2007 World Men's Handball Championship


The 2007 World Men's Handball Championship took place from 19 January to 4 February 2007 in Germany. 24 national teams played in 12 German cities. It was the 20th edition of the World Championship in team handball and was won by the hosts.

Stadiums

12 German cities were hosts for the 2007 Championship. The most modern stadiums – spread all over the country – had been selected. The final match took place in the Kölnarena in Cologne.
TownStadiummax. spectators
KölnKölnarena19.000
MannheimSAP-Arena14.300
HamburgColor Line Arena12.500
DortmundWestfalenhalle12.000
HalleGerry-Weber-Stadion11.000
KielOstseehalle10.200
BerlinMax-Schmeling-Halle10.000
BremenAWD-Dome9.200
MagdeburgBördelandhalle7.850
StuttgartPorsche Arena6.100
LemgoLipperlandhalle5.000
WetzlarMittelhessen-Arena5.000

Venues

Qualification

CompetitionDatesHostVacanciesQualified
Host nation1
2005 World Championship23 January – 6 February 20051
2006 African Championship10–20 January 20064


2006 European Championship26 January – 5 February 20063

2006 Asian Championship12–21 February 2006 Bangkok3

2006 Oceania Championship22–24 May 2006 Sydney1
2006 Pan American Championship6–10 June 2006 Aracaju3

European qualification4 January18 June 2006Various8






Tournament structure

Preliminary round

The 24 competing teams will be drawn into six preliminary groups of four teams each, and the matches in the preliminary round are scheduled to be held from 20 to 22 January. The two top teams from each group then proceed to the main round, while the third and fourth-placed teams play in the Presidents-Cup.
On 14 July 2006, the groups of the tournament were determined:

Presidents-Cup

The teams placed third and fourth in the preliminary round groups are divided into four groups of three teams, as such:
The matches are scheduled for 24 to 26 January. On 28 January, the winners of group I and II then play each other for the 13th place, the runners-up play each other for the 15th place, and the third-placed play off for 17th place. The Group III and IV teams play off for 19th, 21st and 23rd place in the same fashion.

Main round

The main round is scheduled for 24 to 28 January, and the teams will be divided into two groups of six teams. The teams carry forward match results from matches against the other team from their group to qualify for the main round. Four teams from each main round group qualify for the quarter-finals.
No placement matches for the places 9 to 12 are scheduled.

Knockout stage

The knockout stage is scheduled to make up the last week of the tournament, starting on Tuesday 30 January and continuing until Sunday 4 February. The quarter-finals are set up so that the winner of one group will face the fourth-placed team in the other. Semi-finals and consolation matches are held on 1 February; two days later, the 5th and 7th place play-offs take place on 3 February, with the 3rd place play-off and final is scheduled for the following day.

Seedings

The seedings for the preliminary round have been partially determined; the full seedings will be revealed when all qualifying matches have been played. Currently, the following seedings have been confirmed:
All times are local.

Group A

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Group B

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Group C

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Group D

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Group E

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Group F

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President's Cup

Group I

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Group II

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Group III

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Group IV

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23rd place game

21st place game

19th place game

17th place game

15th place game

13th place game

Main round

Group I

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Group II

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Knockout stage

Bracket

;Championship bracket
;5th place bracket

Quarterfinals

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5–8th place semifinals

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Semifinals

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Eleventh place game

Ninth place game

Seventh place game

Fifth place game

Third place game

Final

Ranking and Statistics

Final ranking

RankTeam
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24

All Star Team

gives silver medal for Bogdan Wenta – Polish coach

Medalists