The road to the 2025 IHF Men’s World Championship is over halfway there, with 18 teams qualified, with other berths being delivered over the next few months. 11 of them are reserved for the teams competing in the European Qualification Phase 2 – part 2, which is now completed, after last week saw eight sides face off in the European Qualification Phase 2 – part 1.

Four dramatic doubleheaders took place last week throughout Europe, with one of them, the one between Lithuania and Finland, needing penalties to deliver the winner, after both matches finished in draws.

In the first leg, Finland and Lithuania were deadlocked in Vantaa, 20:20, while the second leg saw the two sides finish in a 26:26 stalemate, with Lithuania’s centre back, Aidenas Malasinskas, scoring eight times. The match went to penalties to decide the qualified team and in the first round of five penalties, both teams missed two each.

Therefore, it all went down until the end, with Malasinskas converting his last penalty, while Finland’s top scorer, Benjamin Helander, missed his, with Lithuania progressing to the next phase, with a 4:3 win on penalties. 

The Baltic side will now meet Hungary, a team which has qualified for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games in May, with Hungary being a clear favourite to progress to the 2025 IHF Men’s World Championship.

Another fiery doubleheader was played between Slovakia and Israel, with both matches taking place in Topoľčany, Slovakia. The hosts took a 26:25 win in the first leg, opening the gates for a balanced encounter in the second match, which saw Slovakia take a 26:24 win, onto a 52:49 aggregate win.

Centre back Martin Potisk was the top scorer for Slovakia in each match, with six goals apiece. Slovakia will now face Poland in the European Qualification Phase 2 – part 2.

Estonia produced a huge surprise against Ukraine, taking advantage of the Ukrainian side’s woes, extending their chances for their maiden appearance at the IHF Men’s World Championship.

The first battle saw two outstanding performances from Dener Jaanimaa and Ihor Turchenko, who scored 11 goals and 13 goals respectively, but Estonia looked the better team, taking a 32:29 win.

The second leg was once again a high-octane match, with Estonia’s attack firing on all cylinders on their way to a 41:33 win, which delivered a 73:62 aggregate win for the Baltic side, the largest aggregate win for any team in this phase of the competition. Estonia are due to face Iceland in the European Qualification Phase 2 – part 2.

On paper, the battle between Italy and Belgium was the closest one, especially as Belgium played at the 2023 IHF Men’s World Championship. However, the “Red Wolves” failed to secure back-to-back appearances in the world handball flagship competition, after their 56:62 loss on aggregate against Italy.

Italy, an up and coming team on the scene, had two excellent matches, taking a 29:25 in the first leg, while the second leg saw Belgium try to erase the gap on Italian soil, but eventually conceded a 31:33 loss, as Thomas Bortoli scored nine goals for Italy, which will play in the next phase against Montenegro.

2025 IHF Men’s World Championship - European Qualification Phase 2 – part 2

Lithuania vs Hungary
Slovenia vs Switzerland
Portugal vs Bosnia Herzegovina
Georgia vs Austria
Iceland vs Estonia
Greece vs Netherlands
Spain vs Serbia
Italy vs Montenegro
Romania vs Czechia
Poland vs Slovakia
Faroe Islands vs North Macedonia

The matches will take place on 8-9 May and 11-12 May

Photo credit: Federazione Italiana Giuoco Handball