The buzz around FIBA Women’s EuroBasket 2025 has been growing throughout the WNBA season. With the prestigious European tournament on the horizon, many WNBA players entered the season knowing they would step away for a few weeks in June to represent their countries. Others chose to focus fully on preparing for Europe’s premier tournament by not participating in the WNBA this season, while some decided to remain with their WNBA teams and continue their commitments there.
FIBA Women’s EuroBasket is an exciting time for fans of European basketball. Seeing some of the best talent in the world compete fiercely for their countries, proudly wearing their national jerseys and battling for the title of European’s best, is always a special moment. As we approach the 2025 edition, we have put together a quick primer to get you ready for one of the most highly anticipated tournaments overseas.
1. When is FIBA Women’s EuroBasket 2025 taking place?
FIBA Women’s EuroBasket 2025 will take place from June 18 to June 29, 2025. The tournament kicks off with the opening game between Turkey and France set to start at 4:30 pm (Central European Standard Time – CEST) in Piraeus, Greece, and concludes with the final game on June 29 at 7:30 pm (CEST), also in Piraeus.
2. Where is FIBA Women’s EuroBasket 2025 being played?
For the first time, the tournament will be hosted across four countries, while previous editions were only held in two different locations.
The group phase will be co-hosted by Greece, Czech Republic, Germany, and Italy.
The final phase (quarter-finals onward) will take place exclusively in Greece.
Here are the host cities and venues:
– Greece: Piraeus – Peace and Friendship Stadium
– Italy: Bologna – PalaDozza
– Germany: Hamburg – Inselpark Arena
– Czech Republic: Brno – Starez Arena Vodova
And the fifth location? Your own home! FIBA Women’s EuroBasket 2025 will be broadcast on national networks across Europe. For live streaming, platforms like Courtside 1891 and DAZN will stream all scheduled matches.
3. What is the format and structure of the tournament?
FIBA Women’s EuroBasket 2025 features 16 teams, divided into four groups of four:
GROUP A:
France
Greece (host)
Switzerland
Turkey
GROUP B:
Italy (host)
Lithuania
Serbia
Slovenia
GROUP C:
Belgium
Czech Republic (host)
Montenegro
Portugal
GROUP D:
Germany (host)
Great Britain
Spain
Sweden
Each team will play the others in their group. The top two teams from each group advance to the quarter-finals, while the remaining teams are eliminated.
In the quarter-finals, Group A crosses with Group B, and Group C crosses with Group D. This means the 1st-place team from Group A faces the 2nd-place team from Group B, and vice versa. The same format applies to Groups C and D.
From the quarter-finals onward, all teams will continue playing classification matches to determine final placements from 1st to 8th place.
4. Which teams are participating in the tournament?
The 16 teams that qualified for FIBA Women’s EuroBasket 2025 are Belgium, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Italy, Lithuania, Montenegro, Portugal, Serbia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and Turkey.
Team rosters are still being finalized, but the official tournament website has a team’s page that will update as that information settles.
5. What are these teams playing for?
Most obviously, to be crowned European Champions. But beyond the title, each team has its history to chase and new milestones to reach. Several nations—Germany, Greece, Sweden, Turkey, Great Britain, Montenegro, Portugal, Slovenia, and Switzerland—have never won the trophy.
Among them are some real underdog stories, as Switzerland returns to the tournament after nearly seven decades of absence; Portugal is making its debut at EuroBasket; and Sweden was one of the first teams to officially qualify, securing its spot during the second window of qualifiers, after 12 years of absence.
Some historical champions are looking to return to former glory: the Czech Republic and Italy, two of the hosts of the tournament, will try to relive the successes of 2005 (Czech Republic) and 1938 (Italy), the only time each won the tournament; and Lithuania, which last won in 1997.
Lastly, France (2001, 2009), Serbia (2015, 2021), and Spain—with four titles since 1993—have been dominant forces in recent decades. In the most recent edition, Belgium claimed its first-ever title, pulling off a stunning comeback against Spain, overcoming a 10-point deficit.
But it’s not just about trophies. Teams finishing in the top six will earn automatic bids to one of the qualifying tournaments: the 2026 FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup. Since Germany is already guaranteed a spot as host, if they finish in the top six, seven total teams will secure entry.
