By Eurohoops Team/ info@eurohoops.net
The latest games of the 2025 EuroBasket Qualifiers were attended by big crowds.
Fans all around Europe rushed to watch the national team of the their respective countries.
FIBA shared details on Wednesday.
Per the press release: “Basketball fans across the continent came out in droves as national team action returned with the second window of the FIBA EuroBasket 2025 Qualifiers.
The highest attended game of the window was Slovakia’s 76-72 double-overtime heartbreaking loss to reigning European champions Spain, as 10,046 fans at the TIPOSA Arena in Bratislava were treated to an absolute thriller – albeit with the home team just missing the upset.
Sweden supporters actually got to see their team shock the world – not to mention the reigning world champions – with a sell-out crowd of 8,906 packing Stockholm’s Hovet for a 73-72 win over Germany. The fans also witnessed being made as David Kramer scored 43 points for Germany to set a new record for most points in a European Qualifiers game since the change in the competition format.
Latvian fans regularly show their love for the national team and another big crowd came out for the team’s nail-biting 75-72 win over Belgium at the Arena Riga. Latvia’s game against Slovakia in the first window drew 10,890 fans – the country’s first game since taking fifth at the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023.
Türkiye is another basketball-mad nation and Istanbul’s newly-opened Basketball Development Centre was rocking with 8,573 fans on hand to watch their heroes dominate Hungary 92-66 and celebrate with them as they neared qualification for next summer’s European showcase.
Greece also had a sell-out as Thessaloniki’s PAOK Sports Arena drew 8,200 fans, who partied with their team in a 77-67 victory over Great Britain.
Once again, a massive crowd came in Tbilisi with 8,000 coming out to the Tbilisi Arena to see Georgia beat Finland 81-64 for their first home win of the campaign.
Another completely sold out game was Estonia’s big showdown with Poland with 6,670 fans filling the Unibet Arena in Tallinn. Estonia had three days earlier beaten Poland on the road to remain undefeated but the Baltic country could not give their faithful a win – losing a thriller 88-86 – to miss out on prematurely qualifying for next summer’s tournament.
There were also capacity crowds in Netherlands at Den Haag’s Sportcampus Zuiderpark for their 77-70 win over Czechia while Polish fans filled Hala Mistrzow in Wloclawek to the brim for Poland’s 82-78 loss against Estonia.
The final window of the FIBA EuroBasket 2025 Qualifiers will take place February 20-24, 2025, with home support more crucial than ever when it comes to providing an inspiration for qualification.”
Photo Credit: FIBA