The European qualification for the 2021 World Men's Handball Championship, in Egypt, would have been contested by the teams that did not qualify for the 2020 European Men's Handball Championship and the 20 teams that played the tournament but were not pre-qualified or failed to reach a qualifying ranking place. In total, 34 teams were competing for 10 places at the final tournament.
The qualification tournament was cancelled on 24 April 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with the EHF announcing the automatic qualification of the ten best-ranked teams in the EHF EURO 2020 that had not secured qualification.[1]
Format edit
The whole qualification process was different from previous campaigns. Denmark as defending World Champions were already qualified and three best-ranked teams of the 2020 European Men's Handball Championship also booked their direct ticket. Other teams participated in this qualification campaign, which was split into several stages.
Qualification Phase 1 comprised the 15 teams which haven't qualified for the EHF EURO 2020. They were playing a group phase format in the October 2019 and January 2020, with three groups of four nations and one of three. The four group winners advanced to the next phase.[2][3]
Qualification Phase 2 would have been consisted of two parts. Part 1 would have involved the four group winners from the Phase 1 alongside the four lowest-ranked EHF EURO 2020 teams, which do not take part in the 2020 IHF Men's Olympic Qualification Tournaments. Those eight teams would have played four matches in a two-legged play-off from 15 to 16 and 18 to 19 April 2020. The Part 2, played in June 2020, would have involved four Part 1 winners and the 16 remaining EHF EURO 2020 teams, which haven't qualified already for the final tournament.[4]
Qualification Phase 1 edit
The draw took place at the EHF Office on 23 July 2019.[5]
Group 1 edit
The group was played in a tournament format.[6]
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Lithuania
|
3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 93 | 71 | +22 | 6 | Qualification Phase 2 – Part 1 |
| 2 |  Slovakia
|
3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 73 | 67 | +6 | 4 | |
| 3 |  Faroe Islands
|
3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 75 | 85 | −10 | 2 | |
| 4 |  Luxembourg (H)
|
3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 60 | 78 | −18 | 0 |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head number of goals scored; 5) goal difference.
(H) Hosts
| 10 January 2020 17:00 |
Lithuania
|
36–25 | Faroe Islands
|
d'Coque, Luxembourg City Attendance: 100 Referees: Vešović, Mitrović (MNE) |
| Drabavičius, Malašinskas 5 | (18–12) | Selvig 6 | ||
1× 4×
|
Report | 3× 5×
|
| 10 January 2020 19:30 |
Slovakia
|
22–16 | Luxembourg
|
d'Coque, Luxembourg City Attendance: 651 Referees: Nabokau, Kulik (BLR) |
| Potisk 5 | (11–9) | Bock 4 | ||
| 1× 3×
|
Report | 3× 5×
|
| 11 January 2020 15:00 |
Faroe Islands
|
26–27 | Slovakia
|
d'Coque, Luxembourg City Attendance: 65 Referees: Nabokau, Kulik (BLR) |
| Johansen 9 | (13–14) | Straňovský 9 | ||
4× 2× 1×
|
Report | 2× 5×
|
| 11 January 2020 17:30 |
Luxembourg
|
22–32 | Lithuania
|
d'Coque, Luxembourg City Attendance: 700 Referees: Vešović, Mitrović (MNE) |
| Wirtz 10 | (10–15) | Malašinskas 8 | ||
| 2× 4× 1×
|
Report | 1× 3×
|
| 12 January 2020 15:00 |
Lithuania
|
25–24 | Slovakia
|
d'Coque, Luxembourg City Attendance: 130 Referees: Vešović, Mitrović (MNE) |
| Malašinskas, Truchanovičius 8 | (11–12) | Duriš 7 | ||
| 1× 3×
|
Report | 3× 4×
|
| 12 January 2020 17:30 |
Faroe Islands
|
24–22 | Luxembourg
|
d'Coque, Luxembourg City Attendance: 1,100 Referees: Nabokau, Kulik (BLR) |
| Johansen, Thomsen 4 | (11–10) | Guden 6 | ||
| 2× 6×
|
Report | 1× 3×
|
Group 2 edit
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Israel
|
6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 169 | 150 | +19 | 9 | Qualification Phase 2 – Part 1 |
| 2 |  Greece
|
6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 173 | 137 | +36 | 8 | |
| 3 |  Finland
|
6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 165 | 157 | +8 | 7 | |
| 4 |  Cyprus
|
6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 112 | 175 | −63 | 0 |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head number of goals scored; 5) Goal difference.
