Sweden secured the first place in Group I of the main round at the 2025 IHF Men’s Youth World Championship, with a 39:34 win against Hungary, their fifth in a row in the competition, while Germany also ended the main round on a high, with a 27:24 win over Norway.
Main Round
Group I
Sweden vs Hungary 39:34 (22:16)
Two of the best attacks in the competition – Hungary and Sweden – were on the collision course for the first place in Group I of the main round at the 2025 IHF Men’s Youth World Championship, with Hungary scoring the third largest number of goals, 153, and Sweden the fifth largest number, with 150 goals.
Hungary could also afford a draw and still finish first, but then they would need to weather the storm against Sweden, which in a good day could be unstoppable and this is exactly what the Scandinavian side provided in the first half.
Sweden’s attacks had an average duration of 23.18 seconds and despite eight turnovers, they still managed to score a whopping 22 goals, with a 76% attacking efficiency, as nine players got on the scoreboard and dominated the Hungarian defence.
But even more impressive, Sweden’s towering goalkeeper, Viggo Hakansson, saved 10 shots for an outstanding 40% saving efficiency, despite Hungary trying their best to change the outcome, having 30 shots, an average of one per minute throughout the first half.
Down six goals at the break, 16:22, Hungary needed something more, but they could not stop Sweden’s flawless attack, which continued to score at a rate of one goal per minute, as Nikola Roganovic took over the keys and delivered five of Sweden’s first eighr goals in the second half.
By the 40th minute, the gap ballooned to nine goals, 30:21, and from that moment onwards it looked impossible for Hungary to try to mount a comeback, especially as they could not simply stop Sweden’s attack from scoring, despite the Scandinavian side rotating the players.
Seven minutes later, the comeback was on. Sweden failed to score more than a goal, Hungary said thank you and the gap was down to only two goals, 31:29, making it a final stretch to watch. But as Sweden had their starters back into the fold, Hungary’s comeback was stopped.
The gap grew back to seven goals, 39:32, with two minutes left and eventually the Scandinavian side secured their fifth win in a row, 39:34, to seal the first place in the standings.
Therefore, Hungary, which finished second, will face Germany in the quarter-finals, while Sweden have to wait and see which their opponent will be between Norway and Slovenia.
Player of the Match: Nikola Roganovic (Sweden)
Group III
Germany vs Norway 27:24 (10:10)
The equation of the match was pretty simple: for Germany, it was all about finishing first and, theoretically, get an easier opponent in the quarter-finals. But for Norway, it was all about staying alive in the competition and securing a place in the knockout phase.
After the 37:37 draw against Slovenia on Monday, Norway were still in an excellent position for progressing, as even a loss here would have suited them, as long as the big gap in goal difference against Slovenia (+8 to -5) was not going to be deleted by a big Slovenia win against France.
Therefore, both teams started cautiously and with only 20 goals scored in the first half between the two sides, it was a far cry from what Norway produced in the previous match, when they combined with Slovenia for a whopping 74 goals.
However, a pattern appears to be emerging for Germany, which is locked in low-scoring, defence-first matches, with plenty of turnovers and lower than expected attacking efficiencies and this is exactly what happened also against Norway, where Germany fell behind early, but quickly bounced back to balance the score.
Norway relied once again on the top scorer of the 2025 IHF Men’s Youth World Championship, left back Vetle Bore, who improved his overall tally in the competition to 52 goals, after putting 10 past Germany, but looked unable to help this team exit a rut, which eventually was Norway’s undoing.
Germany used a 4:1 run to open a four-goal lead, 21:17, which proved to be decisive, as Jan Grüner finished the match to seven goals, with Germany remaining unbeaten in the competition, with four wins and one draw, taking the first place in Group III and setting up a clash against Hungary in the quarter-finals.
Norway will need to wait to see if their place in the quarter-finals is confirmed, as they are now at +5 in the goal difference, with only a win by 10 goals or more from Slovenia seeing them out of contention.
Player of the Match: Noah Hensen (Germany)
President’s Cup
Group I
Portugal vs Kosovo 41:29 (22:11)
Portugal started strongly, racing to a 6:2 lead with Alexandre Leite setting the tone in the opening minutes. Remarkably, the first 15 minutes passed without a single save from either side, yet Portugal’s compact 6-0 defence was enough to disrupt Kosovo’s attacking rhythm.
Midway through the first half, Kosovo went nearly six minutes without scoring, allowing Portugal to go on another run and extend their advantage to 16:9. Struggling with a shooting efficiency below 40% and losing their grip on the game, Kosovo called a time-out in an effort to regroup.
However, momentum remained firmly with Portugal. Once Bernardo Sousa began making key stops—reaching a 39% save rate in just 15 minutes—the gap widened further. By half-time, Portugal were in complete control at 22:11, leaving Kosovo with plenty of problems to solve.
The pattern continued after the break. Kosovo briefly reduced the deficit to 17:25 early in the second half, but Portugal quickly restored their ten-goal cushion and maintained their dominance until the final whistle, sealing a comfortable 41:29 victory.
João Lourenço once again led Portugal’s attack, netting ten goals to take his overall tournament tally to 42. Amar Muqolli was Kosovo’s top scorer with nine goals, while Olsi Mulaj added eight.
With this win, Portugal secured first place in Group I and advanced to the Placement Matches 17–20, keeping alive their hopes of lifting the President’s Cup trophy. Kosovo will move on to compete in the Placement Matches 21–24.
Player of the Match: João Lourenço (Portugal)
Group II
Croatia vs Brazil 23:23 (12:10)
A last-second strike from Diogo Borja rescued a dramatic draw for Brazil, but it was Croatia who topped Group II on goal difference, securing a place in the Placement Matches 17–20 and keeping their hopes of lifting the President’s Cup alive. Brazil, meanwhile, will contest the Placement Matches 21–24.
In a match that was relatively low-scoring, neither set of goalkeepers made a decisive impact—Croatia finished with a 21% save rate, while Brazil’s stood at just 19%. The standout performer was Croatia’s Berislav Antonio Tokić, who netted 10 of his team’s 23 goals, almost singlehandedly carrying their attack and earning the **Player of the Match** honours.
The opening half was a tight battle, with the sides locked at 7:7 in the 18th minute. Tokić scored six times before the break—half of Croatia’s tally—to help secure a 12:10 lead. Brazil were hampered by 10 turnovers in the first period, but stayed within touching distance.
The second half began with a Brazilian surge, as George Melo de Siqueira and Marcos Oliveira led a 6:1 run that turned the game on its head, giving the South Americans a 16:13 advantage. Despite some missed chances from Oliveira, Brazil maintained a 22:20 lead entering the final seven minutes.
Croatia fought back to level at 22:22, and after a five-minute scoring drought for both teams, Tokić finally broke through from the seven-metre line with 44 seconds to play. But in the dying moment, Borja struck from close range, denying Croatia what would have been their third straight victory.
Player of the Match: Berislav Antonio Tokić (Croatia)
