Category Archives: IHF news

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2025 IHF Men’s Handball World Championship Web Streaming (Information and Schedule)

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(ESPN3 in the USA and IHF Competitions YouTube in Canada and other parts of the world…VPN)

Your options for watch the 2025 Handball World Championships will vary depending on where you live. Some nations will be able to watch all the matches on the IHF YouTube Channel while other nations will have all or some of the matches available on a TV Channel and/or streaming service to which the rights have been sold.

  • IHF article with list of National TV Rights: Link

USA

ESPN will be airing matches each day on their Watch ESPN (ESPN3) platform which is accessible to anyone who subscribes to ESPN via Cable, Satellite or Streaming Service (FUBO or YouTube TV). (Important Note: This does not require an ESPN+ subscription. Further it will not be available on ESPN+. To watch the Handball WC you will need a traditional ESPN Subscription)

Watch ESPN can be watched on your TV, laptop or phone. Personally, I watch it via my ESPN app on my Roku, but there are multiple options. Typically, the first time you go to watch something, you will be asked to verify that you have a traditional ESPN subscription via one of several providers, so have your username and password for that provider available.

Matches that will be shown on ESPN can be seen by selecting “Upcoming” and clicking on ESPN3. If past history is a guide ESPN will also add a handball logo and a 2025 WC logo to help find the matches. Additionally, matches will likely show up on the main page, but only a few minutes before the match starts.

  • ESPN Handball Schedule: Link

Canada and Other Nations without a TV Contract

In Canada and other parts of the world where there is no TV contract all matches should be available for free on the IHF Competitions YouTube page

  • IHF Competitions WC Playlist: Link

VPN

A Virtual Private Network (VPN) might provide access to matches that are not available to watch on ESPN.

  • How to use VPN to watch handball: Link

Also, don’t forget to log on to your VPN service and to select a 3rd party country before you go to the IHF Competitions YouTube page. This is because the matches won’t even show up the IHF Competitions YouTube page if you live in a country with a TV contract.

Spam Sites

You’ve surely seen the multitude of social media postings inviting you to watch the match on their free service. Don’t even bother with these sites. They typically will ask you to download a video player on your computer. Trust me… you don’t want that app on your computer and in all likelihood they won’t even have the match. Go with VPN.

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2025 Men’s Handball World Championships Media Team and Coverage Plans

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(On the ground in Oslo: Clockwise: JD Orr, John Ryan, Mathias Hildrum and Roger Meyer)

Team Handball News will be in Oslo, Norway for the U.S. Preliminary Group matches vs Portugal, Norway and Brazil. We plan to produce a pregame and postgame match shows for all three matches along with some long form interviews with players during rest days. Full video will be available on our YouTube channel and excerpts will be posted on social media. (Instagram Facebook X TikTok

Media Team

JD Orr, Studio Host, Social Media

John Ryan, Studio Host, Website

Roger Meyer, Studio Host, Coordination

Mathias Hildrum, Producer




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2025 IHF Men’s Handball World Championships Information Page

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  • Team USA Information
    • Provisional Roster:  Announcement PDF
    • Final Roster: TBD
    • USA Team Page (IHF): Link
    • USA Profile Article (IHF): Link
  • Web Streaming (Information and Schedule):
    • USA: Link
    • Canada and other Nations without a TV Contract:
      • Worldwide: IHF YouTube Competitions Page: Link
      • Subject to geoblock if there is a TV/Streaming rights contract where you live
        • IHF article on TV broadcasts: Link
        • Potential VPN workaround: Link
  • Handball Betting Information:
    • Handball Betting Tutorial: Link
    • Handball Odds: Bet 365
  • Mainstream Media Articles on Handball: Link
    • Hey, media person, just discovering handball: Think you’ve got a “new idea“ on how the U.S. can win Olympic Handball Gold? Think again… Check out these articles dating back from 1996.
  • Handball FAQ: Link
    • Trending Questions
      • Where is handball popular in the world?: Link
      • What impact has the name confusion for Handball/Team Handball had on the sports development in the US?: Link
    • Have a question you want answered? Contact Team Handball News via social media or send me an email at john.ryan@teamhandballnews.com
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IHF Club World Championships: The More Things Change… The More they Stay the Same… for the Most Part

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I’ve been running a little campaign against the (don’t call it the Super Globe) IHF Club World Championships Roster Rules (of lack, thereof). I know it’s a bit of hopeless cause, but I like to think if you point out the very obvious problems with something change is bound to happen. Shine the light of day and some decision makers will look at the totality of it and ask themselves, “Is this really what we want to do?”

