The International Basketball Federation -FIBA- calendar produced three new champions during a weekend that connected its men’s and women’s circuits. The Netherlands won the Women’s Series stop in Bucharest, Liman claimed the inaugural Uenohara Challenger and Miami became the first winner of the FISE Birmingham Challenger. The results strengthened all three winners during a stage of the season increasingly shaped by qualification for its major events.
The two Challengers awarded six places at the World Tour stop in Debrecen. Liman, Toulouse and Shanghai secured theirs in Japan, while Miami, Élancourt and Raudondvaris Hoptrans progressed from Birmingham, USA. On the women’s circuit, the Dutch victory tightened the contest near the top of the standings before the Shanghai Final in September.
The Netherlands keep winning
The Netherlands defeated Rapid Bucharest 21-15 in the FIBA 3×3 Women’s Series CS Rapid Final to claim a third consecutive title following victories in Batam and Tokyo. The team now has four wins this season, including its home success in Amsterdam. Noortje Driessen once again played a decisive role and was named tournament MVP after finishing as the leading scorer and guiding her team through the knockout rounds. Rapid Bucharest finished runners-up on home soil, while France and Beijing reached the Semi-Finals.
The result moved the Netherlands into third place in the Women’s Series standings, behind Ulaanbaatar Amazons and Neftchi SOCAR. The Azerbaijani team is led by Alexandra Mollenhauer, the circuit’s top-ranked individual player and one of the central figures behind its titles in Orléans and Marseille. Her influence has also accompanied the international progress of Azerbaijan, runners-up at the 2025 Europe Cup, finalists at the Champions Cup and fourth at the 2026 World Cup. Neftchi and the Netherlands therefore enter the closing stages through different routes: one built on consistency and the other driven by three successive victories.
Uenohara and Birmingham crown their first champions
Liman became the first winner of the Uenohara Challenger after beating Toulouse 19-13. It was the Serbian team’s second consecutive title at this level and secured its place in Debrecen alongside the French finalists and third-placed Shanghai. Dorde Simeunovic received the MVP award. Spain’s representatives included Valencia Basket, who finished fourth, Fuengirola in fifth and Barcelona, who reached the Quarter-Finals. The Barcelona team had already qualified for the Hungarian World Tour stop.
The other inaugural event was the FISE Birmingham Challenger, the first tournament at this level held in USA since 2023. It formed part of the International Festival of Extreme Sports -FISE-, which also brought BMX freestyle and skateboarding to City Walk BHAM. Miami defeated Élancourt 21-15 to win its first Challenger title of the season, with James Parrott named MVP. The French runners-up and third-placed Raudondvaris Hoptrans will accompany the US team to Debrecen. The two new tournaments therefore distributed their places among teams from Serbia, France, China, USA and Lithuania.
Lausanne opens the next chapter
The action will continue on 14 and 15 August with the 13th edition of the FIBA 3×3 World Tour stop in Lausanne, Switzerland. Liman will arrive as the top seed after its Uenohara victory, followed by Antwerp, Raudondvaris Hoptrans, Ulaanbaatar MMC Energy and Baskets Bonn. Valencia Basket will be the Spanish representative and will begin against Liman and Cibona Ph.Classic. The tournament will also bring several teams that have competed in recent Challengers back onto the World Tour stage.
All three sections of the calendar will overlap again during the same week. The Women’s Series will move to Singapore on 13 and 14 August, Lausanne will stage its World Tour event on 14 and 15 August, and Singapore will also host a men’s Challenger on 15 and 16 August. Debrecen will then welcome a women’s stop on 27 and 28 August before its World Tour tournament on 29 and 30 August. The Women’s Series Final, scheduled for 5 and 6 September, will bring the leading teams to Shanghai following a season in which Ulaanbaatar Amazons, Neftchi SOCAR and the Netherlands occupy the top three positions.
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