The International Handball Federation (IHF) has decided to change which groups are merged in the intermediate round and writes in an email to Danish TV2 that it will mean "less stress and less logistics" as the team can stay in the same cities during the championship.
A decision that means that France, Russia, Norway, Sweden, the Netherlands and Montenegro, which were the top six teams during the Olympics in Tokyo, are all in the same half, where only two can reach the semifinals.
The national team captain Tomas Axnér did not find out about the change until Tuesday - but admits that it makes Sweden's chances in the World Cup, which will be decided 2-19 December, more difficult.
- It is of course a macabre stage change and a scenario that disadvantages the highest ranked teams that should have played more favorable conditions than lower ranked teams.
We were not among the highest ranked teams but our chances of reaching a semifinal have of course decreased, he says to Aftonbladet.
Axnér believes that Spain has benefited from the fact that host countries often have a lot to say about in World Cup contexts.
- Yes, that is probably the most macabre thing.
And the argument about travel and logistics feels like a pretty thin argument.
We are arranging the WC 2023 in Sweden, let's see if we can enjoy the same privileges then, he says.