ABIDJAN (Cote d'Ivoire) - The next stars of African basketball are set to battle in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, as the 2026 FIBA U18 AfroBasket takes center stage at Palais des Sports de Treichville from 5 to 16 August.
Twelve teams will be competing not just to be African champions but also to earn the right to represent the continent at next year’s U19 FIBA Basketball World Cup in Czechia.
Competition format
The twelve competing teams are drawn into three groups of four. Each team will play all the other teams in its own group, from which the top two will automatically advance to the quarterfinals, while the other two slots will go to the best third-placed teams across the three groups.
The remaining four teams will play in the classification matches for places 9 to 12.
The quarter-final winners will contest the semi-finals, whilst the four losing teams will play the classification matches for places 5 to 8.
The semi-final winners will contest the final, and the two losing teams will play for third place.
Who is competing?
Group A: Côte d’Ivoire, Egypt, Chad, Nigeria
The hosts, Côte d’Ivoire, will be looking to better their performance in 2024 when they finished ninth.
They will be in an uphill battle against Nigeria, looking to impress having proven to be too strong in the Zone 3 qualifiers, but will have to bring the same energy.
Chad might be the underdog, but they have one of the top prospects on the continent in Ngaba Yaya, who was a dominant force in the Zone 4 qualifiers, during which he averaged 24.2 points per game.
Record champions Egypt looked comfortable in the Zone 5 qualifiers until the final, but that could have been a good reality check for coaches to fix any issues. The Egyptians come into the tournament with game momentum, having played competitively last week.
Group B: Mali, Madagascar, Gabon, Morocco
Mali, the defending champions, have been dominant in recent years, winning three of the last five tournaments. Size has been a big aspect of their game with a good mix of finesse, and that is something Gabon, Madagascar and 2024 semifinalists Morocco will be up against.
Madagascar found little resistance in the Zone 6 qualifiers last week, winning all four of their games, but the challenge has risen a notch higher.
Group C: Cameroon, Tunisia, Rwanda, Senegal
With two of last edition’s podium finishers in Cameroon and Senegal, Group C promises to be interesting, especially with Rwanda and Tunisia, who were particularly impressive in their respective zonal qualifiers, completing the pool.
Rwanda come into the tournament with game momentum, having played the Zone 5 Qualifiers just over a week ago and demonstrated a lot of patience on offense and good team defense.
Senegal have always had good size to dominate the glass and protect the paint. The size is in abundance for the Senegalese.
Cameroon were impressive on their debut in South Africa in 2024, playing in the final, which set a standard for the country at U18 AfroBasket.
Opening Day Fixtures
Action starts on Wednesday with Madagascar playing Gabon in the first match of the day at 10:00 (GMT), followed by Morocco versus Mali at 12:30 (GMT) and the battle of record champions between Egypt and Nigeria at 15:00 (GMT).
The last gam of the day will be between Côte d’Ivoire and Chad at 18:30 (GMT).
FIBA