Croatia falls short: Denmark wins fourth consecutive World Handball Championship

(Patria) - The Danish handball team has once again demonstrated its dominance on the world handball stage, winning its fourth consecutive gold at the World Championship.

This time, they were better than the Croatian national team in the final, celebrating a 32:26 victory.

The final, played at the Telenor Arena in Bærum, near Oslo, confirmed what many had expected – Denmark is currently a level above everyone else. Their play throughout the tournament was impressive, and in the final match, they once again demonstrated strength, tactical maturity, and fantastic goalkeeping support. Croatia put up a strong resistance but failed to stop the Danish winning streak.

With this title, Denmark continued its incredible streak that began in 2019, winning gold at every championship since then (2019, 2021, 2023, 2025). Overall, this is their fourth world champion title, along with three silver medals (1967, 2011, 2013) and one bronze (2007). With this triumph, they have written themselves into history as the third most trophy-laden nation at World Championships, surpassing Romania, which has four golds and two bronzes. Denmark now stands shoulder to shoulder with the greatest handball powers, confirming its status as one of the most dominant teams of all time.

The opening ten minutes of the final were marked by tough and nervous play on both sides, with visible errors and uncertainty in attack. Denmark, however, opened the match better and took a 4:1 lead, with the brilliant Emil Nielsen playing a key role in that period. The Danish goalkeeper had an incredible start – he saved four of Croatia's first five shots, heralding a fantastic night between the posts. On the other hand, the Croatian attack was searching for rhythm but still could not find the right solution for Nielsen's solid defense, reports scsport.ba.

In the next ten minutes, Croatia managed to reduce the deficit to just one goal, setting the score at 7:8. The key to this comeback was better execution in attack, while Kuzmanović recorded two important saves, giving the team additional confidence. On the other hand, Emil Nielsen, who had shone at the start, managed only one save in this period. The Croats finally found a way to the goal and fully returned to the match, raising the tempo and putting increasing pressure on the Danish defense.

In the final ten minutes of the first half, Denmark regained control and pulled away to 16:12. Emil Nielsen returned to great form with three new saves, while Matej Kuzmanović recorded only one. However, the key player of this period was Gidsel, who did not miss and reached a tally of four goals. By halftime, Denmark's top scorer was Jakobsen with five goals, while for Croatia, Martinović had the same tally.

In the first ten minutes of the second half, Denmark achieved complete dominance, increasing their lead to +10 and reaching a score of 14:24. Croatia's resistance completely collapsed, and Denmark continued to play at a high level. The start of the second half brought even greater Danish dominance, as they led 8:2, creating a huge lead that practically marked the end of the match. Gidsel continued his brilliant performance, scoring several more excellent goals and reaching a total of seven goals. Emil Nielsen, who played a key role in defense, added two more important saves, while Green, after a penalty, recorded another fantastic stop. Denmark was absolutely unbeatable in that part of the game, confirming their dominance in every segment of the court.

In the second part of the match, Croatia managed to reduce the gap to seven goals, reaching a score of 20:27, but Denmark was still at a high level. Gidsel was still unstoppable, already having nine goals, while Martinović and Karačić led Croatia's attacks, trying to inject some more rhythm into the game. However, it still seemed unrealistic to catch Denmark, which was clearly at a high level. Emil Nielsen further confirmed his exceptional form, recording another save and reaching a total of 11 stops. Despite Croatia's attempts, Denmark was too strong, maintaining a safe lead.

As was evident from the very beginning, Denmark was simply at a higher level than all other teams at this World Championship. Throughout the match, they showed their superiority, both in attack and defense. In the last ten minutes of the match, Denmark calmly controlled the game, serenely maintaining the lead and slowly bringing the match to a close. Croatia tried to reduce the gap, but Denmark was too solid and organized.

For Denmark, Mathias Gidsel was phenomenal with ten goals from 11 shots, and Emil Jakobsen added five. Ivan Martinović was Croatia's top scorer with six goals, and Šoštarić added five.

In the end, the score was 32:26 in favor of the Danes, who thus won their fourth consecutive gold, confirming their dominance on the world handball stage.