The FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 tipped off on Aug. 31 in China. The global basketball competition includes a record 32 participating countries, who qualified during tournaments over the past two years.
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This year is the 18th edition of the FIBA Basketball World Cup and the first time it has ever been held in China. The games will take place in eight cities — Beijing, Foshan, Wuhan, Shenzhen, Dongguan, Nanjing, Shanghai and Guangzhou — across five provinces. In total, there will be 92 games played over just 16 days.
The U.S. roster, which is filled with NBA players, won’t be the only one with notable NBA talent. From Greece (Giannis Antetokounmpo) to France (Rudy Gobert) to Serbia (Nikola Jokic), there are over 50 NBA players ready to lead their respective countries this summer.
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Get ready for all of the action with everything you need to know about this global competition.
Schedule
• First Round (Group Phase): Aug. 31 – Sept. 5
• Second Round (Group Phase): Sept. 6 – 9
• Quarterfinals: Sept. 10 – 11
• Semifinals: Sept. 13
• Final: Sept. 15
>> Complete Schedule Information
Competition System
Thirty-two countries qualified to play in the 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup through qualifying tournaments played in 2017. Five countries are from Africa, 12 from Europe, seven from the Americas, and eight from Asia and Oceania.
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The 32 countries who qualified to compete were placed in eight groups during the Official Draw held in mid-March. These groups will compete against each other during the first round of the Group Phase, which features 48 games total (3 games per team, 6 games per group).
Here are the eight groups for the first round of the 2019 World Cup:
Group A: Cote d’Ivoire, Poland, Venezuela, China
Group B: Russia, Argentina, Korea, Nigeria
Group C: Spain, Iran, Puerto Rico, Tunisia
Group D: Angola, Philippines, Italy, Serbia
Group E: Turkey, Czech Republic, USA, Japan
Group F: Greece, New Zealand, Brazil, Montenegro
Group G: Dominican Republic, France, Germany, Jordan
Group H: Canada, Senegal, Lithuania, Australia
The top two teams from each group advance to the second round of the Group Phase. The bottom two teams from each group move to the Classification Round to compete for places 17 to 32.
The second round of the Group Phase features four groups of four teams playing a total of 16 games (two games per team, four games per group). In this second round, teams only play against teams they did not face during the first round. The top two teams from each group advance to the Quarterfinals, while the bottom two teams in each group are eliminated and ranked in places No. 9 to 16.
The Final Phase of the World Cup is a 16-team, single-elimination tournament. The losing teams in the Quarterfinals move to the Classification Round for places No. 5 to 8. The losing teams in the Semifinals compete in a game for third place.
The champion of the tournament is the winner of the final game on Sep. 15 in Beijing.
>> More on FIBA World Cup Competition System
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FIBA World Cup History
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