FIBA Basketball World Cup

The FIBA Basketball World Cup, also known as the FIBA World Cup of Basketball or simply the FIBA World Cup, between 1950 and 2010 known as the FIBA World Championship,^[1] is an international basketball competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the International Basketball Federation (FIBA), the sport's global governing body. It is considered the flagship event of FIBA.^[2]

The tournament structure is similar, but not identical, to that of the FIFA World Cup; both of these international competitions were played in the same year from 1970 through 2014. A parallel event for women's teams, now known as the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup, is also held quadrennially. From 1986 through 2014, the men's and women's championships were held in the same year, though in different countries. The current format of the tournament involves 32 teams competing for the title at venues within the host nation. The winning team receives the Naismith Trophy, first awarded in 1967. The current champions are Spain, who defeated Argentina in the final of the 2019 tournament.

Following the 2014 FIBA championships for men and women, the men's World Cup was scheduled on a new four-year cycle to avoid conflict with the FIFA World Cup. The men's World Cup was held in 2019, in the year following the FIFA World Cup. The women's championship, which was renamed from "FIBA World Championship for Women" to "FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup", after its 2014 edition, will remain on the previous four-year cycle, with championships in the same year as the FIFA World Cup.

The 1994 FIBA World Championship, which was held in Canada, was the first FIBA World Cup tournament in which currently active US NBA players, that had also already played in an official NBA regular season game, were allowed to participate. All FIBA World Championship/World Cup tournaments since then, are thus considered as fully professional level tournaments.

History[]

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File:FIBA World Cup host countries.png

World map depicting the number of times a country has hosted the World Cup. Dark blue: twice; light blue: once.

The FIBA Basketball World Cup was conceived at a meeting of the FIBA World Congress at the 1948 Summer Olympics in London.^[3] Long-time FIBA Secretary-General Renato William Jones urged FIBA to adopt a World Championship, similar to the FIFA World Cup, to be held in every four years between Olympiads. The FIBA Congress, seeing how successful the 23-team Olympic tournament was that year, agreed to the proposal, beginning with a tournament in 1950. Argentina was selected as host, largely because it was the only country willing to take on the task.^[4] Argentina took advantage of the host selection, winning all their games en route to becoming the first FIBA World Champion.

The first five tournaments were held in South America, and teams from the Americas dominated the tournament, winning eight of nine medals at the first three tournaments. By 1963, however, teams from Eastern Europe (the Soviet Union) and Southeast Europe (Yugoslavia), in particular – began to catch up to the teams from the American continents. Between 1963 and 1990, the tournament was dominated by the United States, the Soviet Union, Yugoslavia, and Brazil who together accounted for every medal at the tournament.

The 1994 FIBA World Championship held in Toronto marked the beginning of a new era, as currently active American NBA players participated in the tournament for the first time (prior to that only European and South American professionals were allowed to participate as they were still classified as amateurs),^[5]^[6] while the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia split into many new states. The United States dominated that year and won gold, while the former states of the USSR and Yugoslavia, Russia and Croatia, won silver and bronze. The 1998 FIBA World Championship, held in Greece (Athens and Piraeus), lost some of its luster when the 1998–99 NBA lockout prevented NBA players from participating. The new Yugoslavian team, now consisting of the former Yugoslav republics of Serbia and Montenegro, won the gold medal over Russia, while the USA, with professional basketball players playing in Europe and two college players, finished third.

In 2002, other nations eventually caught up to the four powerhouse countries and their successor states. FR Yugoslavia, led by Peja Stojaković of the Sacramento Kings and Dejan Bodiroga of FC Barcelona won the final game against Argentina, while Dirk Nowitzki, who was the tournament's MVP, led Germany to the bronze, its first ever World Championship medal. Meanwhile, the United States team, this time made up of NBA players, struggled to a sixth-place finish. This new era of parity convinced FIBA to expand the tournament to 24 teams for the 2006, 2010, and 2014 editions of the tournament.^[7]^[8]

In 2006, emerging powerhouse Spain beat Greece in the first appearance in the final for both teams. Spain became only the seventh team (Yugoslavia and FR Yugoslavia are counted separately in the FIBA records)^[9] to capture a World Championship gold. The USA, who lost to Greece in a semi-final, won against Argentina in the third-place match and claimed bronze.

