As in the main round of the European Championship, Andy Schmid’s team loses to Croatia
Keystone
The Swiss national handball team loses the first of two test matches against Croatia. In Zadar, the result was 26:34 against the third-placed team in the European Championship.
The Swiss handball team met familiar faces on the Adriatic coast. Croatia had already faced them twice in test matches in the fall. The Swiss achieved a historic first victory over the 2025 World Cup runners-up.
However, the picture on Thursday was similar to that at this year’s European Championship, when Switzerland lost 24:28 in the main round in Malmö just under two months ago after a good start. In Zadar, Andy Schmid’s newly formed team had no chance due to many absences. The Swiss kept up a good fight until the break (14:15) before the favorites made things clear in the second half.
On Saturday, the Swiss have the chance to do better in Osijek and gain confidence for the upcoming tasks. The decisive games in the World Cup qualifiers are coming up in May with the play-offs against Italy.