ROMSO Cyprus Knowledge Base

**2014 European Men's Handball Championship Qualification**
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**Qualification System**
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The qualification for the 2014 European Men's Handball Championship was a two-phase process involving 39 teams from across Europe.

**Direct Qualification**
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Denmark, as both the host nation and defending champion, automatically qualified for the final tournament. This left 38 teams competing for the remaining 15 places at the championship.

**Qualification Phases**
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The qualification process was divided into two phases: a first qualifying round and a second qualifying round.

### First Qualifying Round

The draw for the first qualifying round took place on 27 March 2012, at the EHF headquarters in Vienna, Austria. The 16 teams that were not directly qualified for the final tournament were distributed by lot into four groups of four teams each. The group winners and the two best-placed runners-up from each group progressed to the second qualifying round.

### Second Qualifying Round

The second qualifying round consisted of six teams: the respective group winners from the first qualifying round, and the two best-placed runners-up. These teams competed in a simple round-robin tournament, with the top three teams advancing to the final tournament.

**Schedule**
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The groups for the first qualifying round were played between 8-10 June 2012. The exact dates and locations of these matches are not specified in the provided sources.

**Notable Teams**
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Some notable teams that were eliminated during the qualification process include Germany, which finished third in Group 2, and Slovenia, which finished third in Group 6.

Note: The provided sources do not contain comprehensive information on all teams that participated in the qualification process.