Only four teams are still in the hunt for the title at the Men’s EHF EURO 2024, after the conclusion of the main round in Cologne and Hamburg, with reigning world champions Denmark, reigning Olympic champions France, reigning European champions Sweden and hosts Germany qualifying for the semi-finals.

60 of the 65 matches are now elapsed in the competition, with the main round concluded, as only one team is still unbeaten – France – which won six of their seven matches played, drawing the other, 26:26, against Switzerland.

The reigning Olympic champions, who will be eyeing to repeat at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, have swept their opponents in the main round, with a 34:32 win against Croatia, a 39:32 win against Iceland, a 33:28 win against Austria and a 35:32 win against Hungary.

France are also the top attack in the competition, with 237 goals scored, having delivered at least 30 goals in six of their seven matches, with the only exception being the draw against Switzerland.

Moreover, the three-time IHF Male Player of the Year, Nikola Karabatic, became the all-time leading goal scorer of the Men’s EHF EURO, with 292 goals, breaking the record held by Icelandic left wing Gudjon Valur Sigurdsson, who scored 288 goals.

🇩🇪 Juri Knorr transforming into a line player 🔁#ehfeuro2024 #heretoplay #GERHUN @DHB_Teams pic.twitter.com/kaGL7QzoTx

— EHF EURO (@EHFEURO) January 22, 2024

From Group I of the main round, France are joined into the semi-finals by hosts Germany, which became the first team to progress to the penultimate act of the competition with only five points under their belt.

The hosts, led by the All-Star Young Player of the 2023 IHF Men’s World Championship, centre back Juri Knorr, dropped their matches against France and Croatia, and drew against Austria, but the even-balanced nature of the competition saw them seal their place before the final match against Croatia, after Austria and Hungary conceded losses earlier on Wednesday.

Hungary finished on the third place, with four points, progressing to the Placement Match 5/6, where they face Slovenia, while Austria, the big surprise of the competition, who drew against Spain, Croatia and Germany, ended up on the fifth place, after conceding the last two matches, against France and Iceland, as the Nordic side finished fourth.

In Group II, Denmark and Sweden sealed their berths for the semi-finals with one round to go, as the reigning world champions dominated their opponents and won six of their first seven matches, before changing their lines against Slovenia, in the last match, to concede a 25:28 loss.

Led by the MVP of the 2023 IHF Men’s World Championship, right back Mathias Gidsel, who is the fourth best scorer in the competition, with 42 goals and a 84% shooting efficiency, Denmark will face Germany in the semi-finals, after securing the first place in the group.

Sweden finished second, with two losses – 28:29 against Denmark and 23:33 against Norway – and are due to face France, in a repeat of two of the last semi-finals at the IHF Men’s World Championship. At Egypt 2021, Sweden won 32:26, while at Poland/Sweden 2023, France avenged that loss, with a 31:26 win.

The two semi-finals are scheduled for Friday in the LANXESS Arena in Cologne, with the final and the bronze medal match ready to be played on Sunday.

Either Sweden or Germany will earn a place to the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, with the two sides locked in a direct battle for the direct spot, as Denmark, as the world champions, and France, as the hosts, are directly qualified for the competition.

In the top goal scorer standings, Portugal’s left back Martim Costa leads the way, with 56 goals, but he will not feature in any matches, as Portugal are out, followed by the Netherlands’ left wing Rutger ten Velde, with 45 goals, as Juri Knorr (43 goals) and Mathias Gidsel (42 goals) can leapfrog them, having two matches in hand.

Photo credit: Jozo Cabraja / EHF / Kolektiff Images