FIBA 3x3 Youth Nations League 2025 - Europe 2

A strong start for GB’s U23s teams this weekend saw the men’s side win the first two stops of the FIBA 3x3 Youth Nations League with players from both the men’s and women’s squads accumulating valuable points in Bucharest, Romania.

The two teams played in the ‘Europe 2’ branch of the competition, in which they competed within their pools across three days, aiming to finish top of the group and play the winner of the parallel pool.

After topping their pool on both day one and day two of competition, GB U23 men went on to win both Stops with wins over Italy (20-17) and Portugal (19-11). Stop 3 saw them experience narrow defeats to France (22-20) and Italy (21-19).

Reflecting on the performances, GB U23 3x3 Men’s Head Coach, Will Maynard said:

‘I'm proud of how our team worked together and supported each other, even when things got tough. We showed great composure under pressure and adapted well to the opponent's strategy, demonstrating maturity and teamwork.’Will Maynard, Head Coach U23 Men

Both Stop 1 and 2 brought one win and one loss for GB U23 women as they lost out to France (21-9) and Italy (21-16) but were victorious over Romania (14-16 and 15-21). Stop 3 once again brought the challenge of taking on the French where GB narrowed the point difference from the first contest (21-11) before losing to Hungary (21-5).

GB U23 3x3 Women’s Head Coach, Kenrick Liburd said:

‘I was really pleased with the composure and intensity the team showed across the weekend. We saw some strong individual performances, but more importantly, a real sense of cohesion and trust in the group. One key learning was how we managed momentum shifts — staying disciplined under pressure is something we must continue to work on. There’s still plenty to build on, but the progress is encouraging.'Kenrick Liburd, Head Coach U23 Women

The Youth Nations League is not only an opportunity for younger players to experience the rigour and intensity of top-level international basketball, but it is also an opportunity for them to accrue individual and team points which go towards the overall federation ranking points.