The Main Round Group II comes to a close with three more exciting games to be played in Varaždin, Croatia. While France already secured quarter-finals, Qatar and Austria are out of the race, leaving Hungary, the Netherlands and North Macedonia still in contention for the last possible place.

In Group I in Herning, the group concludes with three matches, as Denmark and Germany have already secured their places, in this order for the next phase.

In President's Cup Group I only uncertainty lies in the game between Algeria and Kuwait as the winner of the duel will go to the Placement Match 27/28, while the loser will have to move to the Placement Match 29/30 battle. 

MAIN ROUND GROUP I
 

• 15:30 CET Italy vs Switzerland

Both European sides have been overachieving at this World Championship, showing some positive results and winning the fans' hearts. However, bot Italy and Switzerland lost their matches on Thursday and have no more chance of reaching the quarter-final.

In a crucial encounter, Italy were defeated by the much more experienced Germany, 27:34, but overall, they can be happy with their performance. "Three years ago, nobody could think that we would play Germany at this stage. Out World Championship has been amazing, we can be proud of ourselves," coach Riccardo Trillini said.

With four points, the Italians are ranked third in Group I, and they will stay in that place with a win or a draw over Switzerland. But if the Swiss team takes a victory, they will leapfrog Italy in the table, so both teams have their motivation in their last match at the competition.

On Thursday, Switzerland needed a win against Denmark to stay in fight for a quarter-final spot, but came up short, losing 28:39 against the defending champions

"It's absurd that you can feel a certain satisfaction when you lose by 11 goals, but I do. I'm enormously proud that we didn't make many technical mistakes, we weren't overrun. In our last game against Italy, we have to get the last few centiliters of gas left in the tank onto the pitch," tsaid Switzerland’s coach, Andy Schmid.

Italy and Switzerland have never met at the World Championship, but just three weeks ago, on 3 January, they played each other at the Yellow Cup, a traditional friendly competition in Switzerland, and the Italians won 31:29. 

• 18:00 CET Czechia vs Denmark

Only in their fifth match at the tournament, Czechia finally earned their first win, 32:26 against Tunisia. Before that game, the Czechs had scored only 19 goals per game on average, but on Thursday, they netted just as many already in the first half and went on to clinch a well-deserved victory, increasing their tally to three points. 

Throughout the competition, Xavi Sabate's team defended much better than they attacked, as they conceded only 116 goals in five encounters (23,2 on average). But in their last match at Croatia/Denmark/Norway, the fifth-placed team of Group I will be tested by Denmark, who boast the best attack in the event, with 197 goals scored, which is 39.4 on average.

On Thursday, the title holders secured an early quarter-final spot in style, beating Switzerland 39:28. While their attacking performance impressed again, it was goalkeeper Emil Nielsen who stole the show, delivering as many as 23 saves. Overall, Nielsen has 66 saves at the tournament, with a total 42% saving efficiency, and his game is certainly one of the key factors of Denmark's results, also having the largest number of saves so far.

In their last main round game against Czechia, the Scandinavian may rest some players and save some energy ahead of the crucial battles in the business end of the competition, but they will be determined to claim their sixth straight win at the current World Championship and also to extend their record unbeaten run at the world flagship handball competition to 34 games.

Denmark have already clinched the first place in the group and will meet either Portugal or Brazil in the quarter-finals, the team which places second in Group III.

Czechia and Denmark met just once at this level, notably also in their last main round match at Germany 2007 when the Danes won 33:29. More recently, the teams faced each other several times at the EHF EURO, and at Germany 2024, the Nordic team took a clear 23:14 victory at the group stage. 

• 20:30 CET Germany vs Tunisia

A win against Italy helped the Germans to secure a quarter-final spot with one main round match to go. And regardless of their result against Tunisia, the team coached by Alfred Gislason, who are on six points now, will finish second in Group I, being two points behind Denmark, with the tiebreaker going Denmark’s way. 

Beating Italy was not an easy feature, as the Paris 2024 Olympics runners-up struggled in the first half and led by just two goals (15:13) at the break, but ultimately a good defence and 18 saves from Andreas Woff helped Gislason's team to reach their goal. 

In that match, the German team could not rely on centre back Juri Knorr and left wing Rune Dahmke, both sidelined with a flu, and they have not fully recovered yet. "We missed Juri and Rune a lot, and I don't think that they will play in the next match. However, Rune has a better chance than Juri," Gislason said.

The Icelandic coach added that he might rest some of his key players against Tunisia, such as Renars Uscins, Julian Köster and captain Johannes Golla. But in any case, Germany will be the favourites against the African side, who sit bottom of Group I with no points, having lost four of their five matches at the tournament.

On Thursday, Anouar Ben Abdallah's nine goals did not prevent Tunisia from a 26:32 defeat against Czechia, and while they would like to end the tournament on a high, beating Germany looks like a challenging task. After all, the Germans won all six games against Tunisia at the World Championships, played between 2001 and 2013, and Gislason's team will be the strong favourites now. 