I won’t fully reiterate some previous commentaries (Link 1, Link 2, Link 3) but, I will again highlight the composition of the North American & Caribbean Handball Confederation (NACHC) representative at the ongoing IHF Club World Championships. Here is a compilation of the California Eagles roster based on data from the Official Final Roster, Provisional Roster, their first match report and some quick internet searches. (Again, you can’t believe everything you find on the internet; there might be a few errors, but this provides a pretty accurate snapshot)

This is depiction of the 2024 California Eagles roster that participated in the 2024 IHF Club Handball World Championships

Here’s what’s problematic with this roster:

  • Nationality: With the exception of Ty Reed all of the key players on the roster aren’t American. This is not to say that expats aren’t important to the development of the sport in the U.S. or that clubs shouldn’t have any expats playing for them. But, it does point out some underlying problems with the organizational structure of the sport in the U.S. That organizational structure inhibits the development of American athletes and the Super Globe “carrot” has further exacerbated the problem.
  • Residency… where the club is actually located: There are only 2 athletes on the roster that actually live anywhere near where the club is located. This is very problematic if you think a “club” is a collection of athletes that regularly practice and play games together.
  • Residency… in the country where the club is actually located. Over half the roster doesn’t even live in the United States. I do not have to explain how silly and absurd that is.

New Citizenship Requirement

It was brought to my attention that the IHF quietly installed a new citizenship requirement for the this year’s competition. Each club participating in the tournament is required to have six athletes with the same citizenship as the club’s location. (I don’t know if I should get any credit for this rule being added, but I’ll take a little.)

Best that I can tell this rule impacted three clubs: The California Eagles, Sydney Uni and Veszprem. With the California Eagles it appears they went on a little bit of an expedition to find American citizens that could be called up to meet the 6 athlete requirement. If you look at their preliminary roster its a mix of dual citizens and former national team athletes not playing club ball in Europe. Not surprisingly… the minimum 6 Americans were added to the roster. And, it appears that the the same thing happened with Sydney Uni and Veszprem. Yes, Veszprem, which has a roster jampacked with non Hungarians had to dip into it’s Academy roster to meet the requirement. And, amusingly this has resulted in a 7th American, Benjamin Edwards, getting to play at the Super Globe.

This is not a bad rule to have and, I think the U.S. should consider a similar requirement for it’s club teams. We probably should even consider a higher number or percentage to incentivize American athlete development.

Residency Requirements Next?

Similarily, the IHF, NACHC and USA Team Handball should take a long, hard look at adding some residency requirements. Obviously, it makes sense for clubs to consist of athletes who live in the same town. In fact, some Europeans reading this are probably shaking their heads and having a hard time contemplating how it would be otherwise. But, the reality is the U.S. is a very big country with a very small number of players. Not everyone has a nearby club to join and sometimes that nearby club is at a lower level then that athlete might want to play at.

But, again our existing structures and the Super Globe “carrot” are impeding the establishment of more clubs nationwide. Clubs have zero incentive to split off and create more clubs… because that would make the resultant clubs weaker. Athletes might prefer to play locally, but know they can only compete for a title if they join a bigger club in a bigger city that’s further away. This inevitably results in a few “super teams” loosely connected to a geographic area supplemented by Europeans flying in to further improve the team. A comical arms race to attend the Super Globe. This is not development.

To change the status quo… will require some new “carrots” and probably a few “sticks” to incentivize growth. That is… if we think we should take steps to incentivize growth and the development of American athletes.

