Nigeria’s women’s basketball team, D’Tigress, has climbed to 8th place in the latest FIBA Women’s World Rankings after an impressive performance at the 2025 FIBA Women’s AfroBasket in Abidjan.
The rankings, released on Thursday, 14 August, show Nigeria moving up three spots from 11th to 8th, collecting 640.1 points. D’Tigress remain the only African team ever to reach the top 10 in the FIBA Women’s World Rankings.
The United States continues to hold the number one spot with 880.9 points, followed by Australia with 719.6 and France with 719.2 points. China and Belgium round out the top five, while Spain, Canada, and now Nigeria complete the top eight.
The rise in ranking comes after D’Tigress made history by winning their fifth consecutive AfroBasket championship, a feat no other men’s or women’s team in Africa has ever achieved.
In the final game at the Palais des Sports de Treichville, D’Tigress secured a commanding 78–64 victory, marking their seventh AfroBasket title overall and extending their unbeaten streak in the competition to 29 games, which began in 2015.
Other teams also made notable strides in the latest FIBA rankings. Lithuania returned to the FIBA Women’s EuroBasket after ten years and reached the quarter-finals, climbing 14 places to 31st.
South Sudan made a remarkable debut at the AfroBasket Women tournament, finishing third. Lebanon rose 13 spots to 41st, Indonesia jumped 19 places to 60th, Iran moved up 15 places to 44th, and Mongolia climbed 20 spots to 70th following Division B competitions.
