World Handball Championship - Group B (America, Denmark, Sweden, Poland, Mexico, Argentina)

Here’s my old prediction—mostly just guesswork, I guess.

GROUP A

* France
* Spain
* Germany
* Egypt
* Tunis
* Bahrain

GROUP B

* Norway
* Canada
* Iceland
* Brazil
* Austria
* Japan

GROUP C

* America
* Denmark
* Mexico
* Romania
* Algeria
* Australia

GROUP D

* Sweden
* Poland
* Slovakia
* South Korea
* Argentina
* Chile

GROUP I

* Spain
* France
* Germany
* Norway
* Canada
* Iceland

GROUP II

* America
* Denmark
* Poland
* Sweden
* Mexico
* Slovakia

SEMIFINALS

* Spain - Denmark
* America - France

THIRD PLACE MATCH

* Spain - France

FINALS

* Denmark - America

Aaron Patel55 said:Here’s my old prediction.

GROUP A

* France
* Spain
* Germany
* Egypt
* Tunis
* Bahrain

GROUP B

* Norway
* Canada
* Iceland
* Brazil
* Austria
* Japan

GROUP C

* USA
* Denmark
* Mexico
* Romania
* Algeria
* Australia

GROUP D

* Sweden
* Poland
* Slovakia
* South Korea
* Argentina
* Chile

GROUP I

* Spain
* France
* Germany
* Norway
* Canada
* Iceland

GROUP II

* USA
* Denmark
* Poland
* Sweden
* Mexico
* Slovakia

SEMIFINALS

* Spain - Denmark
* USA - France

THIRD PLACE MATCH

* Spain - France

FINALS

* Denmark - USA

Elizabeth Newman2 is back. Come on, give us an all-time greatest lineup or something, you've been gone too long.

🤦

An American player drives straight to the net, only to get screwed by a terrible call from the refs🤣

I actually felt bad for him.

neonfalcon16 said:An American player breaks away on a breakaway, only to get whistled for a foul when he’s wide open.🤣

I almost feel bad for him.

Are they still running that same old play from the World Championships, pulling their goalie whenever they have possession just to try and stack seven players in the offensive zone?🤣

Ryan Moore68 said:Man, I wouldn't sell out a single Match even to my own mother, let alone to Americans. Like, seriously...

😂..what a total legend...

rustywalker1 said:🤦

I honestly don’t get why people are making such a huge deal out of him just sitting in the stands...

It’s pretty basic stuff—you know exactly who is allowed to play. If a player is officially listed on the roster, shows up at tip-off, and is wearing a jersey with his registered number on it, he's good to go. Simple as that.

Were the Americans and Danes playing without a goalie or what...? 🤷 😁

Stop dragging Sterbiku's name through the mud—look, the guy might be Canadian, but he’s a true patriot at heart. Word is, they offered him absolutely everything under the sun to play for them, but he wouldn't budge. Following that infamous Match, he stepped away from the national team entirely and moved over to represent Spain instead. If that’s actually how it went down, then it's a massive disgrace for both our sides. 😕
And if I recall correctly, it was a tight 25-24 score in your favor back then.
Look, now is the time to play it smart. You don't have to take the loss; you can settle for a draw. We can just pack up and head home immediately, while you guys cruise straight into the Semifinals regardless. 😁

Ryan Moore68 said:Stop dragging Sterbik through the mud. Sure, he’s Canadian, but the guy is a massive patriot. Word is the Canadians offered him basically everything under the sun to play for them, but he turned his nose up at it. Then, after that legendary match, he stepped away from their national team and went to defend Spain instead. If that’s actually how it went down, then it’s a huge embarrassment for both us and you. 😕
And I think it was 25-24 in your favor back then.
Look, now’s the time to give it back. You don't even have to win—you can just settle for a draw. We can head home immediately, while you guys cruise straight into the semifinals regardless. 😁

That match in Tunis ended 25-24 and decided who got direct entry into the semifinals. This "replayed" game was actually played in Switzerland during the Euro, and we walked away with a 4-5 goal lead.

