Bahrain’s Handball Team Sets Asian Target

Red Wolves Ready to Impress at Prestigious Yellow Cup

Bahrain’s men’s handball team arrived in Switzerland to compete in the 52nd Yellow Cup, one of Europe’s most prestigious handball tournaments. The three-day event begins tomorrow and continues through Saturday at Winterthur Central Sports Hall. As part of a focused preparation program ahead of the 22nd Asian Men’s Handball Championship in Kuwait later this month, the Kingdom’s representatives will face North Macedonia, Switzerland, and Ukraine.

The team comes into the Yellow Cup following two tough friendly matches against Portugal, who finished fourth in last year’s IHF Men’s Handball World Championship. In the first encounter, Portugal won 39-29, while the second match ended 40-28 in Portugal’s favor, with Bahrain taking the first set 14-13 before Portugal responded with 14-7 and 13-7 in the following sets. Despite the losses, the games provided a valuable opportunity for Bahrain’s coaching staff to evaluate the squad’s form, build cohesion, and identify areas for improvement ahead of the Yellow Cup in Switzerland.

Bahrain will open their campaign tomorrow against North Macedonia at 10:30 PM. They then meet hosts Switzerland Friday at 10:15 PM before concluding the tournament against Ukraine on Saturday at 5:30 PM.  

Head coach Robert Hedin has named a 19-player squad led by captain Hussain Al Sayyad. The roster includes key national-team regulars alongside Bahrain’s top emerging talent, such as Mohammed Abdulhussain, Mohammed Habib Ahmed, Mohammed Habib Nasser, Hassan Al Samaheeji, Hussain Mahfoudh, Jaffar Abdulshaheed, Mohammed Hameed, Hesham Ahmed, Salman Al Showaikh, Qassim Qamber, Ahmed Redha, Sayed Ali Basem, Hassan Madan, Ahmed Almaqabi, Ali Mahmood, Jassim Khamis, Ali Redha, and Ali Alasheeri.

Looking beyond Europe, Bahrain will soon compete in the Asian Men’s Handball Championship, running from January 15 to 29 in Kuwait. This tournament also doubles as the qualifier for the 2027 IHF Men’s Handball World Championship in Germany. Drawn into Group B alongside Iraq, China, and Jordan, the Red Wolves will need to finish among the top two in their group to advance to the main round, with semi-finalists from that stage earning automatic berths at the World Championship.

Last year’s gold medals at the Islamic Solidarity Games demonstrated the team’s potential, but the Yellow Cup provides a final opportunity to test their strategies and build cohesion before the continental stage. With tough opponents and high stakes ahead, all eyes will be on Hedin's men to challenge Asia’s best.