Qatar reach historic heights with sixth win in a row at the AHF Asian Men’s Handball Championship

After a coaching change and a turbulent 2023, Qatar went back to the drawing board and secured a historic sixth consecutive win at the AHF Asian Men’s Handball Championship, the longest-ever winning streak in the history of the continental competition, after a 30:24 win in the final against Japan.

16 teams entered the fray in the competition hosted by Bahrain, divided into four groups of four teams each, with the top two sides in each group progressing to the next phase of the competition, the main round.

Three teams progressed with an immaculate record, Qatar, the Republic of Korea and hosts Bahrain, with Japan winning Group C, after two wins and an unexpected draw, 28:28, against Iraq.

Kuwait, the Islamic Republic of Iran, Iraq and the United Arab Emirates joined the four group winners into the main round, where the points were set and every side started on zero points, as the top two teams in each group progressed to the semi-finals.

In Group I, Qatar and Japan faced off in a heavyweight clash, after sealing wins against Iran and the United Arab Emirates, with the two sides sharing the spoils, after a 28:28 draw, but progressing to the next phase, with Qatar winning the group thanks to their superior goal difference, +8, as opposed to Japan’s +5.

No side had a perfect record in Group II, but Bahrain sealed the top place, after winning against Iraq (25:20) and Korea (33:29), and drawing against Kuwait (28:28), with Kuwait sealing the second semi-finals berth, after a draw against Korea, 22:22.

Therefore, the semi-finals pairings were set and the hosts, Bahrain, faced Japan once again, just a few months removed after they lost the final of the Asian Qualification Tournament for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

This time around, Bahrain looked close to secure a win and avenge that loss, but a six-goal outing from Taiga Tsutaya lifted Japan to a superb comeback. Down 11:9 at the break, Japan conceded only six goals in the second half and clinched a 20:17 win, returning to the final for the first time since 2004.

In the other semi-final, Qatar, in coach Goran Perkovac’s debut at a major international competition, sealed a clear 33:26 win against Kuwait, making it to the final of the AHF Asian Men’s Handball Championship for the seventh consecutive time, as left back Frankis Carol Marzo scored seven goals.

With a nine-match unbeaten streak against Japan, with eight wins and a draw, Qatar were big favourites ahead of the final and they confirmed that status with a clear 30:24 win. Qatar took a 17:11 lead at the break, which they never surrendered until the end, celebrating their sixth consecutive title in the AHF Asian Men’s Handball Championship. Making his return in the squad after a few years’ absence, right back Žarko Marković was the top scorer of the final, with seven goals.

Qatar’s streak of six titles in a row is the largest-ever at the AHF Asian Men’s Handball Championship, beating the previous record of five trophies in a row sealed by the Republic of Korea between 1983 and 1993.

Bahrain sealed the bronze medal with a 26:17 win against Kuwait, while the Republic of Korea finished fifth and the Islamic Republic of Iran on the sixth place.

The top four sides at the 2024 AHF Asian Men’s Handball Championship – Qatar, Japan, Bahrain and Kuwait – progressed to the 2025 IHF Men’s World Championship, where 14 other teams are also qualified.

The four Asian sides are joined by the three co-hosts – Denmark, Norway and Croatia – France, Germany and Sweden from the EHF EURO 2024, Argentina, Brazil and Chile from the 2024 South and Central American Men's Handball Championship, Algeria, Cape Verde, Egypt and Tunisia from the 2024 CAHB African Men’s Championship and the United States of America, the recipients of a wild card. 

Photo credit: Qatar Handball Association