France head into the tournament as defending world champions and Olympic silver medallists, having reached the final at Paris 2024 and won 17 of their last 18 World Championship matches, including two out of three finals in the past four editions.
It's, however, a French outfit with a new outlook that check into the tournament as they are undergoing a period of transition: long-time coach Olivier Krumbholz has been replaced by Sébastien Gardillou, and "Les Bleus" will be handicapped by the absence of stars Estelle Nze Minko, Laura Flippes and Chloé Valentini who are all on maternity leave.
Still, they shouldn't be underestimated as they thanks to the presence of playmaker Grace Zaadi, defensive rock Béatrice Edwige, and goalkeeper Hatadou Sako will pose a huge challenge for any team in the tournament.
Sébastien Gardillou's girls will, however have a huge task on their hands to get by Paris 2024 Olympic champions Norway, who beat them 29-21 in the gold medal match last summer. Led by world-class scorer Nora Mørk and veteran goalkeeper Katrine Lunde, the MVP of the Olympic tournament, Norway bring pace, power and some of the most experienced big-game players in the sport. The Norwegian women have already won the World Championships on four occasions and everything seems to indicate that they will once again lift the winning trophy in Rotterdam on the final weekend.
Denmark will head into the championships high on confidence after securing Olympic bronze in Paris, to back up their third-place finish at the 2023 World Championship. Helle Thomsen has taken over the reigns from Jesper Jensen and she will need all her expertise to guide the Danes safely through to the final, especially without the presence of Mie Hojlund, Trine Ostergaard, Mette Tranborg and Althea Reinhardt. Anne Mette Hansen will be charged with orchestrating their attack, while goalkeeper Anna Kristensen – MVP at EHF EURO 2024, where Denmark won the silver medal – provides a reliable presence between the posts.
Co-hosts Germany and the Netherlands will both benefit from home support, having finished eighth and fifth respectively at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games
For the first time in history Faroe Islands will also be part of the participants as they qualified through a spirited campaign topped off by a play-off win over Lithuania. Led by Jana Mittún and Pernille Brandenborg, the smallest nation in the competition has earned the chance to test itself against the world’s elite and potentially pull off a surprise against nations who might underestimate their power.
2025 IHF Women’s World Championship overview
Dates: 26 November – 14 December 2025
Hosts: Germany and the Netherlands (joint hosts)
Cities/venues: Five venues across five cities – Rotterdam and ’s-Hertogenbosch in the Netherlands; Dortmund, Stuttgart and Trier in Germany. The final weekend will be staged at Rotterdam Ahoy.
The Westfalenhalle in Dortmund is the biggest German venue, at a capacity of 12,000. Over its 73-year history, it has organised several championships in Darts, Figure Skating, Gymnastics, Ice Hockey and Table Tennis. Handball related, the hall has hosted the men's world championship in 1961, 1982 and 2007, plus a women's championship in 1965.
The Westfalenhalle in Dortmund is the biggest German venue, at a capacity of 12,000. Over its 73-year history, it has organised several championships in Darts, Figure Skating, Gymnastics, Ice Hockey and Table Tennis. Handball related, the hall has hosted the men's world championship in 1961, 1982 and 2007, plus a women's championship in 1965.
The Trier Arena in Trier hosts 5,400 spectators. The venue has numerous activities, but the only previous major tournament it has hosted was the 2017 World Women's Handball Championship.
Teams: Angola, Argentina, Austria, Brazil, Croatia, Cuba, Czechia, Denmark, Egypt, Faroe Islands, France, Germany, Hungary, Iceland, Islamic Republic of Iran, Japan, Kazakhstan, Montenegro, Netherlands, Norway, Paraguay, People’s Republic of China, Poland, Republic of Korea, Romania, Senegal, Serbia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Tunisia, and Uruguay
Groups:
Group A: Denmark, Romania, Japan, Croatia.
Group B: Hungary, Senegal, Switzerland, Iran.
Group C: Germany, Serbia, Iceland, Uruguay.
Group D: Montenegro, Spain, Faroe Islands, Paraguay.
Group E: Netherlands, Austria, Argentina, Egypt.
Group F: France, Poland, Tunesia, China.
Group G: Sweden , Brazil, Czech Republic, Cuba.
Group H: Norway, Angola, South Korea, Kazakhstan
Defending champions: France, winners of the 2023 edition.
Tournament format: Preliminary round with eight groups of four teams, followed by a main round, President’s Cup for ranking matches, and a knockout phase (quarter-finals, semi-finals, medal matches).
Final venue and date: Gold-medal match at Rotterdam Ahoy on Sunday 14 December 2025.