Super Globe Future

While nationality and residency rules would crack down on some of the silliness with the current rosters it would create another problem. It would result in even weaker teams that simply can’t compete against professional teams. Or, to put it another way: The IHF can continue the charade of allowing fake teams so the matches are somewhat closer… or the IHF could recognize that the IHF Club World Championships should only be contested with professional sides.

I’m in favor of the latter. Let’s have four European clubs take on four non European pro teams. That’s a worthwhile measuring stick to see if the rest of the world is catching up. But, amateur sides? I just don’t see the point.

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More Handball Broadcasts on TV* is Still the Closest Thing to a Silver Bullet; It’s Time to Make Peacock America’s Home for Handball

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*TV and “streaming” are now pretty much the same thing. And, that reality could and should be a game changer for the development of handball in the U.S.

TV and Streaming: The Silver Bullet Game Changer

Long time readers to this website will know that I’ve long espoused the importance of getting more handball on TV in the U.S. Anecdotally, the number of people choosing to get involved with handball after seeing the sport on TV during the Olympics is off the charts. And, I’m pretty sure if an analytical study was ever conducted to quantify the impact of TV it would simply confirm all those anecdotes.

Nothing exposes more Americans to the sport. Nothing generates more interest nationwide. While short video clips on social play an ever increasing role in the zeitgist… those video clips are typically content pulled from TV/streaming broadcasts. Or, they are video clips that complement that TV/streaming broadcasts.

The Rugby 7s example

This isn’t just true for handball. Look at the U.S. Women’s Rugby 7s team where Olympic TV broadcasts and social media posts from one athlete, Ilona Maher, generated interest. They both fed off each other, and when a full length of the field try resulted in an upset win over New Zealand and a bronze medal it garnered unprecedented exposure culminating in a $4M donation to the team.

I’m not saying Handball will generate the same level of good fortune. But, good things will eventually happen when you put more handball in front of more eyeballs in the U.S. Our sport kicks ass. People see it… they like it. And, that leads to more players, fans and yes, eventually sponsors and donors.

Streaming: The Future has Finally Arrived… Maybe?

I’ve been such a big proponent of getting more handball on TV because I think regular broadcasts would be the inflection points of all inflection points. The point where every discussion about handball would begin with “After handball was regularly broadcast on TV….” And, when ESPN agree to broadcast the Handball World Championships in 2021 on its streaming service, ESPN+ I thought it would be that inflection point. But, that never materialized. In fact, the ESPN+ broadcasts barely moved the needle.

There were two main reasons for this. Streaming was making a lot of progress, but while it had become commonplace for TV shows and movies it still hadn’t “arrived” yet for sports. And, inexplicably, ESPN provided almost no promotion whatsoever for the sport. Seriously, it was as if they were trying to hide handball.

But, that was then. This is now. With Peacock averaging 4-6M viewers for any given minute, some are calling the 2024 Olympics, streaming’s Magnum Opus. In other words, the point in time where streaming was no longer the reluctant 2nd option for sports fans, but instead the go to 1st option. And, we’re not talking about niche loving handball fans, accustomed to streaming because it was their only option. We’re talking about the generalist sports fan, who more often than not was happy with tradtional TV view options.

Handball on TV (or Streaming): Still the Silver Bullet

I’ve been writing about the importance of Handball TV broadcasts for a long time. This commentary has a good summary and makes the argument that regular handball broadcasts are the closest thing we have to a silver bullet solution to all our problems. This is because our sport has “a lack of awareness” problem that hamstrings anything and everything we need to do. And, nothing. I REPEAT NOTHING addresses that problem more than getting Rodger and others hyped up on handball and screaming (IN ALL CAPs) for more.

NBC Peacock: The Future Home of Handball?

