Japan and Portugal opened their accounts at the 2026 IHF Wheelchair Handball World Championship with straight-sets wins against USA and Portugal respectively, taking a huge chance for a quarter-finals ticket.

Group B
United States of America vs Japan 0:2 (3:15; 2:10)

Japan opened their account at the 2026 IHF Wheelchair Handball World Championship with a dominating performance against 2024 silver medallists, USA, conceding only five points over the 20 minutes of the match.

An USA team with a totally new look, boasting 10 new players, had little chance of providing a challenge for a more experienced Japan team, with the Asian side taking over control immediately.

From 7:2 after only four minutes, the gap balooneed to 15:3 at the end of the first set, with Japan’s top scorer in 2024, Shinnosuke Morooka, scoring eight points throughout the two sets.

Leo Onuki and Yukitaka Moriya added seven points in the match, as USA needed eight minutes to put their first points on the board in the second set, with Japan running away with a clear 10:2 win in the second set.

Japan’s fourth win in the history of the IHF Wheelchair Handball World Championship brought them closer to the quarter-finals, potentially helping them to a quarter-final berth, with both sides having to play against debutants Australia on Thursday.

Group C
Brazil vs Portugal 2:0 (11:7; 12:6)

Two of the world powerhouses in wheelchair handball – Brazil and Portugal – collided in Granollers in arguably the derby of the opening day of the 2026 IHF Wheelchair Handball World Championship and, of course, the match was as dramatic as ever.

It was a true battle, with dramatic accents at times, as Brazil took the first set, 11:7, on the back of a fantastic performance for Guilherme Lourenço, who had 10 points scored in the first 10 minutes of the match.

The set was controlled from start to finish for Brazil, which were more clinical in attack, but the second set was more balanced, with Portugal keeping up with their counterparts, after taking an early lead.

Midway in the second set, the score was tied, 5:5, but a scoreless spell from Portugal, which missed too many clear-cut chances. In the end, Brazil were simply better in front of goal than Portugal, as they got more contributions from their team, with five different players scoring at least one point.

Guilherme Lourenço finished the match as the top scorer, with 15 points, with both Portugal and Brazil having to face India tomorrow, in the last day of the preliminary round, with two sides progressing from each group to the quarter-finals.