Basketball · International
Belgium's late comeback against Spain secures a second Women's EuroBasket title
Antonia Delaere's lay-up with 5.3 seconds remaining completed Belgium's recovery from a 12-point deficit in a 67–65 final victory.
Event date:
Belgium retain the crown
Belgium won the Women's EuroBasket final 67–65 against Spain on 29 June in Piraeus, completing a late comeback to retain the championship they first claimed in 2023. Antonia Delaere supplied the deciding lay-up with 5.3 seconds remaining. The result made Belgium the third national team to successfully defend the competition's title, according to FIBA.
The victory also secured Belgium a direct place at the 2026 Women's Basketball World Cup. A crowd of 7,827 attended the final, which FIBA identified as the largest for a Women's EuroBasket title game in the 21st century. Spain finished with a second successive silver medal after again meeting Belgium in the final.
The closing run reverses the match
Spain led by six points at half-time and strengthened their position with an 11–2 start to the fourth quarter. Belgium had to recover from a 12-point deficit. FIBA's competition release recorded a 16–2 closing run, while its MVP announcement detailed that the champions scored the last 14 points without reply.
Those figures explain the narrow final margin. Belgium did not simply protect a lead through the last possession: they had to erase Spain's advantage before Delaere could deliver the winning basket. The two-point outcome marked another close knockout match for the Belgian team, whose semi-final against Italy had also been settled by a single basket.
Meesseman and Allemand lead the champions
Emma Meesseman finished the final with 16 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists, adding three steals and two blocks. She received the tournament MVP award for a second consecutive edition, becoming the first player to win that honour twice. Her contributions covered scoring, possession recovery and the creation of opportunities for teammates.
Across Belgium's six victories, Meesseman averaged 19.2 points, 9.2 rebounds and 5.3 assists. Julie Allemand scored 19 points in the final, her highest total of the tournament. Both players were selected for the All-Star Five alongside Spain's Alba Torrens and Raquel Carrera and Italy's Cecilia Zandalasini. The award lineup reflected the two finalists and the bronze-medal team. Allemand's tournament averages were 12.5 points, four rebounds and four assists. Meesseman also averaged 2.3 steals and 1.8 blocks, figures that show the defensive contributions included in her MVP-winning performance.
Two narrow wins finish the defence
Belgium had reached the final by beating Italy 66–64 on 27 June. In that game, they survived an Italian 17–0 run at the start of the fourth quarter before Delaere hit the winning corner three-pointer. Meesseman supplied 15 points and 12 rebounds in the semi-final, which extended Belgium's competition winning sequence to 12 games.
The final therefore required Belgium to manage another substantial change in momentum after the earlier scare. Spain's fourth-quarter advantage was larger than the eventual winning margin, and Belgium again produced the late deciding basket. Italy subsequently defeated France 69–54 for bronze, leaving Belgium, Spain and Italy as the three medal-winning teams at the conclusion of the tournament.
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