I’ve been following the different potential options for broadcasting handball for over a decade. And, while I was really strong advocate for getting handball on ESPN and played a behind the scenes role in it actually coming to fruition I now think it’s time to turn our eyes towards Peacock. Here’s why:

  • NBC Peacock is now a great streaming platform. What was once a somewhat clunky user interface is now simple to use. Every match in one place and easy to navigate and find.
  • NBC Peacock has been a great steward and promoter for handball at the 2024 Olympics. Handball is the only sport with no U.S. participation at the Olympics, but NBC hasn’t been keeping it a secret. Whether it’s Mike Tirico gushing about handball at the opening ceremonies, or Kevin Hart and Kenan Thompson adopting the Egyptian National Team or the the Gold Zone hyping handball the affection and support are genuine.
  • NBC Peacock needs content to help minimize subscription churn. The Olympics have been a real boon to NBC Peacock. They currently have 33M subscribers, some portion of which just signed up for the Olympics. And, some portion of which will think about leaving after the Olympics are over. Do I really think that there are a lot of Americans out there who will only stay with Peacock if handball is added to the library. No, I don’t. But, you know what… I think there are some now who will be more inclined to stay if handball is one of several things they can watch on Peacock.
  • NBC Peacock provides a logical lead in to the 2028 Olympics. The U.S. will be participating in handball at the 2028 Olympics for the first time since 1996. And, both the U.S. Men and Women will get wild cards for the 2025 and 2027 World Championships. It makes a lot of sense for those four events to also be broadcast on Peacock. And, while we’re add it, how about the North American & Caribbean Championships and the 2027 PANAM Games?
  • NBC Peacock and a reality show. As highlighted previously the U.S. Women’s National Team has struggled for the past few years and has a very, very small talent pool. A reality show that chronicles efforts to identify, recruit and train the team as it prepares to take on the world would be compelling television. And, NBC Peacock, the TV Olympics home is a very, very logical place for such an effort.

Why it Could Actually Happen: It’s a Very Rare Win-Win-Win-Win-Win

Yes, if you’re counting that’s 5 wins. I think that’s about the right number. Here are the 5 entities that would win:

  • International Handball Federation (IHF): The IHF owns the rights for the World Championships and sold them to ESPN for a very discounted price (perhaps free?) for the past 3 years. As discussed, Peacock is better option now
  • European Handball Federation (EHF): The EHF hasn’t had either their Club Champions League or the European Championships on USA TV for several years. The Champions League has a fully produced, English language Match of the Week. Most of the European Championships also have fully produced matches ready to broadcast. All of this content is available on ehfTV, but it deserve promotion and a boader audience.
  • Handball Bundesliga (HBL): The best professional club league in the world, now has a fully produced, English language match ever week. These featured matches along with every other match are available via subscription, but the feature match deserves broader exposure.
  • NBC Peacock. As discussed, NBC Peacock could use more content. And, here’s some good news NBC… I think you could get the above handball content (IHF, EHF, HBL) at a very attractive price. Maybe even free if the Handball entities can be convinced that the accompanying reach and promotion will lead to U.S. market growth. All you have to do is show what NBC has done with the English Premier League (EPL) and that should get everyone’s attention.
  • USA Team Handball. As discussed, more Americans watching handball is a very good thing. Something that could turn a once every four years phenomenon to a continuous stream of discovery would be an epic game changer. And, Peacock would also be a great location for U.S. handball content like our collegiate championships and a reality show.

Will it Happen?

Will it happen, though? I’d like to think that something with so much upside and so little downside is a no brainer just waiting to happen. However, I’m just some guy with a website and a good idea. That said, the campaign starts now. We’ll see if the dream can indeed, become reality.

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Is it “Still the Battle for L.A.” if only Four Athletes Live anywhere near Los Angeles?

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This isn’t the first time I’ve pointed out some “problems” with our U.S. club rosters. (See Link Link) Honestly it’s getting a little old googling and checking social media sites, but today’s battle between two “Southern California” club teams at the North American & Caribbean Club Championships got me wondering… Just how many athletes on these two teams actually live in the Los Angeles area?

Well, subject to my standard disclaimer (social media websites and LinkedIn profiles aren’t always accurate), that answer is four athletes. As in 4 out of 31 athletes.