| 23 October 2019 17:30 |
Cyprus
|
18–31 | Greece
|
Eleftheria Stadium, Nicosia Attendance: 300 Referees: Harabagiu, Stănescu (ROU) |
| C.Argyrou, J.Argyrou 4 | (8–18) | Tziras 8 | ||
| 1× 4×
|
Report | 3× 2×
|
| 23 October 2019 18:00 |
Israel
|
33–32 | Finland
|
Drive in Arena, Tel Aviv Attendance: 1,000 Referees: Bíró, Kiss (HUN) |
| Lumbroso 7 | (21–16) | M.Granlund 8 | ||
| 1× 4×
|
Report | 3×
|
| 27 October 2019 15:00 |
Finland
|
30–20 | Cyprus
|
Cocks Areena, Riihimäki Attendance: 600 Referees: Novikov, Rozhkov (UKR) |
| Rönnberg 7 | (13–15) | Paraskeva 7 | ||
| 2× 3×
|
Report | 3× 4×
|
| 27 October 2019 16:00 |
Greece
|
26–25 | Israel
|
Lefkovrisi Sports Center, Kozani Attendance: 800 Referees: Jović, Arnautović (BIH) |
| Tziras 6 | (12–11) | Shkalim 6 | ||
| 2× 3×
|
Report | 3× 4×
|
| 2 January 2020 17:00 |
Greece
|
36–22 | Finland
|
Lefkovrisi Sports Center, Kozani Attendance: 800 Referees: Pandžić, Mošorinski (SRB) |
| Mallios 7 | (17–13) | Helander 6 | ||
| 2× 3×
|
Report | 3× 5×
|
| 2 January 2020 19:00 |
Cyprus
|
23–33 | Israel
|
Eleftheria Stadium, Nicosia Attendance: 300 Referees: Metalari, Nikolovski (MKD) |
| J.Argyrou 11 | (15–13) | Katz 8 | ||
| 1× 6×
|
Report | 1× 3×
|
| 4 January 2020 19:30 |
Israel
|
28–21 | Cyprus
|
Drive in Arena, Tel Aviv Attendance: 1,200 Referees: Yovchev, Yovchev (BUL) |
| five players 4 | (12–10) | J.Argyrou 7 | ||
| 3× 3×
|
Report | 2× 5×
|
| 5 January 2020 16:00 |
Finland
|
32–28 | Greece
|
Cocks Areena, Riihimäki Attendance: 600 Referees: Nygaard, Pedersen (DEN) |
| Rönnberg 11 | (16–14) | Mylonas 7 | ||
| 3× 5×
|
Report | 1× 4×
|
| 8 January 2020 17:00 |
Greece
|
30–16 | Cyprus
|
Lefkovrisi Sports Center, Kozani Attendance: 500 Referees: Rauchs, Linster (LUX) |
| Mallios 5 | (15–8) | J.Argyrou, Demosthenous 6 | ||
| 3× 2×
|
Report | 1× 3×
|
| 8 January 2020 18:30 |
Finland
|
26–26 | Israel
|
Cocks Areena, Riihimäki Attendance: 600 Referees: Baumgart, Wild (GER) |
| Rönnberg 10 | (12–7) | Levy, Sidi 5 | ||
| 4× 7×
|
Report | 3× 6×
|
| 11 January 2020 19:30 |
Israel
|
24–22 | Greece
|
Drive in Arena, Tel Aviv Attendance: 1,800 Referees: Kaludjerović, Vujacić (MNE) |
| Sidi 7 | (11–9) | Arampatzis 6 | ||
| 2× 7× 1×
|
Report | 2× 3×
|
| 12 January 2020 17:00 |
Cyprus
|
14–23 | Finland
|
Eleftheria Stadium, Nicosia Attendance: 200 Referees: Chrzan, Janas (POL) |
| J.Argyrou 8 | (6–9) | M.Granlund 6 | ||
| 2×
|
Report | 2× 2×
|
Group 3 edit
The group was played in a tournament format.[6]
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Romania
|
3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 90 | 69 | +21 | 6 | Qualification Phase 2 – Part 1 |
| 2 |  Kosovo
|
3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 77 | 79 | −2 | 3 | |
| 3 |  Georgia
|
3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 73 | 84 | −11 | 2 | |
| 4 |  Italy (H)
|
3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 75 | 83 | −8 | 1 |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head number of goals scored; 5) goal difference.
