Handball team
South Korea
Club · South Korea · Asian Games
South Korea last stood on top of Asia in 2012, and the years since have turned into a running argument with Qatar, which has taken the continental title four times running, in 2018, 2020, 2022 and 2024, pushing the Koreans into the runner-up spot more often than not.
Against Japan, the meetings carry an older weight, shaped by history rather than a league table, and are still played that way.
One result sits above the rest. At the 1988 Seoul Olympics, on home ground, South Korea reached the final and took silver — the only Asian team ever to medal in Olympic handball.
Matches now move between venues, though the Seoul Olympic Park Handball Arena, with room for just over 5,000, hosts more than most, and the national squad still trains at the Jincheon centre. The federation behind all of it, the Korea Handball Federation, was set up on 27 July 1945 and brought the sport into the International Handball Federation in 1960, eleven years before the national team took the floor for its first international match, against Israel in Tokyo in November 1971.
Latest results
Fixtures and results| 29 Sep | Asian Games |
Japan
A
|
32:37 | L |
| 28 Sep | Asian Games |
Qatar
H
|
30:32 | L |
| 26 Sep | Asian Games |
China
H
|
32:26 | W |
| 25 Sep | Asian Games |
Kazakhstan
A
|
44:22 | W |
| 23 Sep | Asian Games |
Bahrain
H
|
21:30 | L |
| 22 Sep | Asian Games |
Iran
A
|
26:26 | D |
Standing
Asian GamesGroup stage · Group B
| # | Team | M | W | D | L | Goals | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Bahrain
|
4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0:86 | 8 |
| 2 |
 South Korea
|
4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0:101 | 5 |
| 3 |
 Kuwait
|
4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0:97 | 4 |
| 4 |
Iran
|
4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0:109 | 3 |
| 5 |
Kazakhstan
|
4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0:158 | 0 |
Team statistics
matches counted in total: 44| Metric | Total | Home | Away |
|---|---|---|---|
| Matches | 44 | 19 | 25 |
| Scored | 1311 | 563 | 748 |
| Conceded | 1272 | 526 | 746 |
| Scored per game | 29.8 | 29.6 | 29.9 |
| Conceded per game | 28.9 | 27.7 | 29.8 |
| Difference | +39 | +37 | +2 |
Fixtures of South Korea
Honours of South Korea
- Asian Men's Handball Championship 1983, 1987, 1989, 1991, 1993, 2000, 2008, 2010, 2012 9
- IHF World Men's Handball Championship 1997 1
- Olympic Games 1988 1