MUNICH (Germany) - One of the most exciting aspects of sports is the upset - can the underdog shake up the hierarchy and take down a bigger opponent?
The final window of the FIBA EuroBasket 2025 Qualifiers had some quite a few surprises - many of them thanks to their home fans.
Here is the full list of upsets in order of differential in the FIBA World Ranking Presented by NIKE:
# | TEAM | OPPOSITION | RESULT | DIFFERENCE IN RANKING |
1. | North Macedonia (57th) | Poland (17th) | -40 | |
2. | Sweden (48th) | Montenegro (16th) | 86-83 (OT) | -32 |
3. | Hungary (44th) | Italy (14th) | -30 | |
4. | Great Britain (49th) | Czechia (19th) | -30 | |
5. | Israel (39th) | Slovenia (12th) | -27 | |
6. | Iceland (51st) | Türkiye (27th) | -24 | |
7. | Latvia (9th) | Spain (6th) | -3 |
North Macedonia (#57) 88-74 Poland (#17)
North Macedonia finish with win for home fans: North Macedonia had already been eliminated from contention for the EuroBasket, but gave their home fans one more victory for the road. The Balkan fans got a taste of what is possible for the future as TJ Shorts returned to play for the country for the first time in the Qualifiers. The diminutive point guard, who last played at the FIBA Olympic Pre-Qualifying Tournament 2023 Poland-Estonia, collected 23 points and 5 assists in the win.
Sweden (#48) 86-83 OT Montenegro (#16)
Birgander and Hakanson win battle of Murcia teammates: Both teams had good chances of advancing but Sweden needed a victory more than Montenegro. The game was a battle throughout and the home fans carried Sweden to the overtime win. And the Swedish duo Simon Birgander and Ludvig Hakanson grabbed bragging rights over Montenegro's Nemanja Radovic and Jonah Radebaugh - their teammates at Spanish club Murcia.
Hungary (#44) 71-67 Italy (#14)
Hungary upset of Italy not enough: Hungary were still playing for their EuroBasket lives after grabbing the tiebreaker advantage over Iceland on Gameday 5. Gasper Okorn's men knew they needed to beat already-qualified Italy and hope that Türkiye could down Iceland. Hungary did their job over Italy, who came into the window already guaranteed a EuroBasket spot and using the games to test some younger players. But Iceland also won meaning Hungary would miss out on the summer showcase.
Great Britain (#49) 96-75 Czechia (#19)
Great Britain celebrate EuroBasket spot with fans: Great Britain had already done the heavy lifting in the first gameday of the window, defeating Netherlands on the road to lock up their spot in this summer's big event. That left the final game of the Qualifiers as a party at the Vertu Motors Arena in Newcastle upon Tyne. And Marc Steutel's troops made sure there would be no loss in their final home game - even though Czechia were ranked higher.
Israel (#39) 84-74 Slovenia (#12)
Israel take first place in Group A: Israel and Slovenia were both already locked into spots in EuroBasket but first place in Group A was still up for grabs. Israel did not consider the difference in world rankings and stifled Slovenia's offense to grab the victory and the top spot in the group.
Iceland (#51) 83-66 Türkiye (#27)
Iceland finish the deal in Reykjavik: Iceland dropped a big game to Hungary on Gameday 5 and knew they needed to beat Türkiye on the final gameday to reach the EuroBasket. The Laugardalshöll in Reykjavik was rocking and Craig Murray's team took care of the game in the first quarter. The duo of Martin Hermannsson and Tryggvi Hlinason proved way too much for the Turks and Iceland were EuroBasket-bound.
FIBA