Brazil made a gala debut this Wednesday (15) in the Men’s World Handball Championship by beating hosts Norway, 29 to 26, at the Unity Arena, in Oslo. The team, led by coach Marcus Tatá, came up behind on the scoreboard, but sought to recover in the first half against the 2017 and 2019 world runners-up. It was the country’s first victory against a European team in the history of the competition. The World Cup also takes place in two other host countries: Croatia and Denmark.
With the triumph at the start, the team occupies second place in Group E, behind Portugal who defeated the United States (30 to 21). The Portuguese team will be Brazil’s next opponent, next Friday (17), at 2 pm (Brasília time).
“I would like to thank God for being here and having the opportunity to play this incredible game, and I thank him. Obviously I’m very happy because we all knew it would be a very complicated game against Norway, a great team and in front of their fans. Now it’s time to focus on the next match so we can maintain this rhythm on the court”, said goalkeeper Rangel, who made 11 saves and was voted the best player on the court.
At the beginning of the match, the Norwegians took a 4-0 lead, but Brazil rebalanced the game and reduced the loss. The one who led the reaction was full-back Haniel, who scored the first four goals for the team, and finished the match as top scorer, with a total of eight goals. Another highlight was goalkeeper Rangel, voted the best on the court with 11 saves, the last of which 30 seconds from the end.
Brazil played an even game and went to halftime with just two points difference over their opponents, who were winning 14 to 12. In the second half, everything worked better for the team, who quickly turned the score around to 21 to 20. and then took the lead. Who also stood out on the Brazilian side was left-back Bryan Monte, who scored twice two minutes from the end of the match, leaving Brazil with a three-point lead until the final whistle.
CAPITAL VICTORY! 🇧🇷💪
The men’s handball team debuted at the World Cup with a memorable performance. Playing against hosts Norway, Brazil won 29-26, in a breathtaking comeback in the second half.
The next challenge will be against Portugal on Friday (17), the… pic.twitter.com/bsP1ZIfzxr
— Team Brasil (@timebrasil) January 15, 2025
“We started the game a little slow. Maybe due to the nervousness of the debut and the atmosphere of the crowd, which made it a little complicated. However, during the game we loosened up and we had an excellent performance from Rangel, who made excellent saves with the whole team contributing to the defensive system. I believe that part of today’s victory, Rangel helped us a lot”, analyzed coach Marcus Tatá.
In total, the Handball World Cup brings together 32 teams in the first phasedivided into eight groups of four teams each. Only the top three placed in each group will advance to the second phase – also in group format (there will be four groups with six teams each). From then on, the two best teams in each group will guarantee a place in the quarter-finals (knockout). The title decision is scheduled for February 2, in Oslo (Norway).
The competition, which opens the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic cycle, is the first major challenge for the men’s team after the frustration of not having qualified for the Paris Games. Brazil secured a place in the World Cup by winning the title of the South-Central American Tournament, in January last year, with victory in the final over Argentina, the hosts.
This is the country’s 16th consecutive participation in the World Cup. The best performance in history occurred in the 2019 edition, when Brazil finished in ninth place. The current world champion is Denmark, which became the first to win a third consecutive championship in 2023. At the time, Brazil finished the competition in 17th place.