6. Who are the favorites to take home the European crown?
Predicting who will come out of the groups is already tricky, let alone guessing who will end up on the podium. Group B is referred to as “Group of Death,” and Group D is extremely competitive as well, with any team capable of finishing first. On the other hand, Group A and Group C might just deliver a few surprises, too.
If I had to make an early podium prediction? I’d say France, Belgium, and Spain.
Too obvious? Probably.
Am I hoping for upsets that shake things up? Absolutely.
7. Who are the WNBA players participating in FIBA Women’s EuroBasket 2025?
Here’s a breakdown of WNBA players and those with past WNBA experience competing or involved with teams at FIBA Women’s EuroBasket 2025:
Belgium
EuroBasket Team: Julie Allemand (Sparks), Julie Vanloo (Valkyries)
WNBA experience – Kyara Linskens, Emma Meesseeman
France
EuroBasket Team: Janelle Salaün (Valkyries)
Remaining in WNBA – Gabby Williams (Storm), Marine Johannès (Liberty), Carla Leite (Valkyries), Dominique Malonga (Storm), Bria Hartley (Sun)
WNBA experience – Valériane Ayayi, Leïla Lacan, Iliana Rupert, Migna Touré, Marième Badiane, Lou Lopez Sénéchal
Great Britain
EuroBasket Team: Temi Fágbénlé (Valkyries)
Remaining in WNBA – Karlie Samuelson (Lynx)
Italy
EuroBasket Team: Cecilia Zandalasini (Valkyries)
WNBA experience – Lorela Cubaj
Slovenia
EuroBasket Team: Jessica Shepard (Lynx)
WNBA experience – Ajša Sivka
Germany
EuroBasket Team: Luisa Geiselsöder (Wings), Leonie Fiebich (Liberty), Nyara Sabally (Liberty)
Remaining in WNBA – Satou Sabally (Mercury)
WNBA experience – Alexis Peterson, Marie Gülich
Turkey
EuroBasket Team: Teaira McCowan (Wings)
WNBA experience – Sevgi Uzun
Montenegro
Remaining in WNBA – Natasha Mack (Mercury)
Greece
WNBA experience – Elena Tsineke, Eleanna Christinaki, Robyn Parks
Lithuania
WNBA experience – Justė Jocytė
Spain
WNBA experience – Raquel Carrera, Maite Cazorla, Helena Pueyo
Serbia
WNBA experience – Yvonne Anderson
Czech Republic
WNBA experience – Petra Holešinská
Sweden
WNBA experience – Frida Eldebrink, Klara Lundquist
It’s unfortunate, but I must also highlight a list of outstanding players who, due to untimely injuries, will not be able to showcase their talents at EuroBasket – a significant loss for both fans and the tournament itself:
Matilde Villa (Italy)
Maite Cazorla (Spain)
Queralt Casas (Spain)
María Conde (Spain)
Megan Gustafson (Spain)
Marie Gülich (Germany)
Anna Stamolamprou (Greece)
Elena Tsineke (Greece)
Marine Fauthoux (France)
8. Which under-the-radar players should fans watch?
It’s tough to choose just a few, but here are 10 rising stars not yet widely known on the WNBA stage who are poised to have a major impact at FIBA Women’s EuroBasket 2025. They’ve been making waves already, and this tournament could be their breakout moment:
Costanza Verona (Italy)
Zala Friskovec (Slovenia)
Marija Lekovic (Montenegro)
Maria Bettencourt (Portugal)
Frieda Bühner (Germany)
Maxuella Lisowa-Mbaka (Belgium)
Klara Lundquist (Sweden)
Mariella Fasoula (Greece)
Awa Fam (Spain)
Angela Dugalić (Serbia)
9. How are the teams preparing?
Most teams have already begun their preparation matches ahead of the tournament. You can follow all the friendly games, matchups, and results using a centralized tracker.
10. The Winsidr Power Rankings
Here’s the latest Power Rankings from Winsidr heading into FIBA Women’s EuroBasket 2025:
- FRANCE
- BELGIUM
- SPAIN
- GERMANY
- SLOVENIA
- ITALY
- SERBIA
- LITHUANIA
- SWEDEN
- TURKEY
- CZECH REPUBLIC
- PORTUGAL
- GREECE
- GREAT BRITAIN
- SWITZERLAND
- MONTENEGRO
Which country do you think will win it all? We would love to hear your tournament predictions–or just see how many fans are ready to cheer for their country! Show your support for your favorite team by commenting on our socials.
