The preparations for the 2025 IHF Men’s World Championship, which will throw off on 14 January in Herning, Denmark, and Porec, Croatia, are in full swing, with the 32 participating teams making their fine-tuning before the start of the competition.

Four sides took part in a friendly competition which took place in Plock, Poland, with the hosts emerging as winners, after sweeping Austria, Japan and Tunisia. The first win, against the other European side in the competition, was the most impressive, as Poland jumped to a clear 31:19 win, limiting a Nikola Bilyk-less Austria to only six goals in the second half.

Japan finished second, as they took a 34:33 win against Tunisia and a 28:27 win over Tunisia, with Toni Gerona’s side – full of home-based players – looks like a team which will be hard to beat. In the other match, Austria ensured finishing third, thanks to a 32:30 win over Tunisia.

Reigning world champions Denmark set up two friendly matches against Bahrain on their home court and proved they are ready to provide a good performance in Herning in the preliminary round and main round, with two clear wins, 33:17 and 39:20.

Right back Mathias Gidsel, the 2023 IHF Male Player of the Year and the MVP of the 2023 IHF Men’s World Championship, scored 12 goals in the second test between the two sides, before being substituted in the 40th minute by coach Nikolaj Jacobsen.

Another co-host, Croatia, took two wins against two sides which will play at the 2025 IHF Men’s World Championship. They first beat North Macedonia, 27:25, in a match where Luka Cindric did not feature, then dominated Slovenia in the Arena Zagreb, 33:25, as Dagur Sigurdsson’s side is aiming to kick start a medal campaign at the 2025 IHF Men’s World Championship.

Six teams – four which will play at the 2025 IHF Men’s World Championship gathered in Castellon, Spain, for the Torneo Internacional de España 2025, with the final between Spain and the co-hosts of the 2025 IHF Men’s World Championship, Norway, being scheduled for Saturday, 11 January.

In the first matches, Spain beat Argentina, 32:18, and Slovakia, 34:30, while Norway took a 33:29 win over Egypt and a 37:26 win over Romania, as the two sides set up a fantastic final.

Egypt conceded a 33:29 loss against Norway, but bounced back with a 33:30 win over Romania, to finish second in their group, while Argentina also finished second in their group, with a 30:26 win against Slovakia.

Hungary also played two test matches during this week against Serbia. In the first one, Hungary could not seal the win against a team which failed to qualify for the world handball flagship competition, 31:31, while the second one saw a 28:23 win for the hosts in Szeged.

France, the runners-up at the 2023 IHF Men’s World Championship, and one of the medal challengers, also won their two matches at the Tournoi de France in Strasbourg. First, they took a 37:28 win over Czechia, while the second match saw a high-octane match against Portugal, which concluded with a 44:38 France win. In the other match, Portugal beat Czechia, 32:31. France also had Dika Mem back, as the right back is back after a lay-off due to a shoulder injury.

Germany clinched a 32:25 win over Brazil in Hamburg, in a match where the South American side saw left back Bryan Monte da Silva injuring his right ankle, but the Brazilian star is still due to play at Croatia/Denmark/Norway 2025, avoiding a serious injury.

Photo credit: French Handball Federation