The Bundesliga four are favorites in the doubles meeting and now have everything in their own hands before the return to Germany in a week.
Kristianstad started briskly and took the lead with 3-1, but then lost the initiative and had to fight uphill when Magdeburg showed class.
The Germans - with the Swedes Tobias Thulin and Daniel Pettersson in the team - equalized to 6-6, took the lead with 7-6 and then never let go.
16-13 to the guests at half time was eventually 34-28 in Kristianstad arena.
- At half time it felt good, we were quite involved, then something strange happened.
We had a bad period at the beginning of the second half and lost energy.
Then we looked like schoolboys for the last 15 minutes and of course you do not like that, says Kristianstad's coach Uff Larsson in Viasat's broadcast.
- They did not feel unbeatable but then they were still.
IFK lost their captain Olafur Gudmundsson who injured himself in the second half.
- I do not know how bad it is.
It felt like the air went out of us a bit there, we definitely need him in matches like this, says Ulf Larsson.