, Argentina secured a 32:18 win, thanks to a 78% shooting efficiency and a 45% overall saving efficiency, outplaying their opponents from start to finish and finishing 23rd, while Kazakhstan finished 24th.

Player of the Match: Maia Cielo Pecnik (Argentina)

Placement Match 29/30
Uruguay v Uzbekistan 33:27 (12:13)

Uruguay mounted a spirited comeback in the match against Uzbekistan, with their second half outburts ensuring they finished 29th, winning their last two matches in the competition.

While Uzbekistan were leading at the break, 13:12, the South American side bounced back and had three players in excellent shooting form, as Julietta Villar Lago, Fiorella Olmos Jarque and Melina Perez Faraone combined for 24 goals.

Uzbekistan led by as many as five goals, 22:17, in the 40th minute, but then Uruguay went on a scoring spree, with a 9:2 run, followed by another 5:1 run turned the match on its head and handed them the win.

Villar Lago ended the match with 10 goals, as Uruguay celebrated their best finish in the competition, after finishing 31st four years ago in their first appearance.

Player of the Match: Julietta Villar Lago (Uruguay)

Placement Match 31/32
Fiji v Algeria 17:52 (7:25)

In the battle of the teams which had lost their previous six matches, Fiji and Algeria stayed tied only for the first six minutes, when the Oceania debutants scored four goals, matching the output of their African counterparts.

Eventually, Algeria pulled away and used a 12:0 run, much like the other opponents of Fiji, to open a big gap, with Fiji down 18 goals at the break.

Anais Chebli, Malak Salmi and Kinda Mansouri combined for 25 goals, as Algeria continued to improve the lead in the second half, scoring their largest number of goals in history at the IHF Women’s Youth World Championship, 52.

Goalkeeper Aya Sid also saved 21 shots for a 60% saving efficiency, as Algeria managed to snatch their first win of the competition, 52:17, finishing 31st, after ending on the last place, 32nd, in 2022.

On the other side, Fiji ended up last, having lost all matches.

Player of the Match: Malak Salmi (Algeria)