On the occasion of the international window which is opening and with the return of our French teams to the courts, QIBasket puts this question back on the table: why should France host the Men’s Basketball World Cup in 2031?
Basketball breaks all its records in France
First argument for organizing a world championship in France? We have become one of the biggest basketball countries in Europe. 765,909 licensees for the 2023-24 season in France. It’s a record. And the previous year (725,000) was also a record for a country which hosted basketball since 1893 in a small hall on Rue de Trévise which is today the oldest basketball hall in the world. During the summer and these unforgettable Olympic Games, the television audiences for the French men’s and women’s teams also reached records. For women, the France-Belgium semi-final was seen by 5.5 million viewers and the France-USA final by 6.5 millions ! And among men, we reached 8.6 million viewers for the France-USA final. During the group stage of the Olympic Games, we saw the Pierre Mauroy hall in Lille reach a capacity of 27,000 people to see the men’s and women’s basketball teams. A record, once again. Added to this were the fanzones in Paris and throughout France filled with people, like that of the Château de Vincennes where almost 3,000 people watched the France-USA match for men on giant screens. Never seen before in France. Never seen before.
The only basketball competition that has never been organized
Second argument: France has a real history of organizing basketball competitions on its soil. On four occasions, we have organized the men’s Eurobasket (1951-1983-1999-2015*). During the 2015 edition, the attendance record for a basketball match in Europe had already been obtained, still in the same room of Pierre Mauroy in Lille. France has also hosted the women’s Eurobasket five times (1962-1976-2001-2013-2021*), one of which was won by France. Added to this of course is the organization of the Olympic Games this summer. We can also even cite the NBA Paris Game and the fact that the American league has now decided to organize not one, but two NBA regular season games in France per yeara privilege that no other European country has. Nice list, no? Except that in this list, the organization of a Basketball World Cup on French soil is sorely missing.more than a century after the first match of a national basketball team… incomprehensible.
*For 2015, however, the group stage was shared between France, Croatia, Germany and Latvia and for 2021, the competition was shared between France and Spain.
The only competition that has never been organized… period!
No World Cup, men’s or women’s, has therefore ever been organized in France. And we ask the question: why? Is it impossible? No, it’s not. Because France has already organized two rugby World Cups, three football World Cups (two men’s, one women’s), three handball World Cups (and a fourth in 2029!), three ice hockey World Cups ! And we no longer count the world championships of sports like Judo, athletics or multiple winter sports, or even E-sport! Yes, in this list too, the absence of a basketball world championship is incredibly noticeable!
A close link between France and basketball
This is an argument that must weigh in favor of our appeal, so we repeat it: yes, France is a basketball country. During the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games was inaugurated, in front of the whole world, during the opening ceremony, the statue of Alice Milliat, who, from the 1920s, encouraged women to play basketball. And if we can recognize that our Nation has not been particularly successful during the last century, since the year 2000, our national teams have won three Gold medals in Eurobasket, five silver medals and one bronze Olympic medal and two bronze medals in the World Cup. But more than the link between France and basketball, it is also French basketball that shines today: the NBA has selected, for two consecutive years, a Frenchman in first position in its annual draft. No other country, except the United States, has had such an honor. The face of Victor Wembanyama has become that of basketball and the prestigious American league. In Europe, the French are in all the big teams: Evan Fournier at Olympiakos, Matthias Lessort, winner of the Euroleague in 2024 with Panatinaïkos…
The infrastructure is already there!
We have every interest in seeking to organize such a global event. With Paris 2024, we have shown that we have the capabilities. A basketball world championship is 5 to 6 stadiums, maximum. However, today we have arenas modern enough to reach this figure: the Accord Hotel Arena in Paris and the Stade Pierre Mauroy in Lille, which were the Olympic basketball sites, the U Arena in Nanterre, the South of France Arena in Montpellier, the Co’Met Arena in Orléans, and other sites such as Pau or Nantes are fully capable of hosting matches as well.
Involve all stakeholders
Such a competition also involves the involvement of many sports partners in France. It is also the promotion of cities, their reception and transport infrastructures, for athletes and the public.. Hosting a basketball World Cup means once again doing what France does best: welcoming people from all walks of life, highlighting its expertise in tourist reception and sports tourism. It is up to us, today, to understand this reality: we have every interest in organizing this world championship.
We are not alone!
We are already hearing the counter-arguments: organizing this World Cup would be expensive, our infrastructure is insufficient… and yet, today, only Italy is a candidate. We very much doubt that if Italy proposes to organize this world championship, France would not have the means to do so.. But we can also understand the fears of those who also see – and they are right – the obstacles that may stand in the way of this initiative. To this we answer that there is also an alternative: share the application! The last World Cup was played in three countries. So we say it: France can also join its candidacy with Italy and even, let’s go further, with other countries, such as Germany.
A request that was made in April!
If you think this plea is just a small message in cyberspace, think again… car as early as April 17, your editor made contact with the Ministry of Sports ! Better than that, the Ministry had acknowledged receipt and transmitted the request to the Interministerial Delegate in charge of the organization of sports competitions in France. It is therefore time to relaunch the project.
Today, more than ever, we have an opportunity to organize a basketball World Cup in France. Such an opportunity will not present itself for a long time. So it is today and now that QIbasket is calling on you to support the initiative.
