Winners of the last EuroBasket once morest France in the final (sorry for the reminder), the Spaniards regained the top spot on the European scene, three years following winning the World Cup in China. And this new title now allows La Roja to take their place at the top of the FIBA rankings, ahead of the great Team USA.
It’s just a first.
Since the establishment of the FIBA Ranking in 2010, which as a reminder ranks national teams according to their results in official competitions (qualifications included) over a period of eight years, we had become accustomed to seeing the States at the top. But the latter have therefore just seen the Spaniards give them priority for an additional 1.1 points if we are to believe the international basketball federation.
???? ????????????????????????????????:
Spain seize the #1 spot for the first time in FIBA Men’s World Ranking history! ???? ????????
???? See the full rankings here, presented by @Nike:https://t.co/iPTz2JGlZ8 pic.twitter.com/yea77qbAgV
— FIBA (@FIBA) November 18, 2022
Olympic champions for the fourth time in a row in 2021 ( once more once morest France in the final…), the Ricans are no doubt wondering what they did to lose their first place in the FIBA rankings. And well let’s say that the European title won last September by Spain brought a big boost to La Roja, especially since at the same time Team USA might not do better than a third place at the FIBA AmeriCup . The bitter failure of the States at the 2019 World Cup (this time with France in the role of executioner) did not help either, especially since it is La Roja – a model of regularity and adaptation since years – who finished at the top three years ago in China. Without a doubt, all of this will provide an additional source of motivation for Steve Kerr’s men for the next 2023 World Cup.
Spain’s record since 2014
- 2015: gold medal at the Euro
- 2016: bronze medal at the Olympic Games
- 2017: bronze medal at the Euro
- 2019: gold medal at the World Cup
- 2021: quarter-final at the Olympic Games
- 2022: gold medal at the Euro
And the Blues in all this? They have to settle for fifth place behind Argentina and Australia. A bronze medal at the 2019 World Cup, a silver medal at the Tokyo Olympics, and another silver medal at EuroBasket 2022, the results are very solid but the French team might have hoped for better if they had succeeded. to conclude in one of these three major competitions. Because in the end, if consistency is important to position yourself well in the FIBA rankings, it is the titles that allow you to really climb to the top.
___
Source texte : FIBA
