The pace of ticket sales has been extraordinary, with only a few hundred tickets left for Denmark's first game against Serbia on 1 December at the impressive 12,500-capacity Jyske Bank Boxen in Herning. Organisers have also confirmed to Inside The Games that the semi-finals, final and match for third place are almost sold out in the small Danish town of just under 50,000 people in the middle of the Jutland Peninsula.

Norway are favourites to defend the title they won two years ago in Spain (29-22 in the final against France). They have also won the gold medal at the last two European Championships and are in great form in the year before the Paris Olympics, for which they have already qualified and where they will be looking to improve on the bronze medal they won at the last two editions.

They will be led by the right-back Nora Mork (Team Esbjerg, Denmark), who has transcended the sport to become a prominent figure in Norway, and captain and centre-half Stine Bredal Oftedal (Gyori ETO, Hungary). Not forgetting their historic left-back Camilla Herren, who plays for Sola HK in her home country and has scored 834 international goals, just six behind Mork.

The Danish women's handball has lost some of its power after winning three Olympic gold medals between 1996 and 2004 but failing to qualify for either Rio 2016 or Tokyo 2020. However, they made an impact at the last World Championship, where they took a bronze medal after beating hosts Spain 35-28. Notable players include left-back Anne Mette Hansen and right-back Louise Burgard (both from Metz, France) and veteran goalkeeper Sandra Toft (Gyori ETO).

The Swedish women's handball team has only been on the podium twice: the silver medal at the 2010 European Championships, where they lost the final to Norway 25-20, and the bronze medal in 2014, when they beat Montenegro 25-23 in the consolation final. Their three main players are right back Nathalie Hagman (Ramnicu Valcea, Romania), left back Jamina Roberts (Vipers, Norway) and pivot Linn Blohm (Gyori ETO).

In addition to the three Scandinavian teams, France are the reigning Olympic champion and world and continental champions. France boast emblematic players such as the centre-backs Estelle Nze Minko (Gyori ETO) and Grâce Zaadi (CSM Bucuresti, Romania), the pivot Pauletta Foppa (Brest Bretagne, France), and right-back Paula Flippes (CSM Bucuresti).

In the next group of notable teams, the Spanish team led by the acclaimed Ambros Martín (who won four Champions titles with Gyori ETO), Brazil (sixth at the last World Championship), and the Netherlands (gold in 2019 and ninth at the last edition). Russia will not be participating either as a country or as a neutral team.

The top-ranked team still not qualified will secure a direct place at the Olympic Games, while the quarter-finalists will qualify for one of the pre-Olympic tournaments. The 32 teams have been divided into eight groups of four teams each, with the top three from each group progressing to the second round. From there, the quarter-finals will be decided.

Hosts Sweden are joined by Croatia, China and Senegal in Group A in Gothenburg. Montenegro, Hungary, Cameroon, and Paraguay will battle it out in Group B in the Swedish city of Helsingborg. On home soil in Stavanger, Norway will be joined by Korea, Greenland, and Austria in the Group C. Group D featuring France, Slovenia, Angola, and Iceland will also take place in Stavanger.

In the other section of the draw, Denmark will host Group E in Herning, where they will meet Serbia, Chile, and the legendary Cristina Neagu's Romania (29 goals away from 1,000). Herning also hosts Group F with Germany, Poland, Japan, and Iran. Spain, Brazil, Ukraine, and Kazakhstan will play in Frederikshavn, Denmark, which also hosts Group H with the Netherlands, Czech Republic, and Congo.

As well as the aforementioned Jyske Bank Boxen, Denmark has the Arena Nord in Frederikshavn (2,800 spectators), Sweden has the Scandinavium in Gothenburg (12,000) and the Helsingborg Arena (5,500), while Norway has the Trondheim Spektrum (8,800) and the DNB Arena in Stavanger (5,000).