In the 2010 FIBA World Championship final, the USA defeated Turkey and won gold for the first time in 16 years, while Lithuania beat Serbia and won bronze. The United States became the third country to defend the championship, winning against Serbia at the 2014 edition of the tournament. France beat Lithuania in the bronze medal game.

After the 2014 edition, FIBA instituted significant changes to the World Cup. The final competition was expanded from 24 to 32 teams. Also, for the first time since 1967, the competition would no longer overlap with the FIFA World Cup. To accommodate this change, the 2014 FIBA World Cup was followed by a 2019 edition in China,^[10] followed by a 2023 edition in the Philippines, Japan, and Indonesia,^[11] and the 2027 tournament in Qatar, the first World Cup to be held in the Arab world.

Total times teams hosted by confederation
Confederations and years *italicized* & in bold have an upcoming competition.
Confederation	Total	(Hosts) Years
FIBA Africa	0
FIBA Americas	10	1950, 1954, 1959, 1963, File:Flag of Uruguay.png 1967, 1974, 1982, 1990, 1994, 2002
FIBA Asia	5	1978, 2006, 2019, 2023, 2027
FIBA Europe	5	1970, 1986, 1998, 2010, 2014
FIBA Oceania	0

Qualification[]

Summary[]

Edition	Year	Hosts	Final			Third place game			Number of teams
Edition	Year	Hosts	Champion	Score	Runner-up	Third place	Score	Fourth place	Number of teams
1	1950	Argentina	Argentina	64–50 No playoffsTemplate:Efn	USA	Chile	51–40 No playoffsTemplate:Efn	Brazil	10
2	1954	Brazil	USA	62–41 No playoffsTemplate:Efn	Brazil	Philippines	66–60 No playoffsTemplate:Efn	File:Flag of France (1794–1815, 1830–1958).png France	12
3	1959	Chile	Brazil	81–67 No playoffsTemplate:Efn	USA	Chile	86–85 No playoffsTemplate:Efn	[[Chinese Taipei {{{mw}}} national basketball team\|Formosa]]	13
4	1963	File:Flag of Brazil (1960–1968).png Brazil	File:Flag of Brazil (1960–1968).png Brazil	90–71 No playoffsTemplate:Efn	Yugoslavia	Soviet Union	75–74 No playoffsTemplate:Efn	USA	13
5	1967	File:Flag of Uruguay.png Uruguay	Soviet Union	71–59 No playoffsTemplate:Efn	Yugoslavia	File:Flag of Brazil (1960–1968).png Brazil	80–71 No playoffsTemplate:Efn	USA	13
6	1970	Yugoslavia	Yugoslavia	80–55 No playoffsTemplate:Efn	File:Flag of Brazil (1968–1992).png Brazil	Soviet Union	62–58 No playoffsTemplate:Efn	Italy	13
7	1974	Puerto Rico	Soviet Union	79–82 No playoffsTemplate:Efn	Yugoslavia	USA	83–70 No playoffsTemplate:Efn	Cuba	14
8	1978	Philippines	Yugoslavia	82–81 (OT) Araneta Coliseum, Quezon City	Soviet Union	File:Flag of Brazil (1968–1992).png Brazil	86–85 Araneta Coliseum, Quezon City	Italy	14
9	1982	Colombia	Soviet Union	95–94 Coliseo El Pueblo, Cali	USA	Yugoslavia	119–117 Coliseo El Pueblo, Cali	Spain	13
10	1986	Spain	USA	87–85 Palacio de Deportes, Madrid	Soviet Union	Yugoslavia	117–91 Palacio de Deportes, Madrid	File:Flag of Brazil (1968–1992).png Brazil	24
11	1990	Argentina	Yugoslavia	92–75 Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires	Soviet Union	USA	107–105 (OT) Estadio Luna Park, Buenos Aires	Puerto Rico	16
12	1994	Canada	USA	137–91 SkyDome, Toronto	Russia	Croatia	78–60 SkyDome, Toronto	Greece	16
13	1998	Greece	FR Yugoslavia	64–62 Olympic Indoor Hall, Athens	Russia	USA	84–61 Olympic Indoor Hall, Athens	Greece	16
14	2002	USA	FR Yugoslavia	84–77 (OT) Conseco Fieldhouse, Indianapolis	Argentina	Germany	117–94 Conseco Fieldhouse, Indianapolis	New Zealand	16
15	2006	Japan	Spain	70–47 Saitama Super Arena, Saitama	Greece	USA	96–81 Saitama Super Arena, Saitama	Argentina	24
16	2010	Turkey	USA	81–64 Sinan Erdem Dome, Istanbul	Turkey	Lithuania	99–88 Sinan Erdem Dome, Istanbul	Serbia	24
17	2014	Spain	USA	129–92 Palacio de Deportes, Madrid	Serbia	France	95–93 Palacio de Deportes, Madrid	Lithuania	24
18	2019	China	Spain	95–75 Wukesong Arena, Beijing	Argentina	France	67–59 Wukesong Arena, Beijing	Australia	32
19	2023	Philippines Indonesia Japan	Germany	83–77 Mall of Asia Arena, Pasay	Serbia	Canada	127–118 (OT) Mall of Asia Arena, Pasay	USA	32
20	2027	Qatar	Future event Lusail Sports Arena, Lusail			Future event Lusail Sports Arena, Lusail			32

