The Jordanian national youth handball team will begin its journey in the third edition of the Asian Youth Games (Bahrain 2025), hosted by the Bahraini capital, Manama, with a strong and highly anticipated match against its Saudi counterpart on Monday at 5:00 PM local time (which coincides with Mecca and Amman time).

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This match is doubly important as it is the official start of the youth team's journey in the tournament. It is also an early Gulf-Asian clash with a special character, as both teams seek to secure their first two points to strengthen their positions in the difficult Group A. In addition to Jordan and Saudi Arabia, Group A includes the Maldives, Bahrain (the host), and Hong Kong, making the competition for the two qualifying spots for the next round intense.

The match comes after the Saudi team achieved a huge and surprising victory (in terms of points difference) over the Maldives, 71-7, on Sunday evening.

This crushing result clearly indicates the Saudi national team's high offensive readiness and the danger posed by its players. It also presents the Jordanian national team with a major challenge that requires the utmost concentration and vigilance, especially defensively.

The national team's technical staff recognizes that the opening match is key to progressing, and will seek to develop a solid tactical plan that can limit the Saudi players' speed and effectiveness on the counterattack, in addition to exploiting their defensive weaknesses to score with the fewest individual errors.

Tournament Lineup and Critical Qualifying System:

The youth handball competition at the Asian Youth Games will feature 11 promising Asian teams, divided into two main groups: Group A, which includes five teams (Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Maldives, Bahrain, and Hong Kong), and Group B, which includes six teams.

According to the tournament regulations, the competition in the group stage will be extremely intense, as only the top two teams in each group advance to the semi-finals (final four).

This means that the margin for error is very narrow for the Jordanian team, and that a victory over Saudi Arabia will put the team in a strong position in the race to secure one of the two qualification spots for Group A, especially since the match against host Bahrain will be the most difficult factor at this stage.

Hopes of the "Brave" in Umm Al Hassam Hall:

All Group A matches will be held at Umm Al Hassam Hall, the same hall that will host tomorrow's summit. The national team has worked hard over the past period to reach the highest levels of harmony and physical fitness in preparation for this important continental tournament.

The match against Saudi Arabia represents a true measure of the level of development achieved by the Jordanian youth handball team.

The national team will rely on the high fighting spirit of the players and the technical instructions provided by the coaching staff to capitalize on every attack and minimize individual errors, which could cost the team dearly against a strong team like the Saudi "Green Team."

Winning this match opens up the prospects for qualification and relieves the pressure on the players before facing host Bahrain.

Jordanian fans are eagerly awaiting this encounter, pinning their hopes on the "Nashama" to deliver a performance worthy of Jordanian handball at this major Asian event, which represents an ideal platform for young players to gain experience and excel at the continental level.

Jordanian ParticipationJordan is participating in the Asian Youth Games (Bahrain 2025) with a delegation of 120 male and female players, representing the following sports: handball, volleyball, mixed martial arts, taekwondo, basketball, muay Thai, golf, boxing, athletics, triathlon, cycling, e-sports, swimming, wrestling, judo, jiu-jitsu, equestrian, camel racing, and kurash.

The official launch of the tournament will be announced during the opening ceremony next Wednesday, with more than 4,000 athletes from 45 National Olympic Committees expected to participate.

It's worth noting that Jordan has won three medals in the previous two editions of the Asian Youth Games, achieved by national squash player Mohammed Al-Sarraj, and national taekwondo players Anas Al-Aourani and Rania Al-Fawareh.