Germany’s basketball women begin World Cup mission on home court in Berlin

Germany’s women’s basketball team has spent years waiting for a home World Cup. On Friday, it will begin its campaign in a sold-out Uber Arena in Berlin, carrying the ambition of winning a medal at only its second World Cup appearance.

The opening challenge will be Spain, one of the tournament’s leading contenders. Japan follows on Saturday, with Mali completing the group schedule on Monday. The group winner advances directly to the quarter-finals. The second- and third-placed teams must go through play-ins for the remaining places in the last eight.

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It is a really cool event. The world's best basketball will be played here.

Leonie Fiebich, the team’s leading star, will take on a larger role because Satou Sabally is missing with lingering effects from a concussion. Fiebich, who plays for the WNBA’s New York Liberty, called the tournament “a really cool event” and said Berlin would host the world’s best basketball.

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Spain and Japan directly one after the other, that is not easy.

Nyara Sabally, the younger of the Sabally sisters, has also made the World Cup after racing back from a calf injury. Coach Olaf Lange said she remained an important part of the team but would need to be gradually rebuilt, limiting her playing time in the first games. Her presence also brought psychological relief after Germany lost all three preparation matches without its WNBA trio of Fiebich, Nyara Sabally and Frieda Bühner.

Lange is trying to temper expectations. German players have set a medal as their target, but the coach said the team’s international standing still needs to develop after years outside the top tier. He views the project over a longer horizon, including next year’s European Championship and the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.

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Nyara is a major cornerstone of our team. We have to see how much playing time she gets in the first games because we still need to build her up a little, but the medium-term outlook is good.