Italian
The men’s handball national team beats Georgia 18-12 and advances to the World League semifinals. On Saturday, they will face Greece.
SYDNEY (AUSTRALIA) – The journey of the Settebello continues in the men’s Super Final of the World League. They defeated Georgia 18-12 in the quarter-finals, paving the way to the semi-final against Greece, which in turn defeated Montenegro 14-13.
The Azzurri started strong, taking a 4-0 lead thanks to the doubles from Ferrero and Condemi. Georgia recovered at the beginning of the second half, closing the gap to -1, but Italy always maintained a two-goal advantage. In the third quarter, the Settebello extended their lead to 13-8 and then controlled the game until the final score of 18-12.
Now the Azzurri will return to the pool on Saturday, July 25 at 12:15 PM Italian time (live on Rai Play and delayed at 3:00 PM on Rai Sport). The final for first place is scheduled for Sunday, July 26 at 10:00 AM, and the third place match at 6:30 AM.
The statements
“We approached the match well – comments head coach Alessandro Campagna – We started strong, created many counterattacks, and raised the tempo right from the beginning. Then we suffered their comeback, but that was expected because they are experienced players with significant weight who play in European cups with important clubs. Between the end of the first half and the beginning of the second, we felt their physical contact a bit, made some mistakes with one man down, but then we managed to develop a nice game, especially in the third period where I was very pleased with the team. Many players went into marking and this is a very positive sign. Certainly, we conceded some goals that in crucial matches, especially in the semifinals, cannot be allowed, and we will work on this in the next two days. The match against Greece will be tough.”
The scorecard
Italy-Georgia 18-12
Italy: Del Lungo, Cassia 2, Guerrato 1, Cannella 2, Ferrero 3, Patchaliev, Dolce 1, Gianazza 1, Iocchi Gratta 2, Del Basso 1, Condemi 3, Carnesecchi 1 (pen), Nicosia, Alesiani 1. Coach: Campagna
Georgia: Gvetadze, Tkeshelashvili, Dadvani 3, Shushiashvili, Bitadze 1, Vasic 2 (1 pen), Jakhaia, Akhvlediani 2, Meskhi, Magrakvelidze, Chikovani, Rogac 1, Kapanadze, Adeishvili 3. Coach: Chomakhidze
Referees: Kun Gyorgy (Hun) and Zhang Liang (Chn)
Notes: numerical advantages: Italy 7/13 + one penalty and Georgia 4/12 + one penalty. Dadvani (G) sent off with substitution at 5’38” of the second half. Tkeshelashvili (G) exited for foul limit at 3’16” of the fourth quarter
Super Final World Cup 2026
Quarter Finals – July 23
(1) Italy-Georgia 18-12 (4-2, 3-3, 6-3, 5-4)
(2) Greece-Montenegro 14-13 (7-3, 2-3, 3-4, 2-3)
(3) 10:30 Spain-Australia
(4) 12:15 Hungary-Croatia
Semifinals – July 25
10:30 winner 3-winner 4
12:15 Italy-Greece live on Rai Play and delayed on Rai Sport (15:00)
Finals – July 26
06:30 third-fourth place
10:00 first-second place
possible live on Rai Play and delayed on Rai Sport (14:30)
Photo Credits: Federnuoto.it
