US to open World Cup qualifying this fall against Dominican Republic and Nicaragua; 3rd team TBA
The groups — and 68 of the 80 nations that are in the mix for the 31 open World Cup berths — were announced at Doha, Qatar, on Tuesday. Qatar is the only nation to have a World Cup spot assured; it has one because it will host the tournament in the summer of 2027.
The other 12 nations — eight from Europe, four from the Americas — that will play in qualifying will be determined this summer.
'The qualifiers are a special part of this journey,' FIBA secretary general Andreas Zagklis said. 'The World Cup is not a three-week event. The World Cup is in reality more than two years, as you can see. ... This is the key moment on the way to Doha.'
Germany is the defending champion, having topped Serbia for the gold medal at Manila in 2023. Canada beat the U.S. in that tournament for the bronze.
'When I started playing for the German national team in the late '90s, we would have never thought this was possible — that Germany will be World Cup champions,' said German great Dirk Nowitzki, the longtime Dallas Mavericks star who brought the World Cup trophy onto the stage for the draw on Tuesday night. 'I think that shows the growth of basketball in Germany and the rest of the world, in Europe, all over the place. It's been fun watching basketball grow the last two decades and more. And really, anything is possible in the world now in basketball.'
The Americans have won the tournament five times, but not since 2014 — after finishing a record-worst seventh at China in 2019 and missing the medal stand again at Manila in 2023. It has been a challenge for the U.S. to field its best possible team for the World Cups, given that most stars tend to prefer playing in the Olympics and many can't commit to a plan where they would be playing in a World Cup one summer and the Olympics the following year.
'I'm excited,' USA Basketball great and 2025 Basketball Hall of Fame enshrinee Carmelo Anthony said. 'I think the world is excited. I think players are excited. I just think that intensity level, from what I've experienced in the previous World Cups, has shot up 10 times more than what it was before. I think the energy, I think that intentionality of the game, you see the passion of winning, not just from certain teams, you see it from all teams that are playing.'
A breakdown of the qualifying by region:
Americas
Teams: 16 for 7 World Cup spots.
First-round qualifying dates: November 2025, February 2026, July 2026.
Second-round qualifying dates: August 2026, November 2026, February 2027.
Format: Four groups of four teams in the first round (six games per team). The top three teams from each group will move on to the second round.
Group A: United States, Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, TBD.
Group B: Canada, Puerto Rico, Bahamas, TBD.
Group C: Brazil, Venezuela, Colombia, TBD.
Group D: Argentina, Uruguay, Panama, TBD.
(There are four teams still yet to qualify, and those teams will be determined at a pair of pre-qualifying tournaments in August.)
Europe
Teams: 32 for 12 World Cup spots.
First-round qualifying dates: November 2025, February 2026, July 2026.
Second-round qualifying dates: August 2026, November 2026, February 2027.
Format: Eight groups of four teams in the first round (six games per team). The top three teams from each group will move on to the second round.
Group A: Spain, Georgia, TBD, TBD.
Group B: Greece, Montenegro, Portugal, TBD.
Group C: Serbia, Turkey, Bosnia and Herzegovina, TBD.
Group D: Britain, Italy, Iceland, Lithuania.
Group E: Germany, Israel, Cyprus, TBD.
Group F: Latvia, Poland, TBD, TBD.
Group G: France, Belgium, Finland, TBD.
Group H: Slovenia, Czech Republic, Sweden, Estonia.
(There are eight teams still yet to qualify, and those teams will be determined at pre-qualifying tournaments this summer.)
Asia
Teams: 16 for 7 World Cup spots. (Qatar already qualified as host nation, and will be the eighth World Cup team from Asia.)
First-round qualifying dates: November 2025, February 2026, July 2026.
Second-round qualifying dates: August 2026, November 2026, February 2027.
Format: Four groups of four teams in the first round (six games per team). The top three teams from each group will move on to the second round.
Group A: Australia, New Zealand, Philippines, Guam.
Group B: Japan, China, South Korea, Taiwan.
Group C: Iran, Jordan, Syria, Iraq.
Group D: Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, India, Qatar.
Africa
Teams: 16 for 5 World Cup spots
First-round qualifying dates: November 2025, February 2026, July 2026.
Second-round qualifying dates: August 2026, February 2027.
Format: Four groups of four teams in the first round (six games per team). The top three teams from each group will move on to the second round.
Group A: Cameroon, South Sudan, Libya, Cape Verde.
Group B: Senegal, Congo, Madagascar, Ivory Coast.
Group C: Nigeria, Rwanda, Guinea, Tunisia.
Group D: Mali, Angola, Uganda, Egypt.
