Ever since 2013, when the women's handball team of Serbia played in the finals of the World Championship, this selection is more of an honorary participant in major competitions than a serious candidate for a good placement. Over 12 years Serbia is waiting for at least the quarterfinals in women's handball, and tomorrow (December 6) from 3:30 p.m., she has the opportunity to break through that long-standing barrier.
The match against the selection of Montenegro, which yesterday's defeat by Germany gave Serbia the perfect opportunity to advance to the knockout stage, it will be the most important match since the mentioned final. Since then, in major competitions, Serbia has reached 11th place at most.
After missing a great opportunity in the duel with the Faroe Islands, the passage to the next round of the competition will not be an easy task - Serbia, Montenegro and Spain are fighting for one place in group number two.
The calculations are clear.
One thing is certain, the German national team, the host of the competition, is the first to go to the knockout phase of the World Cup. Three countries are fighting for second place, among which Serbia has the most realistic chances.
As mentioned several times, our selection needs at least one point to pass. On the other hand, Montenegro must go for the win, but also hope to beat the Germans in the duel with Spain.
Spain has the most difficult job, they have to beat the hosts Germany, but also cheer for the victory of Montenegro in the match against Serbia. With the victory of Serbia and Spain, these two selections would have the same number of points, but Serbia was better in the duel and would finish ahead of Spain.
The quarter-final matches will be scheduled for December 9 and 10 in Dortmund and Rotterdam.
Wandering around the championships
Few could have predicted that Serbian handball players, after losing in the 2013 final against Brazil, would wait more than 13 years to play at least one match of the knockout phase of a major competition. Two years after the greatest success in the history of women's handball, Serbia was eliminated in the round of 16 by the Netherlands.
In the next four World Cups, Serbia played only as a silent observer, the best result was 14th place in 2021 in Spain.
At the championships of the old continent, the situation is almost identical. In 2020, in Denmark, the women's national team took 11th place, everything before and after that is not worth mentioning.
Before this generation is the task of writing a new history of women's handball. Passing from the second place in the group means a duel with one of the three main favorites of the championship - France, Denmark or Norway. The quarterfinals are certainly a big step forward, and the duel between the eight best teams is an opportunity for a new handball miracle.