There are multiple issues with these rosters that we should be concerned with. I’ll go through some of them again:

  • Nationality: The fact that they are just eight Americans playing on these American club teams is problematic. I, for one, would like to see more Americans playing. I like to think that just about anyone would like to see that. In particular, younger American athletes who can really benefit from particpating is a competition like this. And, it’s nice to see a few that even fit that demographic. But, I understand why it’s the exception. Teams want to win and right now better non-American athletes are available and allowed to play with no restriction for U.S. club teams.
  • Residency: The fact that there are only four athletes on these two teams that live anywhere near where these team say they are located is… crazy, ludicrous and silly. Let me repeat… it is crazy, ludicrous and silly. We are not talking about a couple or a few athletes to round out the roster… Not even just saying it’s around half the team. No. We are talking about the overwhelming majority of the athletes. 27 out of 31. These athletes don’t practice together. Some probably just met each other. 14 out of 31 don’t even live in the United States! Again… This is crazy, ludicrous and silly.
  • Competitive Fairness. The addition of this many athletes to rosters defeats the spirit of competition. I guess every club is free to recruit players to improve their chances. But, it kind of goes against the concept of a club championship. Instead it’s become more of an all star team recruitment competition.

Who’s to Blame?

Well, here’s my assessment:

  • The athletes? No, absolutely not. As, I’ve stated before… Offer me the chance to compete in a nice little tournament with the winning team getting a free trip to Cairo to play the best teams in the world. My response is, “Where do I sign?” Or, as I think is probably the case in most instances… “Sure, I’ll pay my way to New Jersey for this opportunity.”
  • The Clubs? Maybe, a little bit. Nobody is forcing them to create all star rosters. Nobody is forcing them to tell their locally based athletes… “Sorry, we’re going with player X instead of you. Maybe next time.” It’s something these clubs want to do. Maybe a club should internally decide like San Francisco CalHeat did that this isn’t really how they want to go about things. Maybe… But, if you aren’t breaking any rules and the rules are such that you can drive a freight train through them. Then why not? Blow the whistle and go. Full steam ahead.
  • The NACHC? Yes, there’s some blame here. It’s a NACHC competition, so the NACHC is responsible for whatever rules and regulations are in place. That said, they are a newish, all volunteer organization with a lot of challenges. Roster regulations probably aren’t high on their list of things to get done. But, hopefully as they get grounded as an organization they will take a closer look at this competition and assess whether it’s currently stuctured to meet organiational goals.
  • The IHF? Yes, and I would argue that they are the most responsible. As I wrote in this commentary about the 2023 CalHeat Super Globe roster the IHF’s good intentions to support club development around the world has had major unintended consequences. Unless they step in with more restrictions on club rosters I suspect recruitment might just get even crazier. Who knows, maybe next time it will make more sense to just play the NACHC club championship in Europe. It would save on air fare and the jerseys could just be shipped to whereever it’s being held.

USA Handball Talk (Episode 22): Wow, there’s a lot of Handball Going on

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 38:19 — 30.5MB)

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | RSS

JD and John discuss the US Handball Union Vegas tourney, the Men’s and Women’s World Beach Handball Championships, the U20 Women’s Championships and the recent resignation of two USA Team Handball Board of Directors.

Here’s a summary with links to some of the items we discussed:

  • John’s commentary on USA Handball “National” Championships: Link
  • 2024 World Beach Handball Championship Information Page: Link
  • Ebiye Udo-Udoma, the Handball Ninja, commented on the episode’s YouTube page, that sets is the most common terminology used for beach handball. Additionally, the first two sets are sometimes informally referred to as “halves.”
  • The 22 shots (11 round shootout) at the 2017 U17 EHF Men’s final (queued up to the mentioned saves): Link
  • 2024 Women’s Jr World Handball Championship: Link
  • Side note: JD and John thought the 55.5 goals Over/Under for the USA-UZB was off. It was, but not in the direction we thought. The final score was UZB 42, USA 25
  • John obliquely referenced the infamous Cesson-Rennes – Montpellier match betting scandal
  • USA Team Handball announcement on Board of Director resignations: Link
  • John’s commentary from the last time there was a short handed Board of Directors in 2013: Link

Watch on YouTube or listen/download the mp3 file at the top of the page

If you have any suggestions for future topics that you would like us to consider please let us know on social media.