___
AP sports:
https://apnews.com/hub/sports
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Post
3 hours ago
- New York Post
Olympic rugby star Ilona Maher thinks we've ‘lost the plot' with this health trend: ‘Don't lie to yourself'
Hold the cottage cheese. Pro rugby player Ilona Maher — whose team won the bronze medal in the Paris Olympics — spends plenty of time training to dominate on the pitch. But there's one fitness-focused diet trend that she thinks is a bit over-the-top — and she points to herself as evidence that it's unnecessary. 3 Pro rugby player Ilona Maher thinks the obession with protein has gone a bit off the rails. AP A former athlete herself, Kylie Kelce complained about how 'everything is trying to be high protein' on a June episode of her podcast, Not Gonna Lie, arguing that not everything needs added protein powder. Maher was on the same page, and she's no fan of a low-carb lifestyle either. 'I have a high-protein diet, but I also have probably the highest-carb diet ever,' the 29-year-old Bristol Bears player said. 'I was raised on very high-carb diets. And carbs are really the energy that you need — that's science, truly.' That isn't to say she doesn't eat protein too. 'I get protein in for most meals, but I'm actually not as committed to the bit as I maybe could be. I think I could be leaner … if I was really focusing on protein. But I just don't see — I think I'm fine,' she added. A big issue for both women is the trend of swapping 'real' food for protein-heavy substitutes. In recent years, for example, cottage cheese recipes have blown up on social media, with people using it in place of cream cheese, sour cream, ricotta and even mayo and butter. It's low in fat and high in protein, a combo that can keep you full, increase metabolism and preserve muscle mass. Plus, the curdling process creates bacteria that are good for your gut. 3 Maher, whose team won the bronze medal in the Paris Olympics, eats protein most meals — but she's not swapping 'real food' for protein-ified recipes. Getty Images But Kelce said her concern is people blending up cottage cheese and pretending it tastes like ice cream. 'Don't lie to yourself,' Maher added in agreement. 'I saw a recent one, it was like protein tiramisu. She dips the rice cake in espresso and then she puts Greek yogurt on there. I was like, that's not even f—-ing close!' 'I think we really lost the plot on that,' she said. Though she is working to eat more protein at the urging of her dietitian, for her that means more 'real food.' 'So after training I'll have a quick protein shake — that's very easy, quick protein. But if I can, I'm gonna have the eggs. I love like beef jerky,' she said. 3 'I saw a recent one, it was like protein tiramisu. She dips the rice cake in espresso and then she puts Greek yogurt on there. I was like, that's not even f—-ing close!' she said. Getty Images 'I just think, I mean maybe I'm wrong in science, but I don't know if we need that much. Because I'm doing fine and I just had a bagel this morning.' She's not the first star to take issue with the high-protein craze. This month, Bethenny Frankel also called out the fad. 'The obsession with protein is an out-of-control fad that everyday people are fixated on as if they're training for the Olympics,' she told The Post. 'They can also be calorie-dense. It's another marketing gimmick like keto or carnivore or low carb or all the absurd fads I've witnessed over the years. Balance is key.' In fact, studies show that there is such a thing as eating too much protein — and it can make you gain weight and clog your arteries. 'Consuming excessive protein, particularly from animal sources, raises insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) levels,' Dr. Joseph Antoun, CEO of the longevity company L-Nutra, previously told The Post. Primarily produced in the liver, IGF-1 is a hormone, that plays a crucial role in promoting growth and regulating metabolism. 'While it's essential in childhood and for muscle repair,' Antoun said, 'chronically elevated IGF-1 in adults has been linked to accelerated biological aging and therefore an increased risk of age-related conditions, notably cancer.'
Boston Globe
5 hours ago
- Boston Globe
Field of local talent shines at 2025 Boston Triathlon
Outside of the elite field, Westford Academy graduate Jack Whitman, a rising sophomore at the University of Notre Dame, was the top men's finisher. Competing in the under-19 age group, Whitman finished in 1:54:50, beating Fedor Orlov, 10 years his senior, by nine seconds. Advertisement Georgia Sege was the top women's age group finisher in the Olympic distance, completing the course in 2:14:03. In the sprint distance, Kevin Kelsey of Beverly was the top men's finisher and the only athlete to finish in under one hour, with a time of 57:05. Natalie Obando was the top female finisher in the sprint race with a time of 1:03:48. In the sprint-distance mixed relay, a team of notable locals took home first place. Sarah True, who represented Team USA in triathlon at the 2012 and 2016 Olympics, swam the first leg; Bill Richards completed the cycling leg; and Boston Athletic Association president and CEO Jack Fleming ran the final stretch to finish in a division-winning time of 1:05:10. Advertisement Emma Healy can be reached at
Yahoo
7 hours ago
- Yahoo
At 41, Elias Pelembe makes a sensational return to the Mozambique national team!
African qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup: Mozambique's preliminary squad list Domingues / @ Mozambique head coach Chequínio Condé has unveiled the preliminary squad for matchdays 7 and 8 of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers. Mozambique will take on Uganda in Kampala on September 5, before hosting Botswana in Maputo on September 8. The standout name on this list is undoubtedly Elias Pelembe, the veteran captain and forward, now 41 years old. Since making his debut in 2004, he has earned 101 international caps and scored 16 goals. Nicknamed Domingues, Pelembe returns to the national team after missing the last call-up due to a personal dispute with the technical staff. His comeback signals a reconciliation with the coach and a renewed determination to play a key role in the upcoming fixtures. Goalkeepers:Ernan Alberto Siluane, Fasistencio João Faza (Fazito), Acácio Edmilson Muendane (Kaka), Ivane Oficial Urrubal, Kimiss Zavala Defenders:Domingos João Macandza, Edmilson Gabriel Dove, Bruno Alberto Langa, Reinildo Isnard Mandava, Infren da Conceição Matola, Diogo Calila, Oscar Benjamim Cherene, Bruno Wilson, Bheu António Januário, Fernando Macaime, Francisco Muchanga (Chico), Martinho Thauzene, Edson André Sitoe (Mexer), Feliciano Jone (Nené), Fernando Data Chambuco, Alberto Alface (Foia) Midfielders:Amade Momade (Amadou), Alfonso Amade, João Bonde, Ricardo Martins Guimarães (Guima), Manuel Nhanga Kambala, Keyns Abdala, Ezequiel Idalina Machava, Dario Melo, Pedro Miguel Neves Santos (Pepo), Aly Abudo Zacarias, Shaquille Nangy, Luís José Miquissone, Clésio Palmirim Bauque, Geny Cipriano Catamo, Jonathan Eusébio Muiomo, Elias Gaspar Pelembe (Domingues), Witiness João Quembo (Witi), Gildo Lourenço Vilanculos, Sapane Fabião Zunguze (Sampaio), Edson Mucuana Lobo, Stélio Marcelino Ernesto (Telinho)
