5 reasons to get excited for the Asia Cup 2025 Pre-Qualifiers

JENIN (Palestine) & DOHA (Qatar) - Here we go. The first steps toward the FIBA Asia Cup in 2025 begins here in the First Round of the Pre-Qualifiers. With 6 teams in action across 6 games in 3 days from June 2-4, there’s no shortage of basketball to go get hyped up about.

Here are 5 reasons to get excited for the start of the Asia Cup 2025 Pre-Qualifiers.

1. Qatar’s revenge tour

One team had to be eliminated from Group E of the Asia Cup 2021 Qualifiers, which is a bit of a shame as each of the 4 teams (Iran, Syria, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar) played in many tightly contested games.

Qatar were the odd team out, ending with a 1-5 record, though many of their losses were a couple of plays away from going in their favor. Nonetheless, Qatar’s streak 9 straight Asia Cup appearances came to a close.

Asia Cup 2025 Pre-Qualifiers can now serve as a fresh start for the Gulf basketball powerhouses as they begin to transition into a new era. From rising talents that we’ve seen flash potential in the past to hopeful youngsters that are second generation of Qatar basketball legends, there’s a lot to be excited about for this squad.

Will that translate to a successful run here at home?

2. The (Ku)wait is over

Kuwait are generating some buzz heading into the Pre-Qualifiers as a team that cannot be underestimated. Sure, they didn’t play in the Asia Cup Pre-Qualifiers back in 2018 and haven’t played in the Asia Cup since 2015, but they have been trying hard to turn things around.

That effort was put on display at the recent Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) games where they nearly went undefeated, suffering a loss only in the gold medal game.

Missing out on the gold medal prize certainly hurts, but getting big wins over Qatar as well as Asia Cup 2022 teams in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia means that Kuwait aren’t messing around.

 

3. Another try

Speaking of the GCC Games, the team that beat Kuwait in the gold medal game was neither Qatar, Bahrain, or Saudi Arabia. No, the team that topped all the other squads there was UAE in an impressive run leading up to the Asia Cup 2025 Pre-Qualifiers.

 

UAE barely missed out on making it to the Asia Cup 2022 Qualifiers, but a couple of tough plays here and there against Saudi Arabia and Bahrain at the GBA Pre-Qualifiers back in 2018 left them looking from the outside instead.

UAE knows they are a competitive team that can do just as well as the other teams that made it through all the way to Asia Cup 2022 from the Pre-Qualifiers, and here they get the chance to prove it once again.

4. Back at home

At the Asia Cup 2022 Qualifiers, Palestine played in a historic home game that had the fans rocking the Arab American University while watching their national team heroes play. The faithful fans will get the chance here once again to watch their team as they go up against Kuwait on June 3 and Iraq on June 4.

It will be important to see how Palestine does after the national tea, retirement of Sani Sakakini, with promising youngsters like Jamal Mayali in line to step up.

5. Cinderella story

The Asia Cup 2022 Pre-Qualifiers saw Bahrain and Saudi Arabia blast their way through to the Asia Cup, and did it in quite impressive fashion.

Look for the teams at this Asia Cup 2025 Pre-Qualifiers to take inspiration from Bahrain and Saudi Arabia in hopes of emulating that success. It won’t be easy as the competition will only get tougher and tougher through each round as expected, but at least these teams have seen the trail been blazed.

FIBA