France take on Germany on Saturday, September 12, in the semifinal of the Women's Basketball World Cup, with a place in the final on the line. The match kicks off at 16:30 and will be shown on the French channel TMC.
Les Bleues, coached by Jean-Aimé Toupane, a former player and coach at Toulouse, go into the game as favourites, even though Germany will be playing in front of their own supporters as hosts of the tournament. The teammates of French star Gabby Williams have experience and a far richer trophy record on their side.
France's World Cup pedigree
France are the reigning Olympic silver medallists and have won two European titles, in 2001 and 2009. In the World Cup itself, however, they have never gone further than third place, a finish they achieved back in 1953.
France reached this semifinal by beating China 90-61 in the quarterfinal, a result that secured the team's place among the final four.
Germany's surprise run to the last four
Germany, by contrast, are playing only their second World Cup ever, having finished 11th on their sole previous appearance in 1998. Their run to the semifinal has been built on a stunning quarterfinal upset, beating Belgium, the two-time defending European champions, 93-74.
What comes next
The winner of the France-Germany semifinal will face either Australia or the United States in the final. Those two teams meet in the other semifinal on the same Saturday, with kickoff at 20:00.
A win for France would take the team back to a World Cup final for the first time since their best finish of third place in 1953, more than seven decades ago.