MAIN ROUND GROUP II

• 15:30 CET Netherlands vs Austria

The Netherlands may have struggled against France, losing 28:35, but Staffan Olsson's team showed determination and strong character. Now sitting in fourth place with four points, their quarter-final hopes are still alive. To make them happen, the Netherlands must defeat Austria and hope for favourable results in the other two matches - Hungary failing to win against Qatar and France to win their match

The Dutch team's fast-paced and well-structured attack could give them an edge, but their defensive struggles have been a recurring issue at times. Austria, on the other hand, are out of the quarter-finals race after a hard-fought 26:29 loss to Hungary. Despite being eliminated, Aleš Pajovič's team are not likely to give up and will be determined to end the competition on a high note, overcoming all the challenges they have faced during the competition.

“It's a shame. It was a close game and we gave it our all. The boys showed heart and character again. Now we have one more game and we want to give it our all,” says Austria's head coach Aleš Pajovič.

So far, the two sides have not yet met at the World Championship. However, Austria came out on top in their 2010 qualifications for the world handball flagship competition, winning 59:49 on aggregate.

• 18:00 CET Qatar vs Hungary

For Hungary, it all comes down to this game. After a tough defeat against France, Chema Rodiguez's team rallied in their next game against Austria, overcoming some first-half struggles to secure a crucial 29:26 win. Boosted by Kristóf Palasics' performance between the posts, Hungart enjoyed a second-half turnaround, keeping themselves in contention for the quarter-finals.

Now, Hungary are determined to leave nothing to chance, knowing a win guarantees their progression. Even a draw would put them among the top eight teams, provided they score at least five goals more than Kiril Lazarov’s side. Their strong defensive, led by Patrik Ligetvári and Adrián Sipos, has been key in their recent games, and coach Rodriguez hopes they will keep it that way.

Veselin Vujovic's team failed to find a solution for European teams at this World Championship, conceding four losses and only managing to win against Kuwait. With a team lacking certain aspects in attack, only right back Frankis Marzo kept his side of the bargain, proving once again he is a key player for Qatar.

The last time these two teams met was in the 2019 IHF Men’s World Championship when Hungary won by 32:26 in the group phase.

• 20:30 CET France vs North Macedonia

With their quarter-final ticket already booked and first place in the group secured, France can afford to approach this match with ease. Guillaume Gille's team remain unbeaten in the competition, showcasing their incredible depth in rotations and maintaining a perfect record. This match offers France the chance to rotate their lineup further, keeping their key players fresh for the knockout stages.

For their opponents, in contrast, this game means everything. Their slim chances for progressing further require a win over France and hope Hungary lose to Qatar and Austria defeats the Netherlands. As they scored more goals than Hungary, they could also go through with a draw, but they need to hold their advantage in the goals scored department, currently sitting at 127 as opposed to 122.

Head coach Kiril Lazarov is aware of the task and its complexity, but his team believe that with good support from the stands and their trademark fighting spirit, they can perform above maximum. After all, even if they do not qualify for the quarter-finals, they still want to have the best possible ranking from this competition.

France never lost against their opponents in their five duels, while their most recent clash, at the Men's EHF EURO 2024, ended with France winning 39:29.

President's Cup - Group I

• 15:30 CET Algeria vs Kuwait

Algeria and Kuwait clash in a decisive match that will determine the econd place in the President's Cup Group I and who will go to the Placement match 27/28, while the loser of the game will fight in the Placement Match 29/30. Both teams currently have one win and one loss, with Algeria holding a slight advantage due to their superior goal difference, therefore, even a draw is enough for Algeria to finish second.

Algeria enter the game on the back of their confident 32:23 victory against Guinea. Goalkeeper Khalifa Ghedbane has been their standout performer and he could be key to stopping Kuwait's attack. When it comes to the attack, Algeria’s top performer is Ayyoub Abdi and his ability to overcome Kuwait's defence might decide the outcome.

Despite losing against Poland, 32:42, Kuwait, showed glimpses of  potential, especially in their opening stages against stronger opponents. Saif Aldawani has been a reliable scorer, but Kuwait will need to tighten their defence and limit Algeria’s opportunities to score easy goals from their turnovers. This young Kuwait team has already shown resilience in their comeback against Guinea, and they will need another inspired performance to claim a win.

Algeria and Kuwait met three times so far at the IHF Men’s World Championship - in 2005, 2001 and 1982. Apart from the 22:20 Kuwait's win in 1982, last two games went Algeria's way (26:13 and 34:29).

• 18:00 CET Guinea vs Poland

Guinea are still dreaming about their first win at the World Championship and now face a massive challenge in their final group game against here undefeated Poland. Poland already secured their place at the top and President's Cup Final and for them, this clash will only mean rotation and saving their pride.

With two defeats and a -11 goal difference, Guinea is locked into the last place in the group regardless of the result and will play in Placement Match 33/34. Nevertheless, they aim to put in a spirited performance and gain new experience against a stronger European opponent, while they will try to surprise with the help of their goalkeeper Rubens Pierre who stopped 70 attempts in five games.

Poland have been dominant in the President's Cup, with a perfect record after beating Kuwait and Algeria. Their attacking depth had been on full display even without star players Kamil Syprzak and Arkadiusz Moryto and have the favourites status in this game, just like in two previous ones in the President's Cup.