Sweden and Germany made a huge step towards the quarter-finals of the 2025 IHF Men’s Youth World Championship, with their wins against Switzerland and France, as the Scandinavian side delivered a pitch-perfect second half to jump to a 39:33 win.
GROUP I
Sweden vs Switzerland 39:33 (16:18)
Starting with three wins in a row in the preliminary round enabled the reigning European champions, Sweden, to edge closer to a quarter-finals berth, provided they continued their excellent run of form in the main round matches, against Switzerland and Hungary.
But for their first match in the main round, against Switzerland, Sweden had to sweat, as their European counterparts likely provided their best performance up to date, pushing Sweden throughout the match and even taking a three-goal lead.
Sweden looked to be on the up in the start of the match when they used a 4:0 unanswered run to take the gap to three goals, 6:3, after nine minutes, but Switzerland quickly tied the score through a 3:0 unanswered run, as Niclas Mierzwa, their top scorer of the competition, scored twice.
Mierzwa continued his show throughout the first half, adding nine goals in the match to improve his overall tally in the competition to 26 goals, as Switzerland embarked on a 6:1 run to take a three-goal lead, 18:15, just before the break, with Sweden in dire need to improve their defence.
While their top scorer in the competition, centre back Nikola Roganovic, had a single goal from seven shots, an unexpected low ouput and efficiency, but, instead, he focused on delivering pitch-perfect assists to his teammates, finishing the match with eight assists.
On the back of this and with Liam Hultberg taking over Sweden’s attack, scoring seven goals, the Scandinavian side bounced back almost immediately in the second half and with a 4:0 run spurred by Hultberg and Arnelin, Sweden wrestled back the lead, 21:20, just five minutes into the second half.
Switzerland’s attack was slowed down and some key saves from goalkeeper Oskar Arnell managed to put Sweden in a perfect position, with their attack firing from all cylinders and improving their overall efficiency to 69% at the end of the match.
After taking the lead, Sweden never surrendered it back and another 4:0 run was pivotal for their win, as the gap grew bigger and bigger, with the Scandinavian side scoring more than 20 goals in the second half, on their way to a XX:XX win.
With four points, Sweden are in the driver’s seat and could secure their quarter-finals berth provided Hungary beat Austria in the next match of the group. Switzerland, which came with zero points into the group, have seen their chances reduce drastically and they are virtually heading to the Placement Matches 9-16.
Player of the Match: Niclas Mierzwa (Switzerland)
GROUP II
Germany vs France 26:21 (16:7)
After their wobble against the Faroe Islands, which ended in a 28:28 draw, Germany went back to their winning ways and have now improved their chances to reach the quarter-finals by a big percentage, with their second consecutive win against a strong opponent coming against France, 26:21.
This time, Germany were not fooling around and delivered one of the best defensive performances from any team in the competition, constantly putting France into a tough spot, especially in the first half, when “Les Bleus” scored only seven goals.
The first 10 minutes were absolutely flawless for Germany, which took a 7:1 lead, with Tim Schröder and Rasmus Ankermann each scoring two goals each, prompting a quick team time-out from France.
But it is always difficult to mount a comeback against a strong team like Germany, especially with a goalkeeper in fine form, like Player of the Match, Finn Knaack, who is slowly making a name for himself in this competition.
Knaack had a nine-save outing, sharing duties with his teammate, Anel Durmic, but his saving efficiency was immense, 53%, delivering a crucial performance for Germany, which are now still unbeaten, with three wins and one draw after four matches.
France tried in vain to mount a comeback, as their fundamentals were off by a mile, with a 57% shooting efficiency and 20 balls turned over in attack, with three of their players – Yoni Peyrabout, Mathis Barelle and Alexandre Baradat scoring 14 of their team’s 21 goals in the match, or 66%. But that was not enough against a strong Germany side, which suffered in attack, yet did not heed an inch, despite France coming back from a 10-goal deficit early in the second half, only to cut the gap to five goals in the end, 21:26.
For France, the chances of progression to the quarter-finals are slimmer than ever, while Germany are closer to secure their spot between the top eight teams in the world.
Player of the Match: Finn Knaack (Germany)
President’s Cup Group I
Portugal vs Morocco 30:25 (19:11)
Portugal might not have been thrilled about playing in the President’s Cup, but they were determined to deliver a strong performance and keep their winning momentum. After narrowly missing out on the main round following a close defeat to Austria and, ultimately, Sweden, the Portuguese side entered the clash with Morocco fully focused.
Right from the start, Portugal imposed their rhythm, racing to an early 6:1 lead and leaving the African side without an answer. The combination of the two Sousas proved decisive—goalkeeper Bernardo Sousa produced nine saves at 45% efficiency by the break, while Tiago Sousa struck five times.
That was simply too much for Morocco to handle. Only Samy Arent-Mansour managed to break through Portugal’s defence more than once, while Jalil El Mouadar in goal did his part to keep the deficit from ballooning with a couple of important saves.
With a comfortable cushion, Portugal loosened up at the start of the second half, giving more players their chance. Morocco made the most of it—boosted by more saves from Jalil El Mouadar, who closed the game with an astonishing 23 stops, they lifted their attacking efficiency from 38% to 50% and cut the gap to 27:22 by the 50th minute. Player of the Match Samy Arent-Mansour continued where he had left off in the first half, finishing with 12 goals and five assists.
However, the early damage proved too big to repair, and Portugal could safely start celebrating their second win at Egypt 2025. They now sit on four points in President’s Cup Group I and will face Kosovo in the next round. Morocco, despite a spirited fightback, will have to wait for their first victory and will get another chance on Tuesday against Kuwait.
Player of the Match: Samy Arent-Mansour (Morocco)
President’s Cup Group II
Croatia vs Guinea 39:23 (18:14)
Croatia claimed their second straight win at Egypt 2025, retaining their chances to top President’s Cup Group II. Debutants Guinea remain winless at the tournament, having suffered their fourth consecutive defeat.
The Africans deserve credit for challenging their rivals for much of the first half. They led a few times early and were level at 8:8 in the 16th minute before Croatia produced a 3:0 run to pull ahead. Guinea twice cut the gap to one, but Josip Tomic netted twice before the break to secure a four-goal lead.
The second half proved more one-sided. Croatia opened with another 3:0 run, and Guinea did not score after the restart until the 36th minute. Centre back Fran Martinko rose to prominence with a string of goals, while goalkeepers Leo Branko Sunajko and Marko Čuljak were reliable between the posts, helping the Europeans to open a double-digit lead at 26:16 in the 42nd minute.
In the end, Croatia cruised to a 16-goal victory, punishing Guinea’s 26 turnovers. Tomic finished as Croatia’s top scorer with six goals. Up next, the Balkan side meet Brazil on Tuesday, while Guinea face Algeria in an all-African clash the same day.
Player of the Match: Ivor Vidović (Croatia)