Exciting group D headlines action-packed Sunday

GROUP B

North Macedonia vs Portugal

Sunday 18 January, 18:00 CET, live on EHFTV
H2H: 4-0-6

• the Macedonian coach, Kiril Lazarov, hopes to welcome back the starting goalkeeper Nikola Mitrevski and line player Zharko Peshevski in the squad after the pair missed their opening match due to minor injuries
• Filip Kuzmanovski scored four goals against Denmark and moved just a couple of goals away from breaking into the all-time top 5 goalscorers of the Macedonian national team in their EHF EURO history; he now sits in sixth place with 47 goals
• this is the first meeting between the two at an EHF EURO tournament, although they met in the EHF EURO 2024 Qualifiers, with the Portuguese coming out on top in the group and victorious both home and away against the Macedonians
• the Macedonians, with an average age of 26, and the "Heróis do Mar", with an average age of 25, boast one of the youngest squads in the tournament
• António Areia is now joint-second in Portugal's all-time EHF EURO list for players with the most EHF EURO appearances, 19
• only a couple of Portuguese players did not get on the scoresheet in their opening win against Romania, displaying the quality in squad depth

Romania vs Denmark

Sunday 18 January, 20:30 CET, live on EHFTV
H2H: 8-0-5

• George Buricea's squad improved against Portugal in the second half after trailing by eight goals at half-time and matched Portugal's intensity for some parts of the game, showing the potential to compete against the top teams
• Romania conceded 40 goals and broke their EHF EURO record for most goals allowed in their national team's history; if they are to compete and possibly make a surprise against the Danes, a big improvement is needed in defence
• despite Romania being one of the rare national teams with a positive overall record against Denmark, they have played only once this century, with the latter winning their 2011 IHF World Championship meeting
• Rasmus Lauge is the fifth-best goalscorer in Denmark's EHF EURO history with 110 goals, but Mathias Gidsel is close to breaking in their all-time top 5 scorers list and surpassing him, as the right back is on 100 goals at the moment
• the co-hosts are hoping for a repeat of the scenes with filled stands in the Jyske Bank Boxen in Herning, as the 15,000 spectators - mostly Danish fans - built an amazing atmosphere
• if Portugal win against North Macedonia and Denmark cruise past Romania, the winners might secure a place in the main round of the EHF EURO 2026

GROUP D

Montenegro vs Faroe Islands

Sunday 18 January, 18:00 CET, live on EHFTV
H2H: 1-1-0

• both teams enter the match on the back of round 1 games that were as close as they get, with the Faroe Islands having drawn with Switzerland, 28:28, and Montenegro losing to Slovenia 41:40
• Montenegro back Branko Vujović is the top scorer after two days of action at the Men’s EHF EURO 2026, having netted 11 goals against Slovenia in the new record high-scoring match
• playmaker Elias á Skipagøtu led the Faroe Islands with nine goals versus Switzerland, while right back Vilhelm Poulsen scored the last-second equaliser to secure the draw
• the Faroe Islands not only target their first win at the EHF EURO 2026, but also their first in the history of the competition
• the teams have a short mutual history, with just two previous clashes and the Faroe Islands are yet to take a win over Montenegro

Switzerland vs Slovenia

Sunday 18 January, 20:30 CET, live on EHFTV
H2H: 2-1-8

• Slovenia take the court as the group leaders with two points following a 41:40 victory over Montenegro; Switzerland drew with the Faroe Islands, 28:28, in their EHF EURO 2026 opener, and have one point
• Slovenia own the head-to-head record against Switzerland, having won eight out of 11 previous encounters
• the last time the teams met was in the qualifiers for the 2025 World Championship, when a penalty shootout was required to find the winners: Slovenia
• Switzerland later clinched a wild card for the World Championship and ranked above Slovenia in the final standings, finishing 11th to Slovenia’s 13th place
• that World Championship ranking was remarkable in that Switzerland had not placed above Slovenia since the 1995 World Championship — and have never done so at a EURO; at the last EURO, Slovenia finished sixth and Switzerland 21st  

GROUP F

Poland vs Iceland

Sunday 18 January 2026, 18:00 CET, live on EHFTV
H2H: 6-0-11

• Poland suffered a 21:29 defeat in their opening match against Hungary; Iceland celebrated their biggest win in their EHF EURO history, beating Italy by 13 goals, 39:26
• Viktor Hallgrímsson saved three penalty shots against Italy, while Poland could not score on one of their four attempts against Hungary
• Iceland were victorious in the previous three encounters against Poland, as both teams met in two EHF EURO placement matches — 2010 and 2014 — as well as the Olympic quarter-finals in 2008
• Iceland can extend their winning streak at the EHF EURO to four matches, which would set a new record for them; the previous three-match streak dates back to the EHF EURO 2022, being ended by Denmark in the main round
• even though Poland head coach Jota González demanded an improvement from his team in regard to scoring “easy” shots, the stats show some hope, as his team was efficient in breakthrough situations, scoring six from seven; however, their overall performance from six metres and the penalty line leaves room for improvement
• Janus Daði Smárason was Iceland’s top scorer in the opening match with eight goals; a trio led the attack for Poland, as Michał Olejniczak, Maciej Gębala and Tomasz Gębala netted three each

Italy vs Hungary

Sunday 18 January 2026, 20:30 CET, live on EHFTV
H2H: 0-0-6

• Italy suffered their biggest defeat at the EHF EURO in the opening match against Iceland (26:39); Hungary were just one goal shy of tying their biggest win in the competition’s history, beating Poland 29:21
• the Hungarian defence impressed in the first match, blocking five shots, collecting seven steals, with goalkeeper Kristóf Palasics adding 13 saves at 39 per cent
• there were some positives for Italy to take from the first match; right wing Leo Prantner saw his first proper action after being sidelined with a shoulder injury for almost four months; he scored six goals from eight attempts, including one of the most spectacular goals of the tournament so far
• young goalkeeper Pau Panitti also had valuable minutes on the court, collecting four saves with a rate of 31 per cent in his 15-minute playing time
• Italy have never won against Hungary in an official game; the previous two matches were played as part of the EHF EURO Qualifiers in 2018 and 2019, ending with a comfortable 30:22 victory and a close 32:29 win for Hungary
• Leo Prantner was Italy’s top scorer in the first match with six goals, while Richárd Bodó scored the most goals in Hungary's squad against Poland, five

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