France's women's basketball team lost the World Cup final to the United States 79-97 on Sunday in Berlin, collapsing from a 14-point lead to trail by as much as 27 points after dominating the first half.
The defeat denied France a first world title after the team had rolled through the tournament unbeaten, winning by an average margin of 40.6 points in the group stage, 29 points in the quarterfinal and 22 points in the semifinal.
Forward Valeriane Ayayi, still shaken shortly after the loss, said the team could not yet grasp that it had had a good World Cup, since it had come to Berlin only for the gold medal.
The result was far removed from the 2024 Paris Olympics final, when France lost to the same opponent by a single point, 66-67, after imposing tight defense throughout. This time France had raced ahead as early as the second quarter, leading by 14 points in the 13th minute.
First-half surge undone
France's lead had been built on an extraordinary run, scoring 16 unanswered points in six minutes to go from trailing 15-17 to leading 31-17, a spell opened and closed by long-range three-pointers from Marine Johannes and Gabby Williams. France shot 8 of 14 from three-point range in the first half.
Ayayi said that late in the second quarter France let the Americans do what they wanted, on the break and on offensive rebounds, adding that the team knew that was what fed the Americans and allowed them to come back.
The turnaround began with a barely contested three-pointer from Jackie Young just ten seconds after a Williams basket, making it 31-20 in the 13th minute. Tournament MVP Breanna Stewart then scored to make it 31-22 in the 14th minute, before a blind pass from Chelsea Gray set up another Young three at the 24-second buzzer, 33-25. Stewart then finished a fast break after a missed long-range attempt by Johannes, with no French player back in defense, making it 33-27 in the 15th minute.
Marine Johannes struggles again
That two-minute sequence broke France's momentum. The defensive intensity that had defined both the 2026 World Cup and the 2024 Olympic final disappeared, and Caitlin Clark's first three-pointer of the game late in the first half, making it 45-43, proved to be a turning point.
France then suffered a 2-11 run in three minutes and thirty seconds to open the third quarter, part of an overall 12-30 quarter.
Speaking to beIN Sports, center Dominique Malonga said France had not come out of the locker room the right way, that the Americans had hit them first and France had not responded, winning the physical battle and dominating them.
Johannes, who had been a standout off the bench throughout the tournament, endured a poor final, scoring five points on 1-of-6 shooting with five turnovers and an unsportsmanlike foul. Williams, who had 16 points at halftime, finished with 20 but shot just 1 of 7 in the second half.
American 'steamroller' proves too strong
Former France point guard Yannick Souvre, speaking to L'Equipe, said the Americans had perfectly targeted Williams, and that France had not previously faced that level of opposition in the competition. She said France was getting closer to Team USA, but once the American steamroller got moving in this match, France saw no daylight.
Stewart finished with 22 points and 10 rebounds, and Young scored 18, as France fell behind by as many as 27 points, trailing 59-86 in the 34th minute.
Ayayi said the Americans had raised their intensity in a way France had not matched, dominating the rebounding battle 38 to 25 despite France having made that a specific focus beforehand. She said there was no contest in the second half, that France failed to respond or follow its game plan, and that it had been a different match from the Olympics, when France had imposed its own style of play.
Toupane vows France will return
The result extended the United States' unbeaten run in major international tournaments to 72 consecutive wins, a streak stretching back to 2006, though Italy in the group stage (52-55) and Spain in the semifinal (58-58 at the 30th minute before finishing 66-76) had pushed the Americans close.
France coach Jean-Aime Toupane said the team was at the door and had gone in to see what it was like, and that having seen its place was still behind the Americans, France would come back. The next Olympic tournament is scheduled for Los Angeles in 2028.
