Women's Basketball World Cup 2026: USA Beat France for Fifth Straight Title

The United States, who beat France 97-79 in the final in Berlin on September 13, 2026. It is their fifth consecutive title and their twelfth overall. The Americans trailed by 14 points before a second-half surge turned the game. Sources: FIBA, NBA, MPR News.

Breanna Stewart, who scored 22 points with 9 rebounds in the final. She is the first player to be named MVP of this tournament twice. Sources: FIBA, Olympics.com.

United States 97, France 79. Stewart led all scorers with 22 points, and Jackie Young added 18 points on 4 of 7 from three, with 5 rebounds and 5 assists. France led by as many as 14 before the United States took the game over after the interval. Sources: NBA, Yahoo Sports, MPR News.

Spain, who beat hosts Germany 81-58 in the third-place game on September 13. Iyana Martin scored 22 points at the age of 20. It is Spain's third bronze at this tournament, after 2010 and 2018. Sources: ESPN, ABC News.

United States 76, Spain 66 and France 86, Germany 64, both played on September 12. France's win over the hosts in Berlin put them in a final against the United States, a repeat of the Paris 2024 Olympic gold medal game. Sources: FIBA, USA Basketball.

Breanna Stewart and Jackie Young of the United States, Gabby Williams of France, Iyana Martin of Spain and Leonie Fiebich of Germany. Stewart took the MVP award alongside her place on the team. Sources: FIBA, Olympics.com.

Fourth, which is the best German finish at this tournament in the modern era. They reached the semi-finals, lost 86-64 to France on September 12 and then 81-58 to Spain in the bronze medal game the following day. As a host-nation result it is comfortably above what was expected of them. Sources: FIBA, ESPN.

It runs from Friday, September 4 to Sunday, September 13, 2026, ten days in total. The group phase fills the opening week, the quarter-finals are on September 10, the semi-finals on September 12, and the bronze medal game and the final on September 13. Sources: FIBA, Eventim.

In Berlin, Germany, across two arenas. The Berlin Arena, capacity around 14,000, hosts two groups and the entire knockout stage. The Max-Schmeling-Halle, capacity around 9,000, hosts the other two groups in the first round. It is the first time Germany has staged the women's World Cup since 1998. Sources: visitBerlin, FIBA.

Sixteen: Australia, Belgium, China, Czech Republic, France, Germany (host), Hungary, Italy, Japan, Mali, Nigeria, Puerto Rico, South Korea, Spain, Turkey and the United States. That is an expansion from the 12-team format used in 2022, so four more nations get a World Cup place than at the last edition. Source: FIBA.

Group A: Japan, Spain, Germany, Mali. Group B: Hungary, South Korea, Nigeria, France. Group C: Belgium, Australia, Puerto Rico, Turkey. Group D: United States, Czech Republic, Italy, China. Group D is the heavy one on paper, pairing the defending champions with China, the 2022 runners-up, and a strong Italian side. Source: FIBA.

Four groups of four play a single round robin, then the top two from each group go through to the quarter-finals on September 10. From there it is straight knockout: semi-finals on September 12, then the third-place game and the final on September 13. Eight of the 16 teams reach the knockout stage. Source: FIBA.

The United States, who have won four consecutive titles and beat China 83-61 in the 2022 final in Sydney. The American women have dominated this competition for more than a decade, and a fifth straight gold would extend one of the longest winning runs in international team sport. Source: FIBA.

Realistically, no. Germany qualify as hosts and land in Group A with Japan, Spain and Mali, a group that gives them a genuine chance of reaching the quarter-finals. Beyond that, the gap to the United States and Australia is large. The measurable target for the German federation is a knockout place and a home crowd that turns up. Sources: FIBA, visitBerlin.

The United States first, then Australia, who have been the most consistent challenger, and China, beaten finalists in 2022 and still building around a tall, disciplined core. France, Spain and Belgium make up the European chasing pack. A World Cup final without the United States would be the story of the tournament. Sources: FIBA.

Broadcast rights vary by country and FIBA lists them per territory on its event pages closer to tip-off. In previous cycles, games have been carried by national public broadcasters in Europe, by the FIBA platform in markets with no rights holder, and by ESPN properties in the United States. Check FIBA's official event guide for your country before September 4. Source: FIBA.

Tickets are sold through FIBA's official event guide and, in Germany, through Eventim, which runs a dedicated campaign page for the tournament. Session tickets typically cover two games in the same arena on the same day, which is the standard format for FIBA group play. Sources: FIBA, Eventim, berlin.de.

FIBA moved the women's World Cup onto a cycle that avoids clashing with the Olympic year and the men's World Cup. The 2022 edition in Sydney was followed by the Paris Olympics in 2024, and 2026 is the next open window. The expansion to 16 teams was decided in the same restructuring. Source: FIBA.

No, and that is the scheduling tension of this edition. The WNBA regular season and playoffs overlap with the international calendar, which historically forces national federations to negotiate player releases with clubs. Squad lists for Berlin should be read with that in mind: availability, not just form, shapes the rosters. Sources: FIBA, WNBA.