Munich, June 10 – The German national handball team has learned its preliminary round opponents for the 2027 Home World Championship. In a draw held at the Hofbräuhaus in Munich, the team was placed in a group with Tunisia, Serbia, and Uruguay. This draw avoids immediate clashes with major handball powers such as Spain, Norway, or Poland, which are reserved for the knockout stages.
Germany Aims for Medal in Home Tournament
Following two silver medals at the 2024 Olympics and the 2026 European Championship, Germany is setting its sights on another medal at the home tournament, scheduled from January 13 to 31, 2027. National coach Alfred Gislason, who attended the draw in traditional Lederhosen, emphasized the importance of every match. “Usually, the opponents you perceive as easier are the toughest,” Gislason stated shortly before the draw. He added, “If you want to go far, you have to beat everyone.”
Opening Match in Munich Against Tunisia
Germany will play all three of its preliminary round matches in Munich. The opening game will see the hosts take on Tunisia, marking 20 years since Germany’s 2007 World Championship title. Handball icon Stefan Kretzschmar humorously described the group as “difficult” on stage, a comment that elicited chuckles from the audience. He then grinned, adding, “I was told to say that.”
WM Hopes After European Championship Silver
For the DHB selection, which stirred hopes of a “Winter Fairy Tale 2.0” at the home World Championship after securing silver at last year’s European Championship, encounters with handball powerhouses like Denmark and France are only possible in the knockout phase. Besides the German team in Group A, Croatia was also seeded in Group C at the Munich preliminary round venue. The vice-world champions will face Spain in an exciting preliminary round duel. The other group leaders are France (Group D) and Italy (B) in Stuttgart, Sweden (E) and Denmark (G) in Kiel, and Portugal (F) and Iceland (H) in Magdeburg.
Tournament Format and Knockout Stages
The top three teams from the Munich and Stuttgart groups will advance to Cologne for the main round. National teams from the Kiel and Magdeburg venues will play their second tournament phase in Hanover. This tournament mode means that the DHB selection will avoid multi-time world, European, and Olympic champions Denmark in both the preliminary and main rounds. A clash with their northern neighbors and top favorites for gold is only possible in the semifinals at the earliest. The decisive knockout matches of the Home World Championship, culminating in the final on January 31, will take place at the Lanxess Arena in Cologne.
