This has been the case in the WC in Poland and Sweden
After the group stage, 32 teams became 24. Now the main round has been played and only eight teams can continue their dream of WC success. Here’s how it went in the main round:
Main round I
In this group, France was the strongest team and won over Spain in the group final. The two teams were superb in the group and advanced to the quarter-finals.
Slovenia, Poland, Montenegro and Iran are thus out of the finals.
Main round II
Here, the home team Sweden was clearly the best and secured group victory ahead of Hungary, which was the second team to advance. Iceland, with the same number of points, went out of the game in a head-to-head match against Hungary. Portugal, Brazil and Cape Verde came in second place.
Main round III
The group final between Germany and Norway went in Håndballgutta’s favour, but both teams advanced to the quarter-finals. This means that Serbia, the Netherlands, Argentina and Qatar are out of the finals.
Main round IV
In this group, the final was between Egypt and Denmark. The Danes won, but Egypt are still through to the quarter-finals and are the non-European team still in the World Cup play-offs.
In this group, Croatia, Bahrain, USA and Belgium are out of the finals.
How to play the quarter-finals:
Wednesday 25 January
- At 18.00 Norway- Spain (on TV3 and NRK sport radio)
- At 18.00 Denmark – Hungary
- At 20.30 France – Germany
- At 20.30 Sweden – Egypt
In the semi-finals, the winner of games no. 1 and 3 and the winners of games no. 2 and 4 will meet.
Placement matches
The teams that are knocked out of the quarter-finals must play placement matches. The first is played on Friday at 15.30 or 18, while the other is set for Sunday at 13.00 and 15.30 – before the finals.
That’s how it went in the group stage
Seven layers have gone through the group stage without conceding points. These are Spain, France, Sweden, Norway, Germany, Denmark and Egypt. On Wednesday, the main round starts where the three best teams in each group cross with another group.
Group A
was won clearly by Spain, who did not concede points and thus take 4 points into the main round. Montenegro has 2 points and Iran advances without points. Chile finished last in the group and is out of the World Cup.
Group B
France were superb and won all their matches, thus they also get 4 points. Slovenia takes two points and Poland advances without a point. Saudi Arabia enters the President’s Cup.
Groups A and B play in Main Round I in Krakow.
Group C
Here, the host nation Sweden was clearly the best and won all its matches and stands with a whopping 50 plus goals after three matches played. They will get 4 points, Brazil will get 2 points and Cape Verde will get no points. In this group, Uruguay came last.
Group D
Here it was a more even group, with both Portugal, Iceland and Hungary losing a match each in the group stage. All teams take 2 points in the main round, while South Korea is out of the World Cup and plays the President’s Cup.
Group C and D play in Main Round II in Gothenburg.
Group E
In this group, Germany was clearly the best with three wins and gets 4 points in the main round, Serbia takes 2 and Qatar advances without points. Algeria continues with the match in the President’s Cup.
Group F
Norway won all its matches and gets to the main round with 4 points. The Netherlands advance with 2 points and Argentina advance pointless. North Macedonia is out of the World Cup and continues in the President’s Cup.
Group E and F play in Main Round III in Katowice.
Group G
Egypt was the best team here and takes 4 points to the main round. Croatia finished 2nd and takes 2 points, while the USA with a win advances without points. This means that Morocco goes to the President’s Cup.
Group H
Denmark were superb in this group and have a whopping 70 plus goals after the group stage. They take 4 points with them to the main round followed by Bahrain who gain with two points and Belgium who advance with no points. In this group, Tunisia finished last and plays the continuation in the President’s Cup.
Group G and H play in Main Round IV in Malmö.
The game system further
Three teams from each group advance to the main round. They take with them the points from matches between themselves, while points from teams that are eliminated are removed. Again, the teams that must be in each group go to the President’s Cup.
The two best teams in each main round go to the quarter-finals, which will be played on Wednesday 25 January.
See the full fixture list for the World Cup and read more about Handballgutta.