ALGIERS – The Algerian men’s U19 handball team will face their New Zealand counterparts on Monday at the Arena Varazdin (12:30 PM) in the opening match of the President’s Cup of the U19 World Championship taking place in Croatia (August 2-13).
The national team failed to qualify for the Main Round, suffering two defeats in the preliminary round: 19-42 against the host country (half-time: 6-19) and 19-41 against Portugal (half-time: 8-15), with a victory against Rwanda 33-27 (half-time: 18-13).
The Algerians will take on Morocco on Tuesday in the second match of the President’s Cup (2:30 PM).
The thirty-two (32) teams were divided into eight groups of four teams each. The top two from each group advanced to the Main Round, while the other two head to the President’s Cup.
This 10th edition of the U19 World Championship is the first with 32 teams participating, an increase of 8 nations, and it is also the first time being hosted by Croatia. It is the first championship since 2019, as the 2021 event was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Six teams are making their debut in this competition: Burundi, Czech Republic, Faroe Islands, Montenegro, Rwanda, and the United States.
As a reminder, the tournament matches are played across four venues: Varazdin, Koprivnica, Opatija, and Rijeka – with the final round scheduled in Varazdin.