Reigning champions France kept full control against Argentina, recording a 29:17 win and coming just short of sealing their quarter-final berth at Germany/Netherlands 2025.

Main Round, Group III
Argentina vs France 17:29 (8:14)

France opened the scoring with a quick 2:0 lead, while Argentina waited until the fourth minute to finally get on the board. The South Americans stood tall against the title holders early on, but once the turnovers started piling up, the gap opened quickly.

When Sarah Bouktit netted for 6:3, Argentina tried to slow things down with a time-out, but it barely helped, as their mistakes were punished with ease in the following minutes and France stretched the lead to six (11:5) midway through the first half.

However, it was another unusually low-efficiency spell from France, sitting at only 48%, and in the next ten minutes they managed to score just twice, reaching 13 goals with four minutes to go. Only Lucie Granier and Sarah Bouktit scored more than two in that period.

But Argentina did not take advantage, as their efficiency was even lower, and the scoreboard in the 25th minute showed 13:8. By half-time, France were the only side to add to the tally, taking a 14:8 lead into the break.

The second half initially kept the same distance, and head coach Sébastien Gardillou rotated his squad, saving energy for the key showdown against co-hosts the Netherlands. Even so, France’s execution remained under 50%, and they did not push beyond an eight-goal lead until the 50th minute, when Nina Dury made it 24:15.

But even France, far from their sharpest, were still too much for Argentina, who stayed under 20 goals in what was their lowest-scoring outing at Germany/Netherlands 2025. They faltered completely in the closing stages as France stepped up again, hit a double-digit gap at 27:17 and ultimately wrapped up a clear 29:17 victory.

France have now opened the door to the quarter-finals wide, and if the Netherlands defeat Poland later today, their spot will be sealed. Argentina will conclude their World Championship campaign against Tunisia.

hummel Player of the Match: Sarah Bouktit (France)