Egypt became the second team in history to win the CAHB African Men's Handball Championship four times in a row, after a dominating performance against Tunisia in the final of the 2026 edition, 37:24, with a statement of intent which confirmed their status as the top African powerhouse.

It was Egypt’s 10th title at the CAHB African Men's Handball Championship, tying Tunisia as the joint most decorated team, with Tunisia still holding the largest number of medals, 26, four more than Egypt and six more than Algeria, which ended up on the fourth place in this edition.

Egypt and Tunisia were the only unbeaten teams coming into the semi-finals of the 2026 CAHB African Men's Handball Championship, which took place between 21 and 31 January in Kigali, Rwanda, but Egypt were far superior in all categories before the final match.

However, Egypt had their work cut out in the semi-final against Cape Verde, a rematch of the final in the 2022 edition, despite a great start, which saw them take a 14:5 lead after 22 minutes. A fiery start in the second half saw Cape Verde cut the lead to only four goals, 21:17, in the 38th minute, but Xavi Pascual’s side managed to control the match expertly.

Backed by a 10-goal outing from right back Yahia Omar, and six goals from centre back Ahmed Hesham, Egypt cleared a 32:26 win, setting up a final against Tunisia, which had clearly dominated Algeria.

 

Islem Jbeli scored eight goals, Bilel Abdelli added nine goals and goalkeeper Mehdi Harbaoui saved 13 shots, as there was no question about the winner, with Tunisia taking an early 10:4 lead after 12 minutes and never looked back, securing a 33:24 win.

In the bronze medal match, Algeria tried to stage a comeback against Cape Verde after a slow start, being down three goals, 7:10, after 15 minutes. Cape Verde’s attack did not really get going, with their top players missing shot after shot, as the two sides were deadlocked, 16:16, at the break.

But after that, Cape Verde’s defence started working. Goalkeeper Elcio Fernandes had 16 saves (44% saving efficiency) and limited Algeria to a meagre seven-goal performance in the second half, while Bruno Landim and Edmilson Garcia Ribeiro combined for 11 goals.

Eventually, Cape Verde clinched a 29:23 win and secured their second medal in fourth appearances, now finishing fifth in 2020, second in 2022, fourth in 2024 and third in 2026, in their only four appearances in the competition.

 

While the final promised a tough battle between the two most decorated teams in the history of the competition, Egypt took an early lead and never looked back. In fact, the match was tied only when the first whistle was blown, as Egypt provided too many questions for Tunisia.

Yehia Elderaa and Ahmed Hesham each scored two goals in the first 20 minutes to push Egypt to an 8:7 lead, followed up by a 4:0 unanswered run and another 4:1 run which saw them take a healthy 17:10 lead at the break.

Omar and Mohamed Emad then dominated the second half, finishing with six goals each, while goalkeeper Mohamed Aly stopped up shop for Egypt, with 12 saves and a 43% saving efficiency, as the gap grew stronger in the second half, until Egypt clinched a clear 37:24 win.

It was the largest-ever win in the final of the CAHB African Men's Handball Championship, beating the previous record, also set by Egypt in 2022 against Cape Verde, by a single goal.

Following the conclusion of the 2026 CAHB African Men’s Handball Championship, the top five teams in the final standings secured their place for the 2027 IHF Men’s World Championship.

Therefore, Egypt, Tunisia, Cape Verde and Algeria were joined by Angola, which also mounted a comeback in the decider against Nigeria in the Placement Match 5/6. Nigeria led by four goals late in the first half, but Angola provided a fantastic turnaround, to snatch the win, 25:20.

Angola will return for the World Championship for the first time since 2021 and will make their sixth appearance in the world handball flagship competition.

Zambia’s Felix Kambundu was the top scorer of the competition, with 49 goals, followed by Rwanda’s Yves Kayijamahe (46 goals) and Guinea’s Natan Jerome Paquiom (45 goals).

Photo credit: CAHB