(H) Hosts
| 10 January 2020 18:00 |
Romania
|
29–24 | Georgia
|
Pala Tedeschi, Benevento Attendance: 300 Referees: Argyridis, Mouttas (CYP) |
| Grigoras 9 | (16–13) | Chikovani 6 | ||
| 3× 3×
|
Report | 3× 6× 1×
|
| 10 January 2020 20:00 |
Italy
|
26–26 | Kosovo
|
Pala Tedeschi, Benevento Attendance: 600 Referees: Geraets, Geraets (NED) |
| Arcieri 6 | (11–11) | Dedaj 8 | ||
| 2×
|
Report | 1× 3×
|
| 11 January 2020 18:00 |
Kosovo
|
21–32 | Romania
|
Pala Tedeschi, Benevento Attendance: 300 Referees: Geraets, Geraets (NED) |
| Gjuka 7 | (7–15) | Botea 7 | ||
| 1× 5×
|
Report | 1× 3×
|
| 11 January 2020 20:00 |
Georgia
|
28–25 | Italy
|
Pala Tedeschi, Benevento Attendance: 700 Referees: Argyridis, Mouttas (CYP) |
| Tskhovrebadze 8 | (13–11) | Skatar 7 | ||
| 2× 4×
|
Report | 2× 2×
|
| 12 January 2020 16:00 |
Kosovo
|
30–21 | Georgia
|
Pala Tedeschi, Benevento Attendance: 500 Referees: Geraets, Geraets (NED) |
| Jupa 8 | (18–13) | Tskhovrebadze 5 | ||
| 1× 7×
|
Report | 2× 5×
|
| 12 January 2020 18:00 |
Italy
|
24–29 | Romania
|
Pala Tedeschi, Benevento Attendance: 1,200 Referees: Argyridis, Mouttas (CYP) |
| Parisini 5 | (12–13) | Botea 8 | ||
| 1× 1×
|
Report | 2× 3×
|
Group 4 edit
The group was played in a tournament format.[6]
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Turkey (H)
|
2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 66 | 53 | +13 | 4 | Qualification Phase 2 – Part 1 |
| 2 |  Belgium
|
2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 49 | 53 | −4 | 2 | |
| 3 |  Estonia
|
2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 49 | 58 | −9 | 0 |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head number of goals scored; 5) Goal difference.
(H) Hosts
| 25 October 2019 17:00 |
Estonia
|
29–33 | Turkey
|
Porsuk Spor Salonu, Eskişehir Attendance: 1,500 Referees: Mandák, Rudinský (SVK) |
| three players 7 | (14–18) | Pehlivan 11 | ||
| 2× 8× 1×
|
Report | 3× 9×
|
| 26 October 2019 17:00 |
Belgium
|
25–20 | Estonia
|
Porsuk Spor Salonu, Eskişehir Attendance: 900 Referees: Mandák, Rudinský (SVK) |
| Robyns 5 | (11–9) | Patrail 10 | ||
| 3× 6×
|
Report | 2× 3×
|
| 27 October 2019 17:00 |
Turkey
|
33–24 | Belgium
|
Porsuk Spor Salonu, Eskişehir Attendance: 2,400 Referees: Mandák, Rudinský (SVK) |
| three players 6 | (17–11) | Meulders 7 | ||
| 3× 6×
|
Report | 3× 3×
|
Qualification Phase 2 edit
Part 1 edit
The four group winners from the first qualification phase joined the four lowest-ranked teams from the EHF EURO 2020 (not taking part in the 2020 Olympics qualification tournaments) in the first part of the second qualification phase, which would be played over two legs on 15 and 16 April and 18 and 19 April 2020. The draw took place on 30 January 2020 at the EHF headquarters in Vienna, with the EHF EURO 2020 participants (Pot 1) hosting the teams from the first qualification phase (Pot 2) in the second leg.[4][7]
The matches were cancelled on 24 April 2020.[1]
- Seeding pots
| Pot 1 | Pot 2 |
|---|---|
Overview edit
On 25 March, the EHF announced that no matches will be played before June due to the coronavirus pandemic.[8]
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Turkey
|
M1 |  Russia
|
Cancelled | Cancelled |
| Romania
|
M2 |  Bosnia and Herzegovina
|
Cancelled | Cancelled |
Poland 
|
M3 | Lithuania
|
Cancelled | Cancelled |
| Israel
|
M4 |  Latvia
|
Cancelled | Cancelled |
| Turkey
|
Cancelled | Russia
|
Porsuk Spor Salonu, Eskişehir | |
| Report | ||||
| Russia
|
Cancelled | Turkey
|
Universal Sport Hall Igrovoy, Moscow | |
| Report | ||||
| Romania
|
Cancelled | Bosnia and Herzegovina
|
Sala Polivalenta Lascăr Pană, Baia Mare | |
| Report | ||||
| Bosnia and Herzegovina
|
Cancelled | Romania
|
KSC Bugojno, Bugojno | |
| Report | ||||
| Poland
|
Cancelled | Lithuania
|
Orlen Arena, Płock | |
| Report | ||||
| Lithuania
|
Cancelled | Poland
|
Siemens Arena, Vilnius | |
| Report | ||||
| Israel
|
Cancelled | Latvia
|
Drive in Arena, Tel Aviv | |
| Report | ||||
| Latvia
|
