GER

Germany’s history at the IHF Women’s Youth (U18) World Championship had a see-saw pattern over the years, as they either contended for the title or collapsed entirely, finishing in 14th place in 2010 and 11th in 2016.

However, this generation has been truly special, as they sealed the silver medal at the W17 EHF EURO 2021, dropping only two games – one of them being the final against Hungary (19:25), where they only managed to stay close to the champions for the first half.

However, the building blocks are strong: right back Viola Leuchter was named into the All-star Team and was the top scorer of the tournament with 55 goals. Left back Nieke Kühne scored 49 goals and was the fifth best scorer in the competition. 

Leuchter has also gained important experience, having played in the German Bundesliga last season, where she scored 47 goals for Bayer Leverkusen at the age of just 18, making her one of the top 100 top scorers. Kühne has also played at the highest level, but only scored seven goals – yet, these are players who are prepared to feature extensively at North Macedonia 2022.

It will be interesting to see how Germany match up with the Republic of Korea, who are always an unknown before the start of the competition, yet the European powerhouse will surely be favoured in this group ahead of fellow European teams Switzerland and Slovakia.

Whether they will tie their best-ever performance, the second place at North Macedonia 2014, is still to be seen, but this side is primed to have another great outing, judging by its composition and experience.


Key players: Viola Leuchter (right back), Nieke Kühne (left back), Matilda Ehlert (left back)

Qualification for North Macedonia 2022: W17 EHF EURO 2021 – 2nd place

History in tournament: 2010: 14th, 2014: 2nd, 2016: 11th, 2018: 5th 

Group at North Macedonia 2022: Group F (Germany, Switzerland, Slovakia, Republic of Korea)