German players react during the Women’s Basketball World Cup quarterfinal match between Germany and Belgium in Berlin, Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
BERLIN— Buoyed by partisan home fans, host Germany upset Belgium 93-74 on Thursday to reach the women’s FIBA World Cup semifinals, where the United States will play Spain.
Leonie Fiebich scored 17 points and had 10 rebounds to lead Germany to a showdown with France on Saturday. Nyara Sabally also had a double-double with 16 points and 12 rebounds.
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“Everyone stepped up today and we did it from the first second to the very last,” said Alexandra Wilke, who contributed 10 points.
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Megan Gustafson scored 16 points and led Spain to an 89-66 win over injury-hit Australia in the last quarterfinal, ending the Americans’ wait to learn their next opponent. The four-time defending champions routed Hungary 108-56 in the first quarterfinal to stretch their winning streak in the tournament to 34 games.
Australia was without forward Ezi Magbegor, who tore her right ACL in the win over Italy, and Alanna Smith, who re-aggravated a leg injury at the start of the tournament.
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“It’s really hard to compete against the best in the world when you don’t have all your best players, but I think it was a great experience for all our younger players,” Australia coach Sandy Brondello said.
Brondello is married to Germany coach Olaf Lange and she said she was “really proud of my husband, which is very weird to say,” after what Lange had called the “ best day in German basketball ” as Germany progressed.
“I was a little teary out there, I went and watched the end of the game,” said Brondello, who previously also coached some of the German players.
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Germany breaks new ground
German players celebrate after the Women’s Basketball World Cup quarterfinal match between Germany and Belgium in Berlin, Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Germany had never reached the semifinals before. The players screamed and whooped in celebration.
“I can’t quite believe it yet,” forward Frieda Bühner said. “We’re among the best four teams in the world. I can’t believe it. It’s crazy.”
Germany had lost its opening game by 30 points to Spain, but bounced back with impressive wins over Japan and Mali before routing South Korea in a playoff to reach the quarterfinals.
Egged on by fervent commentary from the announcer, fans cheered, jumped and waved Germany flags at the Berlin Arena to help the home team keep its momentum going.
“It’s always really cool to play in front of such a crowd,” Sabally said. “I couldn’t have wished for more, especially in Germany. It’s really cool to see that there’s so much hype and the whole venue is caught up in it. It’s really, really cool.”
It’s the sixth straight World Cup at which the host has made the final four since China failed to make the semifinals in 2002.
Belgium, the European champion, was one of three teams that advanced through group play without a loss.
Emma Meesseman led Belgium with 29 points and added eight rebounds, but her team was unable to regain the lead after Bühner made it 20-19 toward the end of the first quarter.
Germany did not qualify for the World Cup since the unified country’s only previous appearance as host in 1998. East Germany’s women’s basketball team finished fourth at the 1967 tournament.
Missouri travels to Kansas looking for a second straight win over the Jayhawks—watch to see what Austin Simmons can do for the Tigers. 
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