MEXICO CITY (Mexico) – Group B at the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup 2026 Pre-Qualifying Tournament in Mexico City features a crop of nations looking to take the next step and into the elite circle. Both Montenegro (22nd) and New Zealand (26th) are within striking distance to the top in the women’s FIBA World Ranking Presented by Nike, while Mozambique (33rd) and Mexico (45th) are also inside of the Top 50. These teams will be competing for a spot in one of the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup 2026 Qualifying Tournaments taking place in March 2026.
The Favorite: Montenegro
Although they still haven’t qualified for an Olympic Games or FIBA World Cup since their independence in 2006, Montenegro is coming off a very successful showing at EuroBasket Women 2023. There, they finished with 3-3 record (including wins over Top 30 countries like Italy, Greece and Latvia), good for 8th place – their best performance since 2015. Center Natasha Mack led the way by averaging 13.8 points and 11 rebounds on 57.4 shooting from the field.
The Underdog: Mexico
Mexico hasn’t played in a World Cup since 1975 and all 3 of their appearance happened when the event was held in the Americas. However, their recent performances offer a glimmer of hope. They won the 2022 COCABA Women’s Championship and reached the final at 2022 Women’s CentroBasket, where they lost to Puerto Rico. They then fell flat at the 2023 FIBA Women’s AmeriCup, finishing with a 1-4 record. There, they beat Dominican Republic for their only win before being eliminated by Brazil in the Quarterfinals. Forward Claudia Ramos was their top player in the tournament after averaging 10.4 points, 6.2 rebounds and a pair of assists.
The Pivotal Game: New Zealand v Mozambique
Mozambique has a single World Cup appearance in their history (0-3 record in 2014) and are coming off a 5thplace finish at 2023 FIBA AfroBasket. There, they beat Guinea and Côte d’Ivoire to reach the Quarterfinals before being eliminated by Nigeria by just 7 points. They then defeated Uganda and Cameroon to conclude their tournament with a 4-1 record. With center Tamara Seda led the way (she averaged 19.2 points and 11.8 rebounds), they’re hoping to handle Mexico and then beat one of New Zealand or Montenegro to advance to the Semi-Finals. The matchup against the kiwis looms large, as they’ll be going against a squad that finished 4th at last year’s FIBA Women’s Asia Cup. There, New Zealand beat South Korea and Lebanon in the group stage and the Philippines in the Quarterfinals before being eliminated by Japan in the Semi-Finals and losing the 3rd place-game to Australia. Center Penina Davidson averaged 13.6 points and 9.8 rebounds and will battle Seda for supremacy in the paint.
The Open Question: Can Mexico Ride Home Advantage to the Semis?
Despite being the lowest ranked national team of the tournament, Mexico will try to leverage their home court advantage. Mexico City is located 7,350 feet above sea level and the altitude (plus thin air) can become a factor early on, at least until the remaining squads get acclimated to the conditions.
More?
Don’t forget to check the Group A Preview. FIBA