AUT

After finishing in 14th place at the W17 EHF EURO 2021, the first place which did not secure a direct spot at North Macedonia 2022, Austria were awarded a Wild Card and will make their second consecutive appearance at the IHF Women’s Youth (U18) World Championship, after finishing 15th four years ago.

Progressing to the make round will make sure they could at least tie that performance and, therefore, the games against Portugal and the Faroe Islands will be paramount for the young Austria team, who have won only two of the matches played in the competition.

They have also won only a single game out of the seven they played last summer at the W17 EHF EURO, which means that a big improvement will have to be made in order to contend for a better place at the end of the tournament.

Back Santina Sabatnig, who was the 12th best scorer at the W17 EHF EURO 2021 with 35 goals, will be crucial for Austria, as she has plenty of experience, scoring 47 goals in 19 games this season in the Austrian first league. 

Right wing Daniela Weber and centre back Marie Prokop have also featured prominently in the domestic league this season and will be ready for the challenge, despite having not succeeded at the highest level last summer.


Key players: Santina Sabatnig (left back), Daniela Weber (right wing), Marie Prokop (centre back)

Qualification for North Macedonia 2022: Wild Card

History in tournament: 2018: 15th 

Group at North Macedonia 2022: Group C (Denmark, Portugal, Austria, Faroe Islands)