16 teams took to the court in Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire between 5 and 12 September, for the 33rd CAHB African Men’s Junior Handball Championship, with eight sides progressing to the knock-out phase from the preliminary round.

Title favourites Egypt and Tunisia had no issues against their opponents, while two-time champions Algeria, which secured 14 medals in the history of the competition, missed out, after a three-way tie in Group B.

Title holders Egypt had the best defence in the preliminary round, conceding only 52 goals in three matches, as they dominated their opponents and finished first in their group.

With a strong side, which saw the core of the team which finished fifth at the 2025 IHF Men’s Youth World Championship return, Egypt beat DR Congo, 38:15, following up with a 42:19 win over Congo and a 30:18 win over Cameroon, after a first half where Egypt struggled.

DR Congo were the second team to qualify, with wins over Cameroon (21:17) and Congo (28:23).

Tunisia had by far the best attack in the first phase of the competition, scoring 130 goals in their wins against Libya, Kenya and Benin. Tunisia took care of Benin (53:24), following up with another 50-goal performance against Kenya (50:20), but needed a comeback against Libya.

Down four goals in the 43th minute, Tunisia relied on Fahd Dorgham, who scored six goals out of six shots, to mount a comeback, wrestle back the lead in seven minutes and secure a 27:23 win.

Libya finished second and progressed to the quarter-finals, thanks to a 37:36 win over Kenya and a 33:32 win against Benin, with both wins making them finish on four points, two over Kenya, which beat Benin, 34:32.

Guinea and Rwanda finished on top of Group A, as Guinea totally outplayed their opponents, starting with a strong 36:20 win over Rwanda. They continued with a 48:20 win over Zimbabwe and a 32:14 win over hosts Cote d’Ivoire, with the third best attack and the second best defence in the preliminary round.

Rwanda’s 30:25 win against Cote d’Ivoire was enough to see them through.

The biggest battle came in Group B, where Angola, Algeria and Nigeria all finished on four points, with Magadascar finishing last with zero points, beaten by all three opponents.

The deciders were the head-to-head matches, and Nigeria looked to have the upper hand, by taking a decisive 23:18 win over Algeria in the first match. Then, Angola beat Nigeria, 29:25, and the last game between Algeria and Angola was going to be decisive, with Algeria needing a win by at least five goals to secure their place in the quarter-finals.

By the 41st minute, Algeria were leading by nine goals, 20:11, as Seif Eddine Lanani and Ramdane Mostefa combined for 15 goals. But Angola came back, cut the lead to only three goals in the end, thanks to seven goals from Lopes Carvalho and six goals from Josemar Joao and Edivanio Hamalwa, to settle for a 25:22 loss and finish first.

Angola had a +1 goal difference, same as Nigeria, but scored 51 goals in the three-way tie, as opposed to Nigeria’s 48. Algeria finished third, with a -2 goal difference.

The quarter-finals will be played on Wednesday, 9 September. Guinea will face Nigeria, and Tunisia are due to play against DR Congo. Angola battle against Rwanda, while Egypt face Libya.

After three rounds, Nigeria's Saka Muktar scored 29 goals and is the top goal scorer of the competition, having four more than Guinea's Gbamo Kpouloumou and five over Angola's Josemar Joao.

Five berths at the 2027 IHF Men’s Junior World Championship are at stake, meaning the quarter-finals will already carry enormous significance. The semi-finalists will progress to the final tournament next year, with the fifth place also securing their tickets.

Photo credit: CAHB