Norway play Croatia, Ukraine and Switzerland on their way to a potential title defence as the way to the Women’s EHF EURO 2018 was determined for 28 teams at the qualification draw in Paris on Friday.
Olympic champions Russia have been drawn to Group 4 with Romania, Austria and Portugal while EHF EURO 2016 and World Championship 2015 silver medallists, Netherlands, face Hungary, Belarus and the winners of Group B in Qualification Phase 1.
The overview for all seven groups looks as follows
| Group 1 | Group 2 | Group 3 | Group 4 | Group 5 | Group 6 | Group 7 |
| Norway | Montenegro | Sweden | Romania | Denmark | Spain | Netherlands |
| Croatia | Poland | Serbia | Russia | Czech Republic | Germany | Hungary |
| Ukraine | Slovakia | FYR Macedonia | Austria | Slovenia | Turkey | Belarus |
| Switzerland | Italy | Winners Gr. A | Portugal | Iceland | Lithuania | Winners Gr. B |
15 teams will eventually qualify for the Women’s EHF EURO 2018. Hosts France are the only team that is directly qualified. The top two teams from each group as well as the best third ranked team overall will make their way to the final tournament. To determine the best third ranked team only the matches played against the teams ranked first and second will be taken into account.
The qualification rounds will be played on the following dates
- Rounds 1 & 2: 27 September to 1 October 2017
- Rounds 3 & 4: 21 to 25 March 2018
- Rounds 5 & 6: 30 May to 3 June 2018
The final tournament takes place from 30 November to 16 December 2018. The five host cities are Nancy, Nantes, Brest, Montbéliard and Paris. Main round matches will take place in Nancy and Nantes; the final weekend will be played in Paris.