Don’t miss an episode:

  • Subscribe on YouTube: Link (Earliest Availability)
  • Subscribe to the podcast in iTunes: Link
  • Follow the  Team Handball Handball News podcast on Spotify: Link
  • Or use this RSS Feed to sign up for the podcast in your favorite podcast aggregator: Link

And, be sure to check out the podcast archive with interviews and great  handball discussion going all the way back to 2006: Link

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2024 Women’s Jr World Championship Info Page

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The USA Jr Women’s National Team is competing in the 2024 Women’s Junior World Handball Championship. Here are the team roster, schedule, results, and links to streaming and other information pages

Women’s Competition

  • IHF Official Page: Link
  • Wikipedia Competition Page: Link

USA Women (Schedule, Results, Streaming) (All Times US ET)

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2024 Beach Handball World Championships Information Page

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The USA Men’s and Women’s Beach Handball National Teams are competing in the 2024 IHF Beach Handball World Championships. Here are the team rosters, schedule, results, and links to streaming and other information pages

Men’s Competition

  • IHF Official Page: Link
  • Wikipedia Competition Page: Link

USA Men (Roster, Schedule, Results, Streaming) (All Times US ET)

  • IHF USA Team Page: Link
  • Consolation (9-16th) Knockout Tournament with Consolation
    • QF: USA vs China 0-2 (18-19) (22-24) Details Video
    • SF(13-16): USA vs Oman 2-1 (21-29) (23-22) (10-7) Details Video
    • 13th Place: USA vs Australia 2-0 (25-20 (25-20) Details Video

Women’s Competition

  • IHF Official Page: Link
  • Wikipedia Competition Page: Link

USA Women (Schedule, Results, Streaming) (All Times US ET)

  • IHF USA Team Page: Link
  • Consolation (9-16th) Knockout Tournament with Consolation
    • QF: USA vs Norway 0-2 (14-17) (14-24) Details Video
    • SF(13-16): USA vs Australia 0-2 (16-23) (13-22) Details Video
    • 15th Place: USA vs Puerto Rico 0-2 (12-15) (16-19) Details Video
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Deja Vu, All Over Again: Norway, Portugal, Brazil and USA to Replay the 2023 Gjensidige Cup

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The USA Men found out who and where they will play their group play matches at the 2025 Handball World Championships and due to a strange twist of fate it will be deja vu, all over again. This is because they will play Norway, Portugal and Brazil in Norway… just like they did in a warmup tourney prior to the 2023 Handball World Championships. This time, however, the matches will be played in Baerum (a suburb of Oslo), instead of Trondheim and these matches will count.

What are the chances of that? Well, it would be 1 out of 6 (Austria and Croatia (Pot 2) were already assigned to Porec and Zagreb) x (1 out of 8) x (1 out of 8) or 1 out of 384 or a 0.26% chance of occuring.

Tough Draw for the U.S.

As one of the lower ranked teams at the World Championships just about any draw is a tough draw. Realistically, beating any of the teams from pot 1 or pot 2 was always going to be a longshot, but there were some teams in pot 3 that the U.S. would match up well with.

Unfortunately, I don’t think Brazil is one of those teams and since they have good familiarity with the U.S. program they aren’t a team we can sneak up on. At the 2023 PANAM Games we lost to Brazil 40-27 (23-13) in the semifinals and at the 2023 Gjensidige Cup we lost 27-22 (12-10). A closer match, but also a friendly.

Further, having played both Norway and Portugal also at the 2023 Gjensidige cup we won’t be sneaking up on them either. Both of those sides won’t be surprised to find out that the U.S. actually has some guys that can play. They already know that and will even have some head to head match video to review as a reminder.

2023 Gjensidige Cup Final Standings

2023 Gjensidige Cup: Wikipedia (includes all results and links to match reports)

Beyond Group Play

Should the U.S. pull off an upset in Preliminary Group play they will stay in Oslo where their likely Main Round opponents from Group F would be Sweden, Spain and the winner of the Japan-Chile match.

