Spain-France 21:00, Ali Bin Hamad Al-Attiyah Arena

Spain fought to the final seconds against a tough quarter-final opponent, Denmark, to book their ticket to the semi-finals and destroy Denmark’s dreams right on the buzzer. 

With an arguably more difficult run to this stage than France, Spain arrive at the semi-finals with the confidence of two good wins behind them – though their victory over Denmark was a little too close for comfort for the 2013 World Champions. 

Still, Spain have made it to this stage for the third World Championship in a row, and have been one of the classiest sides in handball for the last few years. 

Through Qatar 2015 they have played superbly, showing they are in excellent form to defend their title, but a tough opponent stands in the way of the final hopes. 

A loss for Spain against France at this stage would be painful, after France defeated Spain at the EHF EURO 2014 and at the London Olympics. 

“I remember those defeats. We lost last year in Denmark in the last minute, after Abalo received the ball and managed to score. Abalo isn’t here, but they have a lot of great players such as Karabatic, Narcisse, Omeyer, etc,” said left wing Cristian Ugalde.  

“What can I say about the defeat in London? That was the toughest moment of my life. That goal of Accambray in the last second was disasterous for us. Yes, we want revenge.”

If there is any side that can boast more recent successes than Spain, it is France. 

France are the current Olympic and European champions, but one sore spot stands out from the last few years – Spain 2013, when Les Bleus finished sixth. 

This ranking is a clear blemish on an otherwise almost-perfect record, which shows medals won by the team at most major tournaments since the mid-2000s when they really became a dominant force.

“Since 2006 we have won all major gold medals at least twice – we are experts in winning. So we have the confidence and the knowledge of how it feels to win gold medals. But before talking about a medal, we must first reach the final,” said Daniel Narcisse.

Both teams have a squad list to strike fear into any team that faces them, with some of handball’s biggest stars – particularly in the case of France, with stars such as Nikola Karabatic, Narcisse and Thierry Omeyer, all of whom are in top form. 

Spain also have a deep team full of talent, with two strong goalkeepers in Jose Manuel Sierra and up-and-coming Gonzalo Perez De Vargas, and big-scorers such as Valero Rivera Junior (39 goals in the tournament) and Joan Canellas (27 goals), not to mention intimidating defenders such as Julen Aguinagalde.

Friday’s meeting between these two sides should be a thriller – and could well decide the winner of the championship.