What happened at EuroBasket 2025 Qualifiers

On November 7 and 10, women’s national teams from across Europe participated in the second qualifying window for FIBA Women’s EuroBasket 2025, which will take place June 18-29, 2025. The third qualifying window is scheduled for February 2025.

16 teams will reach the Final Round, with the four co-host countries having qualified automatically: Czechia, Germany, Italy and Greece.

Here are the key takeaways from the second window of qualifiers, headlined by Turkey and Sweden earning a spot in the Final Round:

Turkey is tops

At the moment, it seems that Turkey is the best women’s basketball country in Europe. Their club teams, headlined by back-to-back EuroLeague Women champion Fenerbahçe, are dominating club competition, and the national team isn’t far behind. In this round of games, the Turkish-born athletes were aided by Teaira McCowan of the Dallas Wings, who averaged 24 points and 10 rebounds in the two wins over Romania, 101-54, and Slovakia, 65-50.

Sweden also progressed to the final phase, and they should be followed by France and Serbia in February, as the two teams are also unbeaten. One might expect Belgium to be in the group too, as they managed to pick up two wins, but the Cats haven’t been as dominant as one might expect.

Emma Meesseman is out of this world

Nevertheless, Belgium wouldn’t be where they are if it wasn’t for their center Emma Meesseman, who, again, was handling defensive, playmaking and scoring duties, carrying her team to two wins. In the win against Lithuania, 81-70, she had 17 points, seven boards and four steals, as there was no need for her to go that extra mile and take over. The next contest against Poland required more work from her. She had 29 points, eight boards and four dimes, and stepped up when her team needed her the most, as Poland was on its way to pull off another major upset, as it did against Belgium in the previous round of games last fall. This time though, Poland committed mistakes—missing free throws, giving up a nine-point lead and committing 20 turnovers—which the Belgians capitalized on to win 80-77. Thanks to the win, they are the top team in Group C.

Luxembourg keep the fairytale alive

The smallest country in the competition—with a population of 700,000—still has a chance at making the final stage after beating Montenegro (without Natasha Mack) 71-49, thanks to an awesome performance by Amanda Brooke Cahill, who had 32 points and nine boards. The Indiana graduate currently is playing for Grengewald in the Luxembourg Basketball League. Another notable player for Luxembourg is Faith Eti Etute, the Oregon freshman forward who is averaging 15.1 points, 13 boards and 3.3 steals for her national team during the competition. Her younger sister, Joyce Isi, also got to debut in this round of games. While she didn’t play much, she showed that the Etute sisters may form the country’s frontcourt for years to come.

Shepard’s, Hillsman’s debuts go as planned

The Minnesota Lynx’s Jessica Shepard and Khaalia Hillsman, a former standout at Texas A&M, played great for their new national teams, allowing Slovenia and Bulgaria, respectively, to win their games. Slovenia beat Finland 84-62, and Shepard had 29 points and 23 boards. In the next game, a win over Hungary, she had 17 points and 17 boards. Thanks to her, Slovenia sits atop Group B. The bottom team in the same group is Bulgaria, who stunned Hungary in Hillsman’s debut, 83-68, following 25 points and 12 boards by the big, who is playing for Besiktas in the Turkish Women’s Super League and EuroCup Women. In the next game, a loss to Finland, Hillsman still shined, with 22 points and 10 boards.

Women’s EuroBasket 2025 group standings

Group A

1. Spain (4-0)
2. Croatia (2-2)
3. Netherlands (2-2)
4. Austria (0-4)

Group B

1. Slovenia (3-1)
2. Hungary (2-2)
3. Finland (2-2)
4. Bulgaria (1-3)

Group C

1. Belgium (3-1)
2. Lithuania (3-1)
3. Poland (2-2)
4. Azerbaijan (0-4)

Group D

1. Sweden (4-0)*
2. Great Britain (2-2)
3. Denmark (1-3)
4. Estonia (1-3)

Group E

1. France (4-0)
2. Latvia (2-2)
3. Israel (2-2)
4. Ireland (0-4)

Group F

1. Turkey (4-0)*
2. Slovakia (2-2)
3. Romania (1-3)
4. Iceland (1-3)

Group G

1. Serbia (4-0)
2. Portugal (3-1)
3. Ukraine (1-3)
4. North Macedonia (0-4)

Group H

1. Luxembourg (3-1)
2. Montenegro (3-1)
3. Switzerland (2-2)
4. Bosnia and Herzegovina (0-4)

Group I

1. Italy (3-1)*
2. Germany (3-1)*
3. Greece (2-2)*
4. Czechia (0-4)*

*=qualified; all teams in Group I automatically qualify as co-hosts