Just one batch of matches remains in the preliminary round of the women’s handball tournament at Paris 2024 and we can now start mapping the course to glory for the remaining contenders.
While group B is becoming crystal clear, group A is as clear as mud with nothing to choose between the teams at the top and the three sides fighting for survival at the bottom. You can look at the current standings here.
Here’s a look at who can still finish in which positions by Saturday night.
Group A
1st place – Norway, Sweden or Denmark
2nd place – Sweden, Norway or Denmark
3rd place – Denmark, Sweden or Norway
4th place – Germany, Republic of Korea or Slovenia
5th place – Republic of Korea, Germany or Slovenia
6th place – Slovenia, Republic of Korea or Germany
Round 5 fixtures:
Slovenia vs Sweden
Norway vs Germany
Denmark vs South Korea
We won’t go into the nitty gritty of permutations for every eventually but what we can say at this point is that if all round 5 games go according to form and we end up with three teams on 8 points and three teams on 2 points, here’s how it will end due to head-to-head records:
8 pts: 1. Norway, 2. Sweden, 3. Denmark
2 pts: 4. Germany, 5. Republic of Korea, 6. Slovenia
Group B
1st place – France
2nd place – Netherlands or Hungary
3rd place – Hungary, Netherlands or Angola
4th place – Angola, Hungary or Brazil
5th place – Brazil or Angola
6th place – Spain
Round 5 fixtures:
Hungary vs Netherlands
Spain vs France
Brazil vs Angola
Things are much cleaner here with France guaranteed first place and Spain last, though plenty can still change in the remaining positions.
Elite eight bracket
All we know for certain is that six teams have booked their train tickets to Lille and that France have avoided a quarter-final date with a Scandinavian side. Here’s how the bracket looks:
A1 – (Norway, Sweden or Denmark)
B4 – (Angola, Hungary or Brazil)
A3 – (Denmark, Sweden or Norway)
B2 – (Netherlands or Hungary)
B3 – (Hungary, Netherlands or Angola)
A2 – (Sweden, Norway or Denmark)
B1 – France
A4 – (Germany, Republic of Korea or Slovenia)