Portugal take down title holders, Germany enjoy superb win

In group G of the main round Portugal took both points in a thrilling Iberian derby against Spain, who have suffered their first defeat of the tournament as the current champions. Austria recovered from Monday's loss with a great performance against Iceland.

In group H all four teams have two points each, which means Thursday will be the decisive day in the race for the semi-finals. Sweden enjoyed a late win at the expense of Denmark, whereas Germany demonstrated a phenomenal defensive performance in stopping Norway's offensive machinery.

• Fantastic derby of the Iberian Peninsula went to Portugal who beat Spain 38:37. In a high-paced encounter Portugal were leading most of the 60 minutes, although current title holders could have snatched a point in the final seconds
• Austria dominated Iceland, leading by eight goals in the first half. Iceland kept fighting and narrowed the gap to three goals in the second period, but Austrians were not to be denied and won 34:26. Their back court line with Bernkop-Schnürch, G. Kofler and Rudnicki scored 19 goals in total, while Bergmann made 14 saves
• Adrian Källhage's only goal of the match proved crucial in Sweden's thrilling last-minute win 30:29 vs Denmark; His teammate Axel Månsson impressed with 10 goals
• Germany's superb win vs Norway 25:21 completely opens up group H of the main round as all four teams still have a chance to qualify for the semi-finals
• France and North Macedonia secured their spots in the 9-12th cross matches having beaten Poland and Romania, respectively; Croatia beat hosts Slovenia, while Hungary created a late turnaround to snatch both points against Serbia
• In the elimination round Czechia, Faroe Islands and Switzerland have secured their place in the 17-20 cross matches, while Greece earned their first point against Italy. Montenegro, Ukraine and Israel remain the only three teams with all defeats in the tournament
• By beating Montenegro 39:13, Switzerland just fell short of equalling Iceland's record win of this tournament, by 27 goals against Ukraine (49:22)

Portuguese flair excels in match of the tournament

Spain and Portugal have produced probably the best match of the tournament so far. The level was simply insane at times, the pace and intensity were so high, and momentum kept switching from side to side many times. Given the quality of the teams, as well as their rivalry and the history of exciting matches they've played against each other, we expected nothing less.

It was also a rematch of the final from the previous edition of this tournament two years ago, with Spain clinching gold in another terrific match (37:35). Of course, with different generations than today.

However, this exact generation of Spanish players won the Men's 18 EHF EURO 2022 and the Youth (U19) World Championship last year. They haven't lost a match in big tournaments for a long, long time. Until today.

Line player Ricardo Brandão and left back Miguel Oliveira helped Portugal keep the advantage during most of the 60 minutes, with Spain playing catch-up. Even though current champions had the final possession to steal a draw, Portugal's victory in the now classic Iberian derby is thoroughly deserved.