Latvia's U16 women reach semifinal against Spain as Italy suffers historic drop
At the European U16 women's basketball championship, Latvia beat Hungary in the quarterfinal to set up a semifinal against dominant Spain, while Italy lost its top-division place for the first time in 20 years.
On Wednesday, August 19, the European U16 women's basketball championship quarterfinals were played in Pitesti, Romania. Latvia defeated Hungary 75:69 to reach the semifinal, where they will face Spain. In the other semifinal, France will play Slovenia.
Spain keeps rolling
Spain claimed another dominant win in the quarterfinal, beating Serbia 88:41. It continued a pattern of lopsided victories throughout the tournament — Spain won group-stage games by margins of 69, 115 and 74 points, and defeated Lithuania by 91 points in the round of 16.
France returned to the semifinal after missing out last year, beating 2025 bronze medalist Germany 79:39 in the quarterfinal. Slovenia beat Turkey 54:47 to reach the semifinal for a second consecutive year.
Historic setback for Italy
For the first time in 20 years, Italy will have to compete in Division B. Following a 47:63 loss to Poland, Italy can no longer secure a top-division spot, even though it can still fight for 13th place. Italy last played outside Division A in 2007, when the tournament was held in Valmiera — since then, Italian national teams have featured in every top-tier European tournament.
Israel also lost its top-division spot, falling 69:80 to Lithuania in the quarterfinal, as did Romania, which lost 46:70 to the Czech Republic. Bulgaria, host of next year's finals, has already secured its Division A place for 2027 as well.
The semifinals will be played on Friday, August 21, while all placement games, including the final, will take place on Saturday, August 22. In next year's group stage, Latvia will face Italy, Israel and Turkey.
