EuroBasket 2025 Guide: groups, bracket, format and everything else to know before tipoff

If you're craving high-level basketball in the depths of summer, and the WNBA doesn't play often enough to do it for you, you're in luck. FIBA's EuroBasket tournament will be taking over at the end of August and into early September, keeping NBA fans busy before training camps open.

International basketball is a different animal, but this tournament will feature a slew of NBA players — stars and role players alike. And, by virtue of the time zones, offers a full day of basketball for more than a week with a half-dozen games a day to start with. Here's everything you need to know to dive in.

What is EuroBasket, and how does it work?

EuroBasket is an international basketball tournament featuring the best teams in Europe, usually played every two years. Think of it as the basketball version of FIFA's European Championship.

The tournament, which runs from Aug. 27 to Sept. 14 this year, features 24 teams organized into four groups of six. In the group play phase, each team plays each other team in their group. The four teams in each group with the best record in this phase then advance and reseeded in a 16-team single elimination bracket to play through to the championship.

Group A will play their games in Riga, Latvia. Group B will play in Tampere, Finland. Group C plays in Limassol, Cyprus. Group D plays in Katowice, Poland. All knockout phase games, including the semifinals and finals, will be played in Riga.

The defending champion in the tournament is Spain, who beat France, 88-76, for the title in 2022. Spain has won four of the last six EuroBasket tournaments, a streak of dominance interrupted only by France's win in 2013 and Slovenia's win in 2017.

What are the biggest differences between FIBA and NBA rules?

Basketball is basketball, but FIBA does use a slightly different set of rules that could catch an NBA fan off guard. Here are the biggest differences:

• The FIBA 3-point line is shorter than the NBA line — 22 feet and 1.75 inches above the break and 21 feet and 8 inches in the corners, compared to 23 feet and 9 inches in the NBA.
• FIBA play 10-minute quarters instead of 12.
• Players only get five fouls, instead of six, before they foul out.
• There is no defensive 3-seconds rule.
• Players can touch the ball while it's in the cylinder, and it is not goaltending or basket interference.
• Teams only get five timeouts per game and can only use three in the second half.

Which team is the favorite in each group?

Here are the six teams in each group, along with their current FIBA world ranking in parentheses.

Group A

• Serbia (2)
• Latvia (9)
• Czechia (19)
• Turkey (27)
• Estonia (43)
• Portugal (56)

Group B

• Germany (3)
• Lithuania (10)
• Montenegro (16)
• Finland (20)
• Great Britain (48)
• Sweden (49)

Group C

• Spain (5)
• Greece (13)
• Italy (14)
• Georgia (24)
• Bosnia and Herzegovina (41)
• Cyprus (84)

Group D

• France (4)
• Slovenia (11)
• Poland (17)
• Israel (39)
• Belgium (40)
• Iceland (50)

Serbia, France, Germany and Spain are currently the four top teams in Europe by the FIBA rankings and each headline a separate group. The draw also sets up some very compelling group-stage matchups, including Luka Dončić and Slovenia against a French roster loaded with NBA talent, and Nikola Jokić needing to work his way through Alperen Şengün and Turkey, Kristaps Porziņģis and Latvia and Neemias Queta and Portugal. He's clearly a cut above any of them but that's three out of five group-stage matchups with an NBA center waiting for him on the other side.

NBA player who are on EuroBasket rosters

If you're an NBA fan, there will be plenty of players you know and love suiting up for their home countries at EuroBasket.

In all, 21 NBA teams will have at least one player on their current rosters playing in EuroBasket. The exceptions are the Cleveland Cavaliers, Dallas Mavericks, Detroit Pistons, Golden State Warriors, Indiana Pacers, Minnesota Timberwolves, New Orleans Pelicans, Phoenix Suns and Toronto Raptors. The NBA teams with the most players in action are the Hawks (4), Wizards (3) and Heat (3).

And we're not just talking about fringe, end-of-the bench guys when looking at NBA players. you'll be able to watch some of the best players in the NBA — Nikola Jokić, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Luka Dončić, Alperen Şengün, Franz Wagner and Lauri Markkanen — as well as three lottery picks from the 2024 NBA Draft.

In addition to the players mentioned here, several well-known former NBA players will be in action, including Daniel Theis, Cedi Osman, Danilo Gallinari, Juancho Hernangómez, Theo Maledon and Frank Ntilikina.

How to watch EuroBasket games

In the United States, the only way to watch EuroBasket games is with a free sign-up for Courtside 1891, FIBA's streaming service. Both Android and iOS apps are available.

Full schedule

Group stage schedule

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