USA edges Spain to face France in Women's Basketball World Cup final

The United States survived a Spanish ambush in Berlin on Saturday night, holding off an underdog team that nearly pulled off one of the tournament's great upsets. The final score was 76-66, but the margin hardly captured how close the Americans came to elimination. Spain had fought back from a deficit to tie the game at 58-all heading into the fourth quarter, and with 12,650 German fans roaring behind them, a stunning upset seemed genuinely possible. But the defending champions, drawing on eleven World Cup titles and decades of tournament experience, outscored Spain by ten points in the final period to advance to Sunday's final.

Breanna Stewart led the American effort with 16 points, while Kahleah Copper added 13. The victory extended the U.S. winning streak at this tournament to 35 consecutive matches—a run that stretches back to a semifinal loss to Russia in 2006. Yet the performance revealed vulnerability. Spain had made an aggressive early start, building an eight-point lead midway through the first quarter. The Americans regained control through the second and third quarters, with Stewart and Copper keeping the offense moving, but they allowed their defensive intensity to slip as the third quarter wound down. Spain capitalized, finishing the period on a 9-2 run to force the tie.

Caitlin Clark, the Indiana Fever guard whose scoring prowess has defined American basketball this season, managed just one point against Spain's suffocating defense and committed two turnovers. It was another quiet night for a player expected to carry offensive load, though the team's depth ultimately compensated. When the fourth quarter began, the Americans responded with a 12-2 burst that broke Spain's momentum and restored control. Stewart, speaking after the match, dismissed any lingering thoughts of the tight contest. "That's over," she said when asked about the narrow margin. "This is one game to win the gold medal in the World Cup in Berlin, and that's our entire focus."

Spain's run to the semifinal represented their best World Cup performance since 2014, when they reached the final and lost to the Americans. This time, they came closer to victory than any team had in years, but fell short in the moments that mattered most.

France, meanwhile, secured their first World Cup final appearance with a dominant 86-64 victory over host nation Germany earlier in the day. Gabby Williams, an American-born player competing for France, scored 22 points while distributing five assists and recording four steals. She was the engine of the French offense and defense both, a constant threat on every possession. France had burst out quickly, but Germany stayed competitive through the opening quarter, trailing by just two points. The decisive moment came in the second half, when France scored nine unanswered points to open the third quarter and build a 16-point lead. Germany mounted a brief rally in the fourth, with Alexis Peterson and Emily Bessoir hitting three-pointers to cut the deficit to nine, but France responded with a 12-0 run to seal the victory and preserve their unbeaten tournament record.

Germany's semifinal appearance itself was historic—the first time a unified German team had reached the World Cup final four. East Germany had made the semifinals in 1967, but this was a new threshold for the reunited nation. They had swept past European champions Belgium in the quarterfinals to earn their spot.

Williams told reporters she was operating "on a mission." She acknowledged the rarity of such opportunities and vowed to give everything in the final. Marieme Badiane, speaking for the French team, rejected any notion that facing the American juggernaut would intimidate them. "We all realise that we can go for the ultimate prize," she said. "That's the goal now. We aren't stopping here."

Sunday's final will be a rematch of the 2024 Paris Olympics gold medal match, which the Americans won by a single point. The U.S. enters as heavy favorites, but Spain's near-miss and France's unbeaten record suggest the championship is not a foregone conclusion.