At the Women's Euro Basketball Championship, teams weakened by the rise of the WNBA

In recent years, the French women's team has come close. Crowned European champions for the second time in 2009, Les Bleues have since reached the podiums without ever reaching the top step. But the Olympic runners-up at the Paris 2024 Games are approaching the next continental event, held from June 18 to 29 in Italy, Greece, the Czech Republic, and Germany, with ambition. "We are looking for the most beautiful medal," warned Jacques Commères, deputy technical director of the French Basketball Federation (FFBB) on the eve of the tournament.

This objective could, however, be revised downwards due to the withdrawal of several key players from the national team, who were engaged at the same time with their respective WNBA teams. The season of the North American Women's Basketball League, the counterpart of the men's NBA , began in May and runs until October, the period usually scheduled for meetings governed by the International Basketball Federation (FIBA), such as the Euro.

"There is a real problem with the schedules and the players are suffering," said the captain of the French team, Valériane Ayayi , at a press conference at the beginning of June. The winger knows something about this, having played for the San Antonio Stars in 2015 – now called the Las Vegas Aces.

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