A packed Palais des Sports witnessed Nigeria overcome Mali in the most important game of the tournament.
ABIDJAN (Cote d’Ivoire) – On Sunday, August 3, Nigeria defeated Mali 78-64 in the 2025 Women’s AfroBasket final in Abidjan, winning their fifth consecutive continental title.
The win qualified Nigeria for the 2026 FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup in Berlin, Germany although the African champions will participate in the World Cup Qualifying Tournaments in March next year.
In a rematch of the 2021 tournament final, Nigeria overcame an early deficit to take the lead in the third quarter and never trailed again, despite Mali cutting their deficit to just four points in the final ten minutes.
This was Nigeria’s fifth consecutive Women’s AfroBasket title, a feat no other nation has ever accomplished.
It was Nigeria’s 29th consecutive victory at the Women’s AfroBasket tournament.
Their last loss in the tournament occurred on October 2, 2015, when they fell 71–70 to hosts Cameroon in the semifinals.
This is Mali’s second runner-up finish. They also finished second in the 2021 tournament in Yaoundé, Cameroon, losing to Nigeria.
Mali chased their first African title since 2007, but Nigeria proved too strong.
In the third-place match, South Sudan narrowly defeated Senegal 66-65 in a thrilling encounter that had fans on the edge of their seats.
South Sudan led by as many as 16 points in the first half. However, Senegal rallied to take a four-point lead in the fourth quarter.
Nevertheless, the Bright Starlets of South Sudan never wavered and secured the one-point win after Nyamer Lual Diew made one of her two free throws with six seconds left.
South Sudan became the first Women’s AfroBasket debutant to win a medal.
On the other hand, Senegal finished outside the top three for the second time in two decades. They previously missed the podium in the 2021 tournament in Cameroon.
Nigeria’s Amy Okonkwo was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player (MVP) and led the All-Star Team alongside Senegal’s Cierra Dillard, South Sudan’s Delicia Washington, Uganda’s Jane Asinde, and Mali’s Sika Kone.
The four semifinalists — Nigeria, Mali, South Sudan, and Senegal — secured their places in the 2026 FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup Qualifying Tournaments.
Final Standing of the 2025 FIBA Women’s AfroBasket
1. Nigeria 2. Mali 3. South Sudan 4. Senegal 5. Cameroon 6. Mozambique 7. Cote d’Ivoire 8. Uganda 9. Egypt 10. Angola 11. Rwanda 12. Guinea
FIBA
