2026 Asian Men's Handball Championship

2026 Asian Men's Handball Championship

Tournament details
Host country	Kuwait
Venues	2
Dates	15–29 January
Teams	15 (from 2 confederations)
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The 2026 Asian Men's Handball Championship will be the 22nd edition of the championship scheduled to be held from 15 to 29 January 2026 in Kuwait, under the aegis of Asian Handball Federation (AHF). ^[1] It will be the fourth time in history that the championship will be organised by the Kuwait Handball Association. It also acts as a qualification tournament for the 2027 World Men's Handball Championship, with top four teams from the championship directly qualifying for the event. If Australia finishes inside the top five, they are qualified as well as the representative of Oceania.

Draw

The draw was held on 15 October 2025 in Fintās, Kuwait. ^{[2] [3]}

Seeding

Pot 1	Pot 2	Pot 3	Pot 4
Qatar   Japan   Bahrain   Kuwait	South Korea   Iran   United Arab Emirates   Iraq	Saudi Arabia   China   Oman   Hong Kong	India   Australia   Jordan

Preliminary round

All times are local (UTC+3).

Group A

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Qatar	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Group I
2	South Korea	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Group II
3	Oman	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Group III

First match(es) will be played: 16 January 2026. Source: AHF
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head number of goals scored; 5) goal difference.

16 January 2026 14:00	Oman	v	Qatar	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

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18 January 2026 16:00	South Korea	v	Oman	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

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20 January 2026 18:00	Qatar	v	South Korea	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

Group B

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Bahrain	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Group II
2	Iraq	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Group I
3	China	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Group IV
4	Jordan	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Group III

First match(es) will be played: 16 January 2026. Source: AHF
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head number of goals scored; 5) goal difference.

16 January 2026 16:00	Jordan	v	Bahrain	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

16 January 2026 18:00	China	v	Iraq	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

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18 January 2026 14:00	Jordan	v	Iraq	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

18 January 2026 18:00	China	v	Bahrain	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

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20 January 2026 14:00	Jordan	v	China	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

20 January 2026 16:00	Iraq	v	Bahrain	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

Group C

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Kuwait (H)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Group I
2	United Arab Emirates	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Group II
3	Hong Kong	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Group III
4	India	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Group IV

First match(es) will be played: 15 January 2026. Source: AHF
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head number of goals scored; 5) goal difference.
(H) Hosts

15 January 2026 14:00	Hong Kong	v	United Arab Emirates	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

15 January 2026 18:00	India	v	Kuwait	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

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17 January 2026 16:00	India	v	United Arab Emirates	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

17 January 2026 18:00	Hong Kong	v	Kuwait	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

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19 January 2026 16:00	India	v	Hong Kong	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

19 January 2026 18:00	United Arab Emirates	v	Kuwait	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

Group D

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Japan	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Group II
2	Iran	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Group I
3	Saudi Arabia	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Group IV
4	Australia	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

First match(es) will be played: 15 January 2026. Source: AHF
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head number of goals scored; 5) goal difference.

15 January 2026 16:00	Australia	v	Japan	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

15 January 2026 20:00	Saudi Arabia	v	Iran	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

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17 January 2026 14:00	Australia	v	Iran	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

17 January 2026 20:00	Saudi Arabia	v	Japan	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

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19 January 2026 14:00	Australia	v	Saudi Arabia	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

19 January 2026 20:00	Iran	v	Japan	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

Martyr Fahad Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah Cup

Group III

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	A3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Ninth place game
2	C3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Eleventh place game
3	B4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	13th place game

First match(es) will be played: 22 January 2026. Source: AHF
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head number of goals scored; 5) goal difference.

22 January 2026 12:00	B4	v	A3
		Report

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23 January 2026 12:00	C3	v	B4
		Report

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25 January 2026 12:00	A3	v	C3
		Report

Group IV

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	B3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Ninth place game
2	D3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Eleventh place game
3	C4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	13th place game
4	D4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

First match(es) will be played: 22 January 2026. Source: AHF
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head number of goals scored; 5) goal difference.

22 January 2026 14:00	C4	v	D3
		Report

22 January 2026 16:00	D4	v	B3
		Report

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23 January 2026 14:00	D4	v	D3
		Report

23 January 2026 16:00	C4	v	B3
		Report

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25 January 2026 14:00	C4	v	D4
		Report

25 January 2026 17:00	B3	v	D3
		Report

13th place game

27 January 2026 12:00	III3	v	IV3
		Report

Eleventh place game

27 January 2026 14:00	III2	v	IV2
		Report

Ninth place game

27 January 2026 16:00	III1	v	IV1
		Report

Main round

Group I

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	A1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Semifinals
2	C1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3	B2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Fifth place game
4	D2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Seventh place game

First match(es) will be played: 22 January 2026. Source: AHF
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head number of goals scored; 5) goal difference.

22 January 2026 12:00	A1	v	D2	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

22 January 2026 16:00	B2	v	C1	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

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23 January 2026 12:00	A1	v	B2	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

23 January 2026 16:00	D2	v	C1	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

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25 January 2026 12:00	B2	v	D2	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

25 January 2026 16:00	A1	v	C1	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

Group II

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	B1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Semifinals
2	D1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3	A2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Fifth place game
4	C2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Seventh place game

First match(es) will be played: 22 January 2026. Source: AHF
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head number of goals scored; 5) goal difference.

22 January 2026 14:00	C2	v	B1	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

22 January 2026 18:00	D1	v	A2	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

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23 January 2026 14:00	A2	v	B1	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

23 January 2026 18:00	D1	v	C2	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

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25 January 2026 14:00	A2	v	C2	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

25 January 2026 18:00	B1	v	D1	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

Final round

Bracket

	Semi-finals				Final
	27 January
	I1
					29 January
	II2
	27 January
	II1
	I2
					Third place
					29 January

Semifinals

27 January 2026 16:00	I1	v	II2	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

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27 January 2026 18:00	II1	v	I2	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

Seventh place game

27 January 2026 12:00	I4	v	II4	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

Fifth place game

27 January 2026 14:00	I3	v	II3	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

Third place game

29 January 2026 16:00	LSF1	v	LSF2	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

Final

29 January 2026 18:00	WSF1	v	WSF2	Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah Covered Halls Complex, Sabah Al-Salem
		Report

Final ranking

Rank	Team
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15

Qualified for the 2027 World Men's Handball Championship

References

1. "Kuwait to host 2026 handball AFC Asian Cup". Kuwait Times. 24 February 2025. Retrieved 26 November 2025.
2. "Draw for 22nd Asian Men's Handball Championship – Kuwait 2026". AHF. 9 October 2025. Retrieved 26 November 2025.
3. "Draw Results of 22nd Asian Men's Handball Championship – Kuwait 2026". AHF. 16 October 2025. Retrieved 26 November 2025.