If they finish 4th in Group E, however, they will head to Porec, Croatia for the President’s Cup play where they will play the 4th place finishers from Groups F, G and H. These opponents, barring a rash of upsets will likely be the losers of these preliminary round matchups

  • Japan vs Chile
  • Cuba vs Cape Verde
  • Argentina vs Bahrain

The potential for a mini Pan American group (USA, Chile, Cuba, Argentina) exists, but that remains to be seen. No team wants to go to the President’s Cup, but on the upside it could give the U.S. another crack at Chile, who they narrowly lost to in the bronze medal match at the PANAM Games and an opportunity to play NACHC rivals Cuba.

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2025 Men’s World Championships Draw: Best and Worst Cases for the U.S.; Plus a Little What if?

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The draw for the 2025 Men’s World Championships will take place tomorrow, 29 May at 1:30 PM (US ET) / 7:30 PM (CET). It will probably be streamed live and I will place the link here when it’s available.

The USA Men are in pot 4 and here’s some best and worst case analysis for who might be drawn into their group

  • Pot 1: It doesn’t matter for pot 1. The USA will be a huge underdog no matter which of these 8 teams they end up playing in Group Play.
  • Pot 2: The best outcome here would clearly be Italy. The Italians won their qualification play-off match vs Montenegro in convincing fashion, but it’s still their first WC in 18 years. The U.S. would be underdogs against Italy, but an upset victory would certainly be possible. The Czech Republic is probably the next weakest side, but a victory over them or any of the other teams in pot 2 is still unlikely.
  • Pot 3: This will be the key draw for the U.S. as the group match vs this opponent will likely determine who moves on to the main round and who goes to the President’s Cup. Here’s my take (in order) as to who the U.S. preferred options are
    • Cuba: The best option is clearly Cuba. The U.S. Men lost to Cuba at the 2024 NORCA Championships, but that was mostly a B side. The U.S. Men’s top side has beaten Cuba the last two times they played each other (2023 PANAM Games and and 2022 NORCA).
    • Algeria: Algeria were the runners-up in African qualification, but usually they are the 3rd or 4th best team from Africa and are similar in quality to the Moroccan side the U.S. beat 28-27 at the 2023 WC
    • Japan: Japan had built up a pretty solid team for the 2020 Olympics, but they’ve slipped a bit since then.
    • Qatar: Qatar still has some naturalized citizens playing for them, but they aren’t as strong as they used to be
    • North Macedonia: North Macedonia or Italy are arguably the weakest European teams at this World Championship.
    • Poland: On paper Poland should be a better team, but results wise they have been a disappointment recently. If there ever was a European team that could slip up and lose against a team like the USA, its this Poland team.
    • Argentina: The U.S. led most of the 1st half vs Argentina last year at the PANAM Games only to end up losing 28-14. While it’s possible the U.S. could put two good halves together it would be tough to come out on top. Further, the Argentinians know what the U.S. is capable of, so a surprise victory is not possible.
    • Brazil: The U.S. has played Brazil close at times, but hasn’t come close to a win. And, again, just like Argentina, the U.S. can’t sneak up on Brazil.

Best and Worst Possible Draws

Here’s my take on the best and worse possible draws for the U.S.

  • Best Possible: Slovenia, Italy, Cuba
  • Worst Possible: France, Croatia, Brazil

What If… the USA had won the 2024 NORCA and had Potential Opponents from Pot 4?

The U.S. chose to send essentially a B side to the North American & Caribbean Championship while an A side played Norway and France in two friendly matches. The U.S. could afford to do this as they had already been awarded a wild card for the World Championships. This resulted in Cuba (the NORCA Champions) being placed in Pot 3 and the U.S. being placed in Pot 4 as a wild card. If, the U.S. had sent their A team to NORCA and had won the Championship the U.S. would have been placed in Pot 3 and the Pot 4 wild card would have likely been assigned to a European side like Serbia.

Here’s some top level “What if?” analysis of who the USA would have potentially played under that scenario. The USA would have been big underdogs to Switzerland and Serbia, moderate underdogs to Bahrain and Tunisia, close to a pick em vs Chile and Cape Verde, and probably favorites over Kuwait and Guinea.

So overall, there would have been better opportunities to get to the Main Round from Pot 3 than Pot 4. Not guaranteed, of course. The U.S. could still draw Cuba or Algeria from Pot 3 and if they hadn’t gone the Wild Card route they could have ended up playing Switzerland or Serbia.

