PARIS (France) - One of the biggest forces in world's basketball, 2013 EuroBasket champions France hope to improve on the second place from the last edition to secure just their second title.
It will be France's round 40th appearance at the Final Round as this powerhouse missed out on the tournament on two previous occasions - in 1969 and 1975.
Coming in with an immaculate record in the Qualifiers and a podium from four of the last five entries, France will once again be listed among the favorites. Some big names are missing, such as Rudy Gobert and Victor Wembanyama, but France are set to enter a new era - fielding a mixture of youth and experience led by captain Guerschon Yabusele.
Schedule
August 28: vs Belgium (17:00 CET) August 30: vs Slovenia (17:00 CET) August 31: vs Israel (17:00 CET) September 2: vs Poland (20:30 CET) September 4: vs Iceland (14:00 CET)
Star Player
With a new era for the French basketball ensuing after the 2024 Olympic Tournament in Paris, it's up to Guerschon Yabusele to lead by the example as the captain at FIBA EuroBasket 2025. It will be only his second EuroBasket tournament, but the fifth appearance at a major event as Yabusele already has three second-place finishes under his belt - two from the Olympics and one at the European event.
Now, the 29-year-old forward will shoot for the stars, finishing up his returning season in the NBA and signing a contract with the New York Knicks. Yabusele's intensity in the paint should prove to be crucial with their absences at the event, but there's no need to worry as the captain always brings the energy to the table. His leadership and attitude is something that this team craves as it features several young and debuting stars.
Yabusele is comfortably in the double digit margin in terms of scoring whenever we see him in the national team jersey. He helped France secure their spot with 13.5 points and 7.0 rebounds on average in the Qualifiers. France will sure need something like his near 15 points per game from FIBA EuroBasket 2022 if they want to replicate success of playing for the title, or even succeed in winning it.
History
France have now made it to 40 FIBA EuroBasket Final Rounds, missing out on the main event just twice, back in 1969 and 1975, and they have stepped on all three steps of the podium.
They won the title back in 2013, as Tony Parker and Boris Diaw led the generation to be champions in an event played in Slovenia. France are the reigning runners-up, after losing to Spain in the Final in Germany in 2022, having also finished second in 1949 and 2011.
Third place was theirs on six different occasions, in 1937, 1951, 1953, 1959, and then again in 2005 and 2015.
Champions: 2013 Runners-up: 2011, 2022 Third Place: 1937, 1951, 1953, 1959, 2005, 2015
EuroBasket Top Scorers
Rank | Player | Games | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
1. | Tony Parker | 66 | 1104 |
2. | Stephane Ostrowski | 43 | 706 |
3. | Herve Dubuisson | 49 | 657 |
4. | Boris Diaw | 67 | 581 |
5. | Alain Gilles | 39 | 526 |
6. | Richard Dacoury | 31 | 449 |
7. | Antoine Rigaudeau | 38 | 440 |
8. | Nicolas Batum | 39 | 436 |
9. | Nando De Colo | 46 | 419 |
10. | Jacques Cachemire | 38 | 416 |
How they qualified
Gameday 1: FRA 73-61 CRO Gameday 2: BIH 64-74 FRA Gameday 3: CYP 59-75 FRA Gameday 4: FRA 85-70 CYP Gameday 5: CRO 80-83 FRA Gameday 6: FRA 76-74 BIH
Poll: Where will they finish?
Tickets
FIBA