The fourth edition of the North America and the Caribbean Handball Confederation (NACHC) Men’s and Women’s Beach Handball Championship will be played this week in North Frigate Bay, St Kitts and Nevis.

From the 24 to 26 April, the Caribbean island nation will welcome 17 men’s and women’s teams from 10 nations who will be competing for continental glory and tickets to the 2026 IHF Men’s and Women’s Beach Handball World Championships which will be played in Croatia in June.

The 17 teams for 2026 are a record turnout for the event, which started back in 2019 with 16 sides, followed by 14 in 2022 and 11 two years ago (2024). This time around, 10 men’s teams and seven women’s teams will compete across 42 games in total (15 in the women’s competition and 27 in the men’s). 

The two competitions will be split into two groups each, with each team in the group playing each other once:

Women’s competition
Group A: United States of America (USA), Antigua and Barbuda (ANT), Canada (CAN)
Group B: Puerto Rico (PUR), Mexico (MEX), Haiti (HAI), St. Kitts and Nevis (SKN)

Men’s competition
Group A: United States of America, Canada, Mexico, Dominica (DMA), Haiti
Group B: Puerto Rico, Trinidad and Tobago (TTO), St. Kitts and Nevis, Cuba (CUB), Antigua and Barbuda

After all teams have played each other in their respective groups the top two teams in each will face off in the semi-finals, while those finishing third and below move into the placement rounds.

The semi-finals will effectively be play-offs for the 2026 IHF Beach Handball World Championship with the top two teams in each competition confirming their place at the global event in Europe this June.

Making a mark in the continental sand

Host nation St Kitts and Nevis has been an IHF Member Federation since 2009 and hosting the 2026 NACHC Beach Handball Championships represents a huge milestone in the nations’ handball development which has been rapidly increasing in recent years, particularly on the sand.

A beach handball league first took place in 2019 after the Caribbean nation was inspired by their experience at the debut edition of the NACHC Men’s and Women’s Beach Handball Championship held in Trinidad and Tobago in July of that year where they fielded teams in both gender competitions.

USA men looking to make it four in a row

The United States of America men’s side will be looking to win their fourth continental title in a row this time around after winning all three previously (2019, 2022, 2024), while Mexico and Puerto Rico will be looking to push them all the way and halt their march to the top.

It is nearly the same story in the women’s competition, with the US taking two of the three previous titles (2019, 2024), but losing to Mexico in the 2022 final. Again, Puerto Rico would like to have a say in the top two spots.

The 2026 edition represents a tournament debut for Antigua and Barbuda in both the men’s and women’s competitions, and Cuba in the men’s competition, with Haiti returning in both for the first time since 2019.

The US men held a selection camp in February on Hermosa Beach, California with a follow-up invite-only camp last month and a third camp planned for early in May. Coached by Michael Hinson and Jamil Abdalla, the men are captained by Jason Borchik. The US women feature a number of experienced players in their squad, including Staci Self and they recent held an evaluation camp in San Diego in April to scout for potential athletes to bolster their ranks.

Canada men’s and women’s teams held a six-day training camp before heading to the host country where they played friendly matches against St Kitts & Nevis Beach Handball Club. The Canadian men are coached by Steve Fodor and the women by Arthur Lopez.

Puerto Rico men’s coach Camilo Estevez oversaw the team at the 2025 IHF Men’s Youth Beach Handball World Championship in Tunisia, where they finished 11th and he has included the top three scorers of his squad from their North African experience in his team for the continental championship – Dylan Andreu (82 points), Yahir López (66) and Antwan García (49), who spoke to ihf.info last year abut his Puerto Rican beach handball experiences.

2026 NACHC Men’s and Women’s Beach Handball Championship – Match Schedule

Friday 24 April

Women’s competition
0830 PUR v MEX
0930 SKN v HAI
1030 USA v CAN
1130 PUR v SKN
1230 HAI v MEX
1330 USA v ANT
1630 CAN v ANT

Men’s competition
0830 SKN v ANT
0930 CUB v PUR
1030 DMA v USA
1130 MEX v HAI
1230 TTO v CUB
1330 PUR v SKN
1430 USA v MEX
1530 CAN v DMA
1630 ANT v TTO
1730 HAI v CAN

Saturday 25 April

Women’s competition
0830 PUR v HAI
0930 MEX v SKN
1230 Semi-Final 1
1330 Semi-Final 2
1430 5-7 Placement Round

Men’s competition
0830 DMA v HAI
0930 USA v CAN
1030 ANT v PUR
1130 SKN v CUB
1230 HAI v USA
1330 MEX v DMA
1430 PUR v TTO
1530 CUB v ANT
1630 CAN v MEX
1730 TTO v SKN

Sunday 26 April

Women’s competition
0830 5-7 Placement Round
1430 Bronze medal match
1530 Gold medal match/final

Men’s competition
0930 Semi-Final 1
1030 Semi-Final 2
1130 5/6 Placement Match
1230 7/8 Placement Match
1330 9/10 Placement Match
1630 Bronze medal match
1730 Gold medal match/final