(OT): game decided after overtime.

Participating Nations[]

Notes[]

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References[]

↑ "PR N°1 – FIBA Basketball World Cup officially launched in Madrid". FIBA. 26 January 2012. http://www.fiba.com/pages/eng/fc/news/lateNews/p/newsid/50470/arti.html.
↑ "Inside USA Basketball". basketball.com. USA Basketball. http://www.usabasketball.com/about/inside.html.
↑ "FIBA World Championship History (pdf)". FIBA. 1 January 2007. http://www.fiba.com/downloads/v3_abouFiba/mp/FIBA_world_championships_history.pdf.
↑ Kennedy, John (12 March 2008). "'El Primer Crack' of Argentine Basketball: Oscar Furlong". Society for Irish Latin American Studies (John Kennedy). http://www.irlandeses.org/0803kennedyc2.htm.
↑ Hubbard, Jan. "Why Can Pros Complete in International Tournaments". USA Basketball. https://www.usab.com/history/why-can-pros-complete-in-international-events.aspx.
↑ McCallum, Jack (18 February 1991). "Lords of the Rings". Sports Illustrated. http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1118882/1/index.htm.
↑ Secretary, FIBA (13 December 2005). "Press Release no. 42: "BAD Badtz-Maru" launched as official mascot for Japan 2006". Geneva/Tokyo: FIBA. http://www.fiba.com/ce/pages/en/events/blockbusters/world_champ_men_06/article_World_Champ_Men.asp?cookietest=done&r_act_news=10383&r_cat=8.
↑ Secretary, FIBA (5 May 2009). "ESP – Spain selected to host 2014 World Championship". Geneva: FIBA. http://www.fiba.com/pages/eng/fc/news/lateNews/p/newsid/30278/arti.html.
↑ "FIBA.com Archive – Yugoslavia.". http://archive.fiba.com/pages/eng/fa/p/rpp//tid/390/_//teams.html.
↑ "Mainini: calendar, system of competition and 3x3 our biggest priorities" (Press release). FIBA. 20 April 2012. http://www.fiba.com/pages/eng/fc/news/presRele/p/newsid/51257/presReleArti.html.
↑ "Philippines/Japan/Indonesia to stage first-ever multiple-host FIBA Basketball World Cup in 2023" (Press release). FIBA. 9 December 2017. http://www.fiba.basketball/news/philippines-japan-indonesia-to-stage-first-ever-multiple-hosts-fiba-basketball-world-cup-in-2023.

