The France men's national basