38th Men's Arab Handball Championship of Champions to deliver last qualified team for 2023 IHF Men's Super Globe

The 38th edition of the Men’s Arab Handball Championship of Champions is set to start on 16 August in Qatif, Saudi Arabia, with 10 teams at the start, representing seven countries, with two teams from Egypt, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, and one each from Algeria, Iraq, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen.

With none of the previous champions of the last 16 editions being at the start, a new champion for the Men’s Arab Handball Championship of Champions will be crowned, with a ticket to the 2023 IHF Men’s Super Globe being delivered in Qatif, on 27 August, when the competition will be over.

The only team which has won the competition before is Egyptian powerhouse Zamalek SC, which will be aiming to seal another trophy, after conceding a painful loss in last edition’s final against Tunisian side Espérance Sportive de Tunis, 28:29, after extra time.

The 10 sides have been divided into two groups of five teams each, with the first four sides in each group progressing to the knockout phase, with four quarter-finals, two semi-finals and one final scheduled for the last days of the competition.

In Group I, one Saudi side, Mudhar Club, which have featured last year at the IHF Men’s Super Globe, will face another Super Globe participant in 2022, Al-Kuwaiti, as well on Egyptian side National Bank of Egypt, United Arab Emirates team Al-Jazira and Al-Hashd Al-Shaabi SC, with the former two sides looking like the favourites.

In Group II, Zamalek SC will be aiming to sweep their opponents, but will find a tough challenge in hosts Al-Huda, Algerian champions ES Aïn Touta, Yemeni team Al-Shula and Al-Arabi from Kuwait.

The Men’s Arab Handball Championship of Champions will send the last team to the 2023 IHF Men’s Super Globe, completing the team line up.

The reigning champions, SC Magdeburg, the runners-up of the Machineseeker EHF Champions League, Barlinek Industria Kielce, the reigning EHF European League Men champions, Füchse Berlin, and the most decorated team in the history of the competition, FC Barcelona, will be the European teams taking part in the 2023 IHF Men's Super Globe, with the last two sides being awarded wild cards.

Egyptian powerhouse Al-Ahly, the winners of the 2023 African Handball Super Cup, Bahraini side Al-Najma, the winners of the 2023 Asian Club League Championship and the San Francisco CalHeat, which won the 2023 North American and Caribbean Senior Club Championship, are also present at the start of the competition.

The 2023 Oceania & Australian Club Championships winners, University of Queensland, and the 2023 South and Central American Men's Club Handball Championship winners, San Fernando HB, will debut in the IHF Men's Super Globe.

Two spots have been reserved for the hosts, Saudi Arabian sides Al-Khaleej and Al-Noor.

2023 Men’s Arab Handball Championship of Champions – preliminary round

Group I: Mudhar Club (KSA), Al-Kuwaiti (KUW), National Bank of Egypt (EGY), Al-Jazira (UAE), Al-Hashd Al-Shaabi SC (IRQ)

Group II: Al-Huda (KSA), Zamalek SC (EGY), ES Aïn Touta (ALG), Al-Shula (YEM), Al-Arabi (KUW)