Men’s Handball World Championship 2015 on Sky Sports
SOTB
Qatar plays host to the 2015 IHF Men’s Handball World Championship and Sky Sports will be showcasing the breathtaking skills and frantic end-to-end action that the sport has to offer for the very first time.
Running from January 15 to February 1, the pinnacle of men’s handball will be graced by the world’s top teams and players as they take to the court in three brand new state-of-the-art venues, all located in the capital Doha, promising fans an incredible spectacle of top class sporting action.
For the first time on British television, Sky Sports will be showing the entire competition live from start to finish, giving fans who were gripped by the sport during the London 2012 Olympic Games another chance to sample the unique thrills and spills of what is one of the most popular sports throughout continental Europe.
The 18-day World Championship promises to deliver dynamic action and fierce competition among the 24 competing nations, with Spain returning to defend the title that they won two years ago.
The Spanish will be up against two of the most prolific handball nations in the shape of Denmark and France, who will no doubt provide a stern test over the two weeks.
France will be one of the firm favourites to lift the trophy, with many expecting another eventual triumph from the nation that, except for 2013, has won major titles every year since 2008.
That includes the last two Olympic Games, European titles in 2010 and 2014, and world titles in 2009 and 2011.
Alongside the established handball nations, other countries such as Brazil, who host the next Olympic Games in 2016, and the hosts Qatar will be looking to make a significant impact on the sport’s elite.
Qatar is the first Gulf region host of the competition and hopes are rising for a host team coached by the man who steered Spain to the world title two years ago in Valero Rivera Lopez.
The 2015 hosts won the Asian Championship and the Asian Games last year and Rivera López has targeted reaching the knock-out stages, which would be the host’s best ever World Championship performance.
Qatar is fast building an impressive portfolio of top class sporting events, with the football World Cup set to arrive, though somewhat controversially, to the tiny gas-rich state in 2022.
But handball is focus for the state in 2015 as thousands of fans get set to witness world-class action on the courts in when World Handball Championship throws off with the hosts opening game against Brazil on January 15.
Sky Sports viewers will be able to watch all the must-see matches from the tournament in what will be the first live international handball to be shown on the network in its 24-year history.
Throughout the group stages, matches will be played between midday and 6.00pm, with one match live on Sky Sports 3 or Sky Sports, while others will be available via the red button.
Subscribers to Sky Sports can also watch online streaming of every live match via Sky Go, available on PCs, laptops, mobiles and tablet devices, while non-subscribers can either enjoy seven days’ access to all seven Sky Sports channels contract-free on TV and a range of devices with NOW TV.
If you’ve never seen handball before then you’re in for a treat as Sky Sports brings you the best players in the top competition this January and February.
