After 112 played matches, the 28th edition of the IHF World Championship is officially over. The Championship was held in Poland and Sweden from 11 to 29 January 2023. The 32 countries were placed in eight groups and played their matches in nine venues: Krakow, Gdansk, Katowice, Plock, Stockholm, Malmo, Gothenburg, Jonkoping and Kristianstad. For the third time in a row (2019, 2021, 2023) Denmark is on the top of the world.
 
In a thrilling final match, the Denmark was better than France with the result of 34:29. This was the 9th World Championship medal for Denmark. On the other hand, France failed in their attempt to win their 7th title.
 
In the third-place match, Spain managed to secure bronze against the hosts, Sweden. Also, this match became the highest-scoring bronze medal match in history. The two sides combined for 75 goals and the result was 39:36 for Spain. Spanish national team have now won their fifth medal at the IHF Men’s World Championship, and this is the third bronze.
 
The top scorer of the tournament (60 scored goals), as well as the MVP, is Danish national team player Mathias Gidsel. The following players find their place in the All-star team: Andreas Wolff (goalkeeper), Angel Fernandez Perez (left wing), Simon Pytlich (left back), Nedim Remili (centre back), Alex Dujshebaev (right back), Niclas Ekberg (right wing), Ludovic Fabregas (line player). The best young player is Juri Knorr.
 
Four SEHA – Gazprom League countries participated in the Championship. Hungary finished the tournament in 8th place, Croatia in 9th, Serbia took 11th place and North Macedonia in 27th. When it comes to the SEHA players, Rasmus Lauge won the gold, while Kentin Mahe silver medal. Telekom Veszprem’s left back, Lauge, missed five matches of the competitions due to an injury but he managed to recover for the final match where he explodes and scored 10 goals. Another Telekom Veszprem’s player, Rodrigo Corrales won the bronze medal.

Photo credit: Pahic Szabo / kolektiff