The line-up for World Men’s Handball Championship next year is complete. The hosts, qualified nations and previously granted are joined by Switzerland as the IHF rewards the last wildcard for the tournament.
Switzerland lost their qualification matchup after penalty shoot-out. The narrow loss seems to play a part when then international federation discuss the wild card reasons, but other details also come into play.
”Switzerland were granted the wild card by the IHF due to a mix of factors, including the sporting merit, which saw them eliminated in the Qualification Europe Part 2 – Phase 2 against Slovenia on penalties, after the regular 120 minutes ended in a stalemate, as well as commercial reasons, as they had the biggest reach after a thorough analysis”, writes the IHF on its webpage.
– Receiving the wild card is a great thing for us and at the same time shows recognition of our sporting achievements in the playoff games against Slovenia. We are pleased that we can present ourselves on the big World Cup stage, which is extremely valuable, says the coach Andy Schmid according to SRG SSR.
USA was awarded the other wild card very early, in the process to increase the interest before the 2028 olympics.
As all 32 nations have been confirmed, the draw in Zagreb on Wednesday, 29 May awaits.
Source: 2025 IHF MEN’S WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP WILD CARDS ANNOUNCED