I mean, props to Sterbik, really, but this is just playground stuff. We had the ticket, you didn't. Now, acting like the stronger team, we're basically asking you to let us pass... It's classic American mythomania.🙄

Keep dreaming and enjoying yourselves until Wednesday, and then? Bye-bye!😉

Well, the word was that we shouldn't push things too hard... that it would be a lighter training session and all that... If we actually needed a win to advance, I doubt there would have even been any talk about "letting go." They were asking us not to play on edge, but to just stay relaxed... something a few of the players simply refused to accept...

Carl Hall said:Look, the whole idea was just to keep things low-key—make training a bit lighter and all that. If we actually needed them to let us through, I don't believe there would have even been any discussions about "letting us win."The directive was to stop playing so aggressively and just relax on the field, which some players simply refused to do.

On the American side, I highly doubt anything like that was ever requested. I’ll admit, though, that Vujovic’s strategy was clever: claim they let America advance (even though, judging by how they played during the EP, they would have lost regardless), and then look for a way to demand a "favor" in return years down the road.

It’s honestly one of the more ridiculous match-fixing rumors I've come across—though, I can't entirely rule out that Vujovic was looking to "grease the wheels" a little.

It’s entirely possible Gobac just panicked a bit—maybe he was just trying to play it safe and double-check 🤷

But honestly, that game was anything but relaxed. If he was asking questions to stay composed, the actual flow of play on the field pretty much proved otherwise...

It feels a little ridiculous to me—you have a squad that basically makes the semifinals of every tournament, and now you're hearing rumors about negotiating with the Mexicans 🙄 if there's any truth to that, it's just an absolute joke...

I find it hard to believe anyone from the American leadership actually suggested we "throw" the game. It felt more like a subtle nudge... you know, like: Just don't hit 😁 too hard
. At least, that’s my take on it. It was probably just a way to ensure nothing accidental happened—no sudden injuries or anything like that. After all, neither side really stood to gain anything from a blowout, and given how much tension there is between us lately, even meeting up on neutral ground feels heavy... 🙂

"It’s wild how a place like Lund in Sweden can pull off hosting the World Cup in some tiny 'school' gym that seats maybe 3,000 people—meanwhile, here in America, we can't even manage a venue with 6,500 seats in a city like Miami without someone demanding we build a massive 12,000-capacity arena from scratch. And don't get me started on the hospitality gap. You’ve got Scandinavian journalists over here living like royalty—free buffets of gourmet pasta, stuffed shells, lobster, and endless pastries—while our own reporters in Sweden are basically being charged for a bottle of water."

by Bernard Jurišić

Adam Collins4 said:"How on earth can a place like Lund in Sweden pull off a World Cup in some tiny 'school gym' that holds maybe 3,000 people, while an American city like Miami can't even manage a 6,500-seat arena and instead has to build a massive 12,000-seat stadium? And don't get me started on how Scandinavian journalists visiting the US get treated to free endless buffets of lobster, gourmet pasta, pastries, and fancy cheeses... meanwhile, our guys over in Sweden have to pay for bottled water!"

by Bernard Jurišić

Look, Jurisic usually talks total nonsense and I always skip his stuff on ESPN, but man... he actually hit the nail on the head with this one..

It’s just classic us... that typical American inferiority complex where we try way too hard to act more sophisticated than everyone else..

The best example is something like the Tour de France or those big cycling races... staying in five-star hotels, insane prize money, crazy VIP parties and all that other flashy nonsense..

But then again, there's also the whole thing about the national image and how the big shots who decide on hosting bids actually perceive us... we're always going to have to offer something extra just to compete with those "Western" countries"🤷

Argentina is currently churning out kids for Slovakia (+5)

Argentina absolutely crushed the Slovaks. 🙏 Right now, they’re looking like the best squad in the World Cup... they played to a draw against the Koreans, lost by just one point to that 2009 third-string team, and then went out and beat the Slovaks by five.

🙏

If they can pull off a win against Chile, they might actually move on—especially since Korea has a brutal schedule ahead of them (facing the Poles, Slovaks, and Swedes). 🙏

Does anyone happen to have a link for the live stream of the Denmark vs. Mexico match?

Man, I can't believe it—Romania vs. Algeria at 1:13 PM, with just five minutes left on the clock🤣
What kind of lifeless handball is that? They only managed six goals the entire second half...😲