Cancelled | Israel
|
Vidzemes Olympic Centre, Valmiera | |
| Report | ||||
Part 2 edit
In the second part of the second qualifying phase, the 16 teams from the EHF EURO 2020 not yet qualified for the final tournament (positions 4 to 20, excluding Denmark) would have joined the four aggregate winners of the first part of the second qualifying phase, which would have been played in home-and-away matches on 5 to 7 June and 9 to 11 June 2020. The ten aggregate winners would have advanced to the 2021 World Men's Handball Championship.[4] The draw was held on 9 March 2020.[9][10]
The matches were cancelled on 24 April 2020.[1]
- Seeding pots
| Pot 1 | Pot 2 |
|---|---|
|
Overview edit
The matches were rescheduled due to the coronavirus pandemic.[8]
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Switzerland 
|
– |  Iceland
|
Cancelled | Cancelled |
| M4 | – |  Portugal
|
Cancelled | Cancelled |
Czech Republic 
|
– |  Montenegro
|
Cancelled | Cancelled |
Sweden 
|
– | M1 | Cancelled | Cancelled |
Slovenia 
|
– |  Serbia
|
Cancelled | Cancelled |
| M2 | – |  Hungary
|
Cancelled | Cancelled |
North Macedonia 
|
– |  France
|
Cancelled | Cancelled |
Ukraine 
|
– |  Germany
|
Cancelled | Cancelled |
| M3 | – |  Belarus
|
Cancelled | Cancelled |
Austria 
|
– |  Netherlands
|
Cancelled | Cancelled |
| Switzerland
|
Cancelled | Iceland
|
||
| Report | ||||
| Iceland
|
Cancelled | Switzerland
|
||
| Report | ||||
| M4 | Cancelled | Portugal
|
||
| Report | ||||
| Portugal
|
Cancelled | M4 | ||
| Report | ||||
| Czech Republic
|
Cancelled | Montenegro
|
||
| Report | ||||
| Montenegro
|
Cancelled | Czech Republic
|
||
| Report | ||||
| Sweden
|
Cancelled | M1 | ||
| Report | ||||
| M1 | Cancelled | Sweden
|
||
| Report | ||||
| Slovenia
|
Cancelled | Serbia
|
||
| Report | ||||
| Serbia
|
Cancelled | Slovenia
|
||
| Report | ||||
| M2 | Cancelled | Hungary
|
||
| Report | ||||
| Hungary
|
Cancelled | M2 | ||
| Report | ||||
| North Macedonia
|
Cancelled | France
|
||
| Report | ||||
| France
|
Cancelled | North Macedonia
|
||
| Report | ||||
| Ukraine
|
Cancelled | Germany
|
||
| Report | ||||
| Germany
|
Cancelled | Ukraine
|
||
| Report | ||||
| M3 | Cancelled | Belarus
|
||
| Report | ||||
| Belarus
|
Cancelled | M3 | ||
| Report | ||||
| Austria
|
Cancelled | Netherlands
|
||
| Report | ||||
| Netherlands
|
Cancelled | Austria
|
||
| Report | ||||
References edit
- ^ a b c "Information on the future of the European handball season 2019/20". eurohandball.com. 24 April 2020.
- ^ "Fifteen European teams set for first 2021 Men's World Championship qualification phase". ihf.info. 22 October 2020.
- ^ "Double draw on the cards for World Championship and EHF EURO Qualification". eurohandball.com. 22 July 2019.
- ^ a b c "World championship qualification procedure confirmed". eurohandball.com. 24 January 2020. Archived from the original on 25 January 2020. Retrieved 25 January 2020.
- ^ "15 nations discover EHF EURO and World championship qualification fate". eurohandball.com. 23 July 2019. Archived from the original on 25 July 2019. Retrieved 24 July 2019.
- ^ a b c "Lithuania, Italy and Turkey secure World Championship hosting rights". eurohandball.com. 29 August 2019. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
- ^ "Eight teams to duel for place in next play-off phase on road to Egypt". eurohandball.com. 30 January 2020. Archived from the original on 30 January 2020. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
- ^ a b "EHF presents feasibility study for potential re-start of European handball". eurohandball.com. 25 March 2020.
- ^ "Men's World Championship 2021 qualification play-off draw set for 9 March in Vienna". eurohandball.com. 27 February 2020. Archived from the original on 28 February 2020. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
- ^ "EURO semi-finalists Slovenia in regional derby on path to Egypt". eurohandball.com. 9 March 2020.
External links edit
- Eurohandball.com Archived 2019-07-24 at the Wayback Machine