The South Korean men’s national handball team opens its 20th Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games campaign on September 21, 2026, facing Kuwait in its opening Group B match, according to the Korea Handball Federation.
Group B Match Schedule and Opponents
Head coach Cho Young-shin leads a South Korean squad placed in Group B alongside Bahrain, Kuwait, Iran, and Kazakhstan, according to the Korea Handball Federation. Following the opening match against Kuwait scheduled for 5:00 p.m. local time on September 21, South Korea faces Iran on September 22, Bahrain on September 23, and Kazakhstan on September 25.
To prepare for the tournament, the national team conducted domestic training sessions and match-readiness checks, including two friendly matches against Qatar’s national team at Namdong Gymnasium in Incheon to refine tactics and evaluate game flow, according to the federation.
Tournament Format and Historical Context
A total of nine national teams are competing in the men’s handball tournament at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games. Group stage results dictate advancement to the quarterfinals on September 26, followed by the semifinals on September 28 and the medal matches on September 29.
South Korean men’s handball has won six gold medals in Asian Games history, with its most recent championship coming at the 2010 Guangzhou Asian Games. The federation notes that the current squad aims to evaluate its competitive standing against Asian rivals during the tournament.
“We have prepared so that the players can fully display their abilities on the big stage of the Asian Games,” Cho Young-shin stated, according to the Korea Handball Federation. “We will do our best from the group stage to focus on every single match and achieve our targeted results.”
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