By Dorcas Francis Koji
Nigeria’s senior women’s basketball team, D’Tigress, have arrived in Berlin, Germany, as they make their final preparations for the 2026 FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup.
The reigning African champions were received on Wednesday by Nigeria’s Ambassador to Germany, Ambassador Ita Enang, alongside officials of the Nigerian diplomatic mission in Berlin.
The team travelled to the German capital after completing the final phase of their preparations in Zaragoza, Spain, where head coach Rena Wakama led the squad through an intensive training camp and final warm-up games against Mali and Puerto Rico.
The Zaragoza camp marked the latest stage of an extensive preparation programme for D’Tigress, which had earlier taken the team to the United States, China and Tenerife, Spain, for training and competitive tune-up matches.
With the tournament scheduled to run from Friday until September 13, the Nigerian side will now use their time in Berlin to fine-tune their tactics and recover fully ahead of their opening fixture.
D’Tigress have been drawn in Group B alongside South Korea, Hungary and France. They will begin their World Cup campaign against South Korea on Friday before taking on Hungary on Saturday and completing their group-stage matches against France on Monday.
Wakama’s team enter the tournament with significant momentum after retaining their continental crown at the 2025 FIBA Women’s AfroBasket in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire. Nigeria defeated Mali 78-64 in the final to claim a fifth consecutive African title.
The team also carry the confidence of a historic performance at the 2024 Paris Olympics, where D’Tigress became the first African basketball team to reach the quarter-finals of the Olympic Games.
At the FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup, Nigeria’s best-ever finish came in 2018, when the team reached the quarter-finals and eventually finished eighth.
With the tournament now just days away, D’Tigress will be hoping their lengthy preparations across several countries have equipped them to compete strongly against the world’s best and make another memorable mark on the international stage.
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