Egypt and Spain are the first two semi-finalists of the 2026 IHF Women's Youth World Champonship, after sealing hard-fought wins against People's Republic of China and Switzerland respectively.

Egypt dominated from start to finish, leading throughout the whole match, before clinching a dramatic 30:29 win over China, while Spain came back from three goals behind in the 47th minute to seal a 27:25 win over Switzerland.

Quarter-final
Egypt vs People’s Republic of China 30:29 (17:13)

A place in the semi-finals and a piece of history were at stake in the first quarter-final in Pitesti, Romania. Since the IHF Women’s Youth World Championship was introduced in 2006, only the Republic of Korea has reached the semi-finals as a non-European nation.

The opening stages were shaped by strong defensive displays, with the teams locked in a nip-and-tuck battle. Egypt did not score from open play until the fourth minute after converting two early penalties, while China matched them goal for goal through the opening 15 minutes.

The turning point came with the score level at 7:7 — a series of Chinese attacking errors and missed chances allowed Egypt to punish every mistake in transition, using a 4:0 unanswered run to open an 11:7 lead.

Although China’s goalkeepers tried to keep their side in contention — Xiaoyan Wang recorded six saves from 17 shots before Siqi Yu came between the posts around the 20th minute and added four from nine attempts — China struggled in attack, finishing the first half with only 33% attacking efficiency. Shuoyan Zhang was the lone bright spot, scoring five goals before the break.

On the other side, Egypt made the most of their opportunities with a well-organised attack and another disciplined defensive display, successfully weathering China’s late push to carry a four-goal advantage into half-time.

China looked much improved after the restart as they corrected many of the issues that had troubled them before the break, gradually cutting the deficit to 21:19. As Egypt’s attack began to lose its rhythm and Siqi Yu added several more saves, China continued to close the gap. The breakthrough came in the 48th minute when centre back Jingwen Zhang scored her fifth goal of the day to reduce the deficit to one, forcing Egypt into a timeout.

The drama reached its peak in the 56th minute when China completed the comeback, levelling the score at 26:26 from the seven-metre line. However, their momentum disappeared almost immediately. Even a switch to an aggressive 3-2-1 defence could not prevent another spell of attacking errors, allowing Egypt to respond with a decisive 4:1 run and restore a 30:27 lead with a minute and a half remaining.

The Asian side still refused to give up, reducing the deficit to 30:29 and earning one final attack to force extra time. This time, though, Jaydaa Salama produced the save of the match, sending Egypt into a historic first-ever semi-final at the IHF Women’s Youth World Championship.

China had already rewritten their own history by reaching the quarter-finals after never previously finishing higher than 15th and will continue their campaign in the Placement Matches 5–8 against Switzerland.

Quarter-final
Spain vs Switzerland 27:25 (13:14)

After winning an entertaining and hard-fought match, defending champions Spain maintained their perfect record at Romania 2026 and clinched a semi-final spot. Switzerland, who had already secured their best ranking in the IHF Women’s Youth World Championship, will wrap up the tournament in the Placement Matches 5–8.

Switzerland had a better start, taking a 2:0 lead after three minutes, but Spain drew level soon. A very close battle followed, as both teams traded goals, with the goalkeepers having little impact early in the game. As a result, the rivals were level at 7:7 in the 13th minute and 9:9 four minutes later.

Led by the tournament’s top scorer, Lauryn Mierzwa, Switzerland gradually seized the initiative, capitalising on Spain’s turnovers. They held a two-goal advantage on several occasions before the break, but it was Spain’s Iraia Berroeta who scored the final goal of the first half in the 27th minute. After that, both teams missed their chances, and Switzerland went into the dressing room with a one-goal lead.

Early in the second half, they increased the gap to two goals again, but Spain responded with a 4:0 run, backed by Rebeca Secades’ saves. However, Switzerland’s goalkeeper Jael Billeter also improved her efficiency as the match progressed. Her saves, as well as the goals by Noelle Osterwalder and Nora Emmenegger, propelled their team to a 5:0 surge, and Switzerland were in the driver’s seat again, leading 22:19 with 12 minutes to play.

However, the game took another twist in the closing stages. A combination of Switzerland’s turnovers and Secades’ saves (she had 14 on the day) lifted Spain to a 4:0 run as they pulled ahead 23:22. The Swiss drew level quickly, but another 3:0 surge from Spain secured their victory.

Player of the Match: Noelle Osterwalder (Switzerland)