MUNICH (Germany) - The EuroCup Women Finals 2026 will see either CIMSA CBK Mersin write their name on the trophy for the very first time, or Athinaikos Qualco take another glorious title success some 16 years after their first.
If Athinaikos do finish as champions again, they will become only the fifth club in competition history to lift the coveted silverware more than once.
Meanwhile, if Mersin manage to take a landmark and historical footstep, they will become the 18th different winner in just 22 editions of the famous competition.
Athinaikos Qualco vs CIMSA CBK Mersin
First leg: Thursday, April 2 - 19:30 CET (Gylfada, Greece) Second leg: Thursday, April 9 - 19:00 CET (Mersin, Türkiye)
Form guide: It's been an impressive campaign for Athinaikos. Not only winning 11 of 14 EuroCup Women games, but also beating many talented sides such as Besiktas, Sopron Basket and Perfumerias Avenida along the way.
Domestically, it's one of the most competitive Greek league seasons ever with Panathinaikos A.C and Olympiacos SFP in the mix. But Athinaikos will compete in the Finals and could finish with a Championship title to their name.
Mersin had a torrid time in EuroLeague Women with a 1-5 record. Landing in EuroCup Women, what a contrast with their perfect 8-0 record. This also includes a change of coaches from Georgios Dikaioulakos to Ekrem Memnun.
In the Turkish league, they finished fourth with a 14-6 record and are looking to make a splash in the Play-Offs. They could challenge, but it'll be tough to beat Istanbul giants Fenerbahce Opet or Galatasaray Cagdas Faktoring.
Key matchup: The February-March MVP award underlines the quality of Kennedy Burke for Mersin. She also showcased her abilities recently at the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup 2026 Qualifying Tournaments on her debut for Türkiye. Burke's do-it-all approach will be hard to contain and she has become a driving force for Mersin.
Who takes on that defensive assignment will be key for Athinaikos, with options available. Of course it could end up being a mouth-watering matchup with Alexis Prince, a baller who has been just as impactful for Athinaikos. We must wait and see when the action gets underway, but we're expecting fireworks on the floor!
X-factor: Julie Vanloo could be a huge 'X-Factor' for Mersin. Out injured for some time, the guard is back healthy again and could unlock this tie. She has the capacity when she gets on a roll to change the momentum and spark game-defining runs with her play.
Effective in the open court, always liable to make it rain from-long-range and experienced enough to make plays and shots when opportunities present, how she plays across the tie could be the deciding factor in the Finals.
Stats Don't Lie: Across most categories the teams are well matched, but Mersin do have the edge over their opponents in more areas - including almost 8 points more per game. Perhaps most notably, they score more than double the fast break points than Athinaikos, with an impressive 20 compared to just 9.9 for their opponents.
The good news for Athinaikos is that they do have the advantage in a few specific areas, not least in second chance points where they punish teams with 12.9 points per game, compared to just 7.9 for Mersin.
Did you know? Athinaikos playcaller Stella Kaltsidou and Holly Winterburn celebrated winning a EuroCup Women title success together just two years ago at London Lions.
Will it be third time lucky for Mersin? While this is their first Finals in EuroCup Women, they fell short last season in the EuroLeague Women title game and also in 2023, too.
FIBA