In 1977 a B-tournament was introduced and later in 1986 a C-tournament which served as qualification for the real championship or A-tournament.

Between 1978 and 1990 it was held every fourth alternating with the Olympic tournament (introduced for women handball in 1976).

The table shows players who have won at least 3 gold medals at the World Championships.

** including two medals won at the 1956 and 1960 World Outdoor Field Handball Championships The table shows players who have won at least 4 medals in total at the World Championships.

The record-holder for scored goals in a single World Championship is Bojana Radulović.