The Future of Handball Takes Centre Stage in Group F

26.08.2026

It is the highlight of the 2026/27 season: the IHF Men’s World Championship 2027 in Germany. Thirty-two nations will be aiming to stand on top of the podium after the final on 31 January. Naturally, the national team coaches will call up the best players their countries have to offer. Global stars such as Mathias Gidsel, Dika Mem and Andreas Wolff will take to the courts across Germany this winter. They represent the present of handball. But which players represent its future? Who will follow in the footsteps of the generation around Gidsel, Mem and Wolff? Several of those players will be competing with their teams in Group F for a place in the Main Round.

A Faroese-Portuguese Family Duel

Portugal has two prime candidates to one day follow Mathias Gidsel as World Player of the Year. Brothers Martim and Francisco “Kiko” Costa are not only prospects for the future, however – they are already very much part of the present.

Both play for Sporting CP in their home country and have been making waves in European handball for several years. Both were selected for the All-Star Team at the most recent World Championship. Kiko was named Best Young Player, while Martim was awarded as the best centre back.

Even so, many experts agree that the brothers have not yet reached the limits of their potential. The same applies to Portuguese handball as a whole. The squad features several other players operating at world-class level. Line player Luís Frade is extremely difficult to stop in attack, while Salvador Salvador provides stability in defence.

All four have played a crucial role in Portugal’s recent rise. After finishing fourth at the 2025 World Championship, the next goal is clear: a medal.

For the people of the Faroe Islands, a medal at a major international tournament remains a dream. Yet that dream is accompanied by plenty of hope – much of it centred around one family.

The most famous member is Elias Ellefsen á Skipagøtu. The THW Kiel playmaker is only 24 years old but has already spent three seasons with Germany’s record champions. He is regarded as one of the most exciting young centre backs in world handball and was named U23 World Player of the Year in 2023.

Elias also plays alongside his brother for the national team. Rói Ellefsen á Skipagøtu is a versatile backcourt player, although he may not possess quite the same level of talent as his older brother.

That exceptional talent can instead be found in their cousin Óli Mittún. The GOG playmaker, like Kiko Costa, was born in 2005. There is little doubt that he belongs to the future of the sport.

At the U18 European Championship, as well as the U19 and U21 World Championships for the 2004 age group and younger, Mittún finished as top scorer and was selected for the All-Star Team each time.

Together with cousin Elias, he controls the Faroese attack. Both stand out with dynamic one-on-one play, creativity and fast passing. They also regularly create opportunities for their brothers – because Óli Mittún’s brother Pauli is part of the national team as well.

Together, the family has already made history in qualification. The IHF Men’s World Championship 2027 will be the first appearance by the Faroese men’s national team in the federation’s history.

In January, they hope to continue writing that success story – and win the family duel against the Costa brothers.

But Group F is about more than Portugal and the Faroe Islands. As a former heavyweight of international handball, Poland cannot be overlooked. The glory days of the Polish national team are now almost 20 years in the past.

Led by goalkeeping legend Sławomir Szmal and the brother pairings Marcin and Krzysztof Lijewski, as well as Bartosz and Michał Jurecki, Poland won silver in 2007. Bronze followed in 2009.Since then, however, results have gradually declined. The low point came at the last World Championship in 2025, when Poland was eliminated in the preliminary round.

The team wants to put that disappointment behind them in January 2027. Internationally experienced stars Arkadiusz Moryto and Kamil Syprzak remain key pillars of the squad, while Piotr Mielczarski represents one of Poland’s most promising talents for the future.

All three will hope for a World Championship campaign that can at least come close to the success Szmal and company enjoyed in Germany back in 2007.

The fourth team in the group is Algeria. In a highly competitive Group F, the North Africans are the clear outsiders. Like Poland, they are hoping for a turnaround after years of decline.

Algerian handball’s golden era is long gone. In the 1980s and 1990s, the national team dominated African handball, winning the continental championship seven times. Their most recent title, however, came in 2014. Now, a new head coach is expected to spark a revival.

Raúl Alonso joined the Algerian federation in May 2026. The experienced handball specialist has worked in a wide range of roles across the professional game around the world:

THW Kiel (assistant coach)
DHB development centre coach
Handball Tirol (head coach)
Brest GK Meshkov (assistant coach & head coach)
HC Erlangen (sporting director & head coach)
RK Eurofarm Pelister (head coach)
SC DHfK Leipzig (head coach)

Algeria hopes to benefit from that wealth of experience. Together with his players, Alonso wants to spring a surprise and qualify for the Main Round.

Plenty of Support Expected from the Stands

The first opportunity comes on 14 January at 6 pm, when Alonso’s Algeria faces the Faroe Islands in the opening match of the evening.

The Faroese can expect strong support. Large numbers of fans from the island nation already travelled to the EHF EURO 2024 and 2026 to loudly back their team. Another sizeable following is expected in Germany in 2027.

In the second match of the day, the Costa brothers will make their first appearance. Portugal faces Poland at 8:30 pm. Algeria will again open the programme on matchday two. On 16 January at 6 pm, they take on group favourites Portugal.

What could become the most atmospheric match of the day follows at 8:30 pm, when the Faroe Islands face Poland. Both teams can expect plenty of support from the stands. The Polish border is only around two hours by car from the GETEC Arena in Magdeburg. That backing could also give Poland an extra boost two days later against Algeria. The teams open the third matchday at 6 pm.

The eagerly anticipated family duel has been saved for the final match of Group F. At 8:30 pm, Portugal faces the Faroe Islands. Perhaps it will even be a duel between future World Players of the Year.

Following in the Footsteps of a World Handball Legend

All six matches will be played at the GETEC Arena in Magdeburg.

The venue has a close connection to the sport. It is not only home to the decorated SC Magdeburg, but is also . particularly prominent as a venue for major tournaments. In 2027, Groups F and H, as well as the President’s Cup, will all be played in Magdeburg. As a result, one team from each of the two preliminary round groups will play all of its matches at the GETEC Arena.

The last time the German Handball Federation hosted a Men’s World Championship on its own, in 2007, Magdeburg was also one of the venues. Back then, the arena was still known as the Bördelandhalle.

One of the young rising stars to impress there in 2007 was Nikola Karabatić, who played for France in Magdeburg. In the years that followed, Karabatić went on to be named World Player of the Year three times.

Perhaps one of the Costas, Skipagøtu or Mittún is destined for a similar path.

Pictures: Sascha Klahn

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