External links[]

Template:Commons category Template:Portal

Template:Official website

History · Awards · Records · Naismith Trophy
FIBA Basketball World Cup
Tournaments	Argentina 1950 · Brazil 1954 · Chile 1959 · Brazil 1963 · Uruguay 1967 · Yugoslavia 1970 · Puerto Rico 1974 · Philippines 1978 · Colombia 1982 · Spain 1986 · Argentina 1990 · Canada 1994 · Greece 1998 · United States 2002 · Japan 2006 · Turkey 2010 · Spain 2014 · China 2019 · Japan/Indonesia/Philippines 2023 · Qatar 2027
Qualification	2010 · 2014 · 2019 · 2023
Finals	1998 · 2002 · 2006 · 2010 · 2014 · 2019 · 2023
Squads	1954 · 1986 · 1998 · 2002 · 2006 · 2010 · 2014 · 2019 · 2023
Host bids	2019 (Philippines · China) · 2023 (Philippines-Japan-Indonesia · Argentina-Uruguay)
Related topics	Team appearances · Most Valuable Player · Top Scorer · All-Tournament Team · Winning head coaches
Category · Commons

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[1] "PR N°1 – FIBA Basketball World Cup officially launched in Madrid". FIBA. 26 January 2012. http://www.fiba.com/pages/eng/fc/news/lateNews/p/newsid/50470/arti.html.

[2] "Inside USA Basketball". basketball.com. USA Basketball. http://www.usabasketball.com/about/inside.html.

[FIBA_History-3] "FIBA World Championship History (pdf)". FIBA. 1 January 2007. http://www.fiba.com/downloads/v3_abouFiba/mp/FIBA_world_championships_history.pdf.

[Kennedy-4] Kennedy, John (12 March 2008). "'El Primer Crack' of Argentine Basketball: Oscar Furlong". Society for Irish Latin American Studies (John Kennedy). http://www.irlandeses.org/0803kennedyc2.htm.

[5] Hubbard, Jan. "Why Can Pros Complete in International Tournaments". USA Basketball. https://www.usab.com/history/why-can-pros-complete-in-international-events.aspx.

[6] McCallum, Jack (18 February 1991). "Lords of the Rings". Sports Illustrated. http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1118882/1/index.htm.

[Secretary-7] Secretary, FIBA (13 December 2005). "Press Release no. 42: "BAD Badtz-Maru" launched as official mascot for Japan 2006". Geneva/Tokyo: FIBA. http://www.fiba.com/ce/pages/en/events/blockbusters/world_champ_men_06/article_World_Champ_Men.asp?cookietest=done&r_act_news=10383&r_cat=8.

[8] Secretary, FIBA (5 May 2009). "ESP – Spain selected to host 2014 World Championship". Geneva: FIBA. http://www.fiba.com/pages/eng/fc/news/lateNews/p/newsid/30278/arti.html.

[9] "FIBA.com Archive – Yugoslavia.". http://archive.fiba.com/pages/eng/fa/p/rpp//tid/390/_//teams.html.

[10] "Mainini: calendar, system of competition and 3x3 our biggest priorities" (Press release). FIBA. 20 April 2012. http://www.fiba.com/pages/eng/fc/news/presRele/p/newsid/51257/presReleArti.html.

[11] "Philippines/Japan/Indonesia to stage first-ever multiple-host FIBA Basketball World Cup in 2023" (Press release). FIBA. 9 December 2017. http://www.fiba.basketball/news/philippines-japan-indonesia-to-stage-first-ever-multiple-hosts-fiba-basketball-world-cup-in-2023.

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