The 1981 Pan American Men's Handball Championship was the second edition of the tournament, held in Buenos Aires, Argentina from 9 to 14 November 1981. It acted as the American qualifying tournament for the 1982 World Championship.
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Host country |  Argentina |
| Venue(s) | 1 (in 1 host city) |
| Dates | 9–14 November |
| Teams | 7 (from 1 confederation) |
| Final positions | |
| Champions |  Cuba (2nd title) |
| Runner-up |  Brazil |
| Third place |  United States |
| Fourth place | Argentina |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 15 |
| Goals scored | 793 (52.87 per match) |
Preliminary round edit
Group A edit
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Argentina (H)
|
3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 85 | 51 | +34 | 6 | Semifinals |
| 2 | United States
|
3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 121 | 46 | +75 | 4 | |
| 3 |  Paraguay
|
3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 58 | 101 | −43 | 2 | |
| 4 |  Chile
|
3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 40 | 106 | −66 | 0 |
Source: Todor66
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head number of goals scored; 5) goal difference.
(H) Hosts
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head number of goals scored; 5) goal difference.
(H) Hosts
| 9 November 1981 | Argentina
|
23–22 (ET) | United States
|
|
|
FT: 18–18 ET: 5–4 | ||||
| 9 November 1981 | Paraguay
|
29–17 | Chile
|
|
| 10 November 1981 | Argentina
|
36–14 | Paraguay
|
|
| 10 November 1981 | United States
|
51–8 | Chile
|
|
| 11 November 1981 | Argentina
|
26–15 | Chile
|
|
| 11 November 1981 | United States
|
48–15 | Paraguay
|
|
Group B edit
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cuba
|
2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 68 | 45 | +23 | 4 | Semifinals |
| 2 | Brazil
|
2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 51 | 49 | +2 | 2 | |
| 3 |  Mexico
|
2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 40 | 65 | −25 | 0 |
Source: Todor66
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head number of goals scored; 5) goal difference.
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head points; 3) head-to-head goal difference; 4) head-to-head number of goals scored; 5) goal difference.
| 9 November 1981 | Brazil
|
29–17 | Mexico
|
|
| (14–6) | ||||
| 10 November 1981 | Cuba
|
36–23 | Mexico
|
|
| 11 November 1981 | Cuba
|
32–22 | Brazil
|
|
| (15–12) | ||||
Knockout stage edit
Bracket edit
| Semi-finals | Final | |||||
| 13 November | ||||||
| Argentina | 30 | |||||
| 14 November | ||||||
| Brazil (ET) | 35 | |||||
| Brazil | 20 | |||||
| 13 November | ||||||
| Cuba | 34 | |||||
| Cuba | 35 | |||||
| United States | 29 | |||||
| Third place | ||||||
| 14 November | ||||||
| Argentina | 22 | |||||
| United States | 25 | |||||
Fifth place bracket
| 5–7th place semifinals | Fifth place game | |||||
| 13 November | ||||||
| Mexico | 35 | |||||
| 14 November | ||||||
| Chile | 12 | |||||
| Mexico | 36 | |||||
| Paraguay | 21 | |||||
5–7th place semifinal edit
| 13 November 1981 | Mexico
|
31–12 | Chile
|
|
Semifinals edit
| 13 November 1981 | Brazil
|
35–30 (ET) | Argentina
|
|
|
FT: 22–22 ET: 5–5, 8–3 | ||||
| 13 November 1981 | Cuba
|
35–29 | United States
|
|
Fifth place game edit
| 14 November 1981 | Mexico
|
36–21 | Paraguay
|
|
Third place game edit
| 14 November 1981 | United States
|
25–22 | Argentina
|
|
Final edit
| 14 November 1981 | Cuba
|
34–20 | Brazil
|
|
Final ranking edit
| Qualified for the 1982 World Championship |
| Rank | Team |
|---|---|
 |
Cuba
|
 |
Brazil
|
 |
United States
|
| 4 | Argentina
|
| 5 | Mexico
|
| 6 | Paraguay
|
| 7 | Chile
|