From a big picture viewpoint, however, I think the U.S. still made the right call to send a B team to the NORCA Championships. The experience gained playing France and Norway was worth more than having better odds to reach the Main Round. And, at the same time the U.S. was able to evaluate several athletes on the B team and assess their potential for future competitions.

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USA Handball Talk (Episode 2): John… I think I’m having a moment

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 39:17 — 30.2MB)

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This week’s topics:

  • 1996 Handball Olympian, Denny Fercho suffered a massive stroke a year ago and is making great progress with his recovery. Please consider a donation to help with his medical and therapy bills at this Go Fund Me Campaign: Link
  • A very brief recap of this past weekend’s IHandball Tryout and the Samala Cup
  • A review of the 2023 Jr Women IHF Trophy/NORCA Championship
    • Video of the USA-Mexico Match: Link
  • A recap of the 2023 IHF Women’s Handball Championships
  • A discussion on the current state of the USA Women talent pool, how it will likely change as we get closer to the 2028 Olympics, and the apparent lack of a plan to take that future fully into consideration

Watch or listen/download the mp3 file at the top of the page

If you have any suggestions for future topics, a title for our podcast or have some intro music you would like us to consider please let us know on social media.

Don’t miss an episode:

  • Subscribe on YouTube: Link (Earliest Availability)
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And, be sure to check out the podcast archive with interviews and great handball discussion going all the way back to 2006: Link

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2023 Women’s Handball World Championships (Streaming and Information Links)

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The 2023 IHF World Women’s Handball Championship will start this Wednesday, 29 November and will conclude on Sunday, 17 December. Here is some information on streaming, how to follow the tournament, and who the sports betting sites have favored to win the tournament and premliminary groups.

Streaming / TV

Your options for watch the 2023 Handball World Championships will vary depending on where you live. Some nations will be able to watch all the matches on the IHF YouTube Channel while other nations will have all or some of the matches available on a TV Channel and/or streaming to which the rights have been sold. This IHF article outlines how to watch in each nation: Link

  • Nations without a TV Contract: IHF Competitions YouTube Channel: Link
  • USA: ESPN will be airing up to 4 matches each day on their Watch ESPN platform which is accessible to anyone who subscribes to ESPN via Cable, Satellite or Streaming Service. (Important Note: This does not require an ESPN+ subscription. Further it will not be available on ESPN+. To watch the Handball WC you will need a traditional ESPN Subscription)

    Watch ESPN can be watched on your TV, laptop or phone. Personally, I watch it via my ESPN app on my Roku, but there are multiple options. Typically, the first time you go to watch something, you will be asked to verify your account so have your username and password ready.

    Matches are now being populated on the schedule page and can be found under the ESPN3 Channel. If past history is a guide ESPN will also add a handball logo and a 2023 WC logo to help find the matches. Additionally, matches will likely show up on the main page, but only a few minutes before the match starts.
    • ESPN Handball Schedule: Link
  • Canada: There is no TV network so all matches should be available on the IHF YouTube page: Link (Note: This makes Canada a good VPN choice)
  • VPN: Based on previous WCs, a Virtual Private Network (VPN) will likely provide access to matches that are not available on ESPN. For more information on how to use VPN check this article out: Link
  • Spam Sites: You’ve surely seen the multitude of social media postings inviting you to watch the match on their “free” service. (These folks are relentless with their spamming) Don’t even bother with these sites. They typically will ask you to download a video player on your computer. Trust me… you don’t want that app on your computer and in all likelihood they won’t even have the match. Go with the provider in your country or VPN.

How to Follow the Competition

  • Competition Wikipedia Page: Link (For simple, easy to find schedule, results and standings Wikipedia is the place to go)
  • IHF Competition Page: Link (Official Stats and match summaries)
  • Host Nations Official Site: Link

Wagering Information

  • Draftkings World Championships Odds: Link
  • Bet365 World Championships Odds: Link
  • Futures Odds (Draftkings) (To win before the tournament start)
  • Odds to Win Preliminary Groups (Bet365)