| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Dates | 4–13 December |
| Teams | 16 (from 3 confederations) |
| Final positions | |
| Champions |  Yugoslavia (1st title) |
| Runner-up |  Soviet Union |
| Third place |  Czechoslovakia |
| Fourth place |  Sweden |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 48 |
| Goals scored | 2,127 (44.31 per match) |
The 1981 Men's Junior World Handball Championship was the third edition of the IHF Men's Junior World Championship, held in Portugal from 4 to 13 December 1981.