Croatia co-hosting Handball World Championship: Full schedule

(Photo credit © Jozo Cabraja / kolektiff)

Together with Denmark and Norway, Croatia will host the Handball World Championship, which starts on 14 January and will run until 2 February 2025.

The competition format remains the same as in the previous two championships, featuring a total of 32 national teams divided into eight groups of four.

Croatia to Play in Zagreb Until the Semi-Finals

Croatia is in Group H, where their opponents will be Bahrain, Argentina, and Egypt. All matches in this group will be played at Arena Zagreb. Group H will intersect with Group G, also based in Zagreb, which includes Slovenia, Iceland, Cuba, and Cape Verde.

In addition to Zagreb, the other group hosts are Poreč and Varaždin. The Arena Zagreb will host matches up to the semi-finals, and there are high hopes for Croatia to progress that far.

Group Stage Match Schedules

Group A (Herning)

• 15 January
18:00 Germany vs Poland
20:30 Czech Republic vs Switzerland

• 17 January
18:00 Switzerland vs Germany
20:30 Czech Republic vs Poland

• 19 January
15:30 Poland vs Switzerland
18:00 Germany vs Czech Republic

Group B (Herning)

• 14 January
17:30 Italy vs Tunisia
20:30 Denmark vs Algeria

• 16 January
18:00 Italy vs Algeria
20:30 Tunisia vs Denmark

• 18 January
18:00 Algeria vs Tunisia
20:30 Denmark vs Italy

Group C (Poreč)

• 14 January
18:00 France vs Qatar
20:30 Austria vs Kuwait

• 16 January
18:00 Kuwait vs France
20:30 Austria vs Qatar

• 18 January
18:00 France vs Austria
20:30 Qatar vs Kuwait

Group D (Varaždin)

• 15 January
18:00 Netherlands vs Guinea
20:30 Hungary vs North Macedonia

• 17 January
18:00 Netherlands vs North Macedonia
20:30 Guinea vs Hungary

• 19 January
18:00 North Macedonia vs Guinea
20:30 Netherlands vs Hungary

Group E (Oslo)

• 15 January
18:00 Portugal vs USA
20:30 Norway vs Brazil

• 17 January
18:00 Portugal vs Brazil
20:30 USA vs Norway

• 19 January
18:00 Brazil vs USA
20:30 Norway vs Portugal

Group F (Oslo)

• 16 January
18:00 Spain vs Chile
20:30 Sweden vs Japan

• 18 January
18:00 Spain vs Japan
20:30 Chile vs Sweden

• 20 January
18:00 Japan vs Chile
20:30 Sweden vs Spain

Group G (Zagreb)

• 16 January
18:00 Slovenia vs Cuba
20:30 Iceland vs Cape Verde

• 18 January
18:00 Cape Verde vs Slovenia
20:30 Iceland vs Cuba

• 20 January
18:00 Cuba vs Cape Verde
20:30 Slovenia vs Iceland

Group H (Zagreb)

• 15 January
18:00 Egypt vs Argentina
20:30 Croatia vs Bahrain

• 17 January
18:00 Bahrain vs Egypt
20:30 Croatia vs Argentina

• 19 January
18:00 Argentina vs Bahrain
20:30 Egypt vs Croatia

Main Round Match Schedules

Group I (Herning)

• 21 January, 23 January, 25 January
Matches between qualifiers from Groups A and B

Group II (Varaždin)

• 21 January, 23 January, 25 January
Matches between qualifiers from Groups C and D

Group III (Oslo)

• 22 January, 24 January, 26 January
Matches between qualifiers from Groups E and F

Group IV (Zagreb)

• 22 January, 24 January, 26 January
Matches between qualifiers from Groups G and H

Quarter-Finals

• 28 January (Zagreb)
Group IV Winner vs Group II Runner-up
Group II Winner vs Group IV Runner-up

• 29 January (Oslo)
Group III Winner vs Group I Runner-up
Group I Winner vs Group III Runner-up

Semi-Finals

• 30 January (Zagreb)

• 31 January (Oslo)

Final Matches

• Third-Place Match: 2 February (Oslo) at 15:00

• Final: 2 February (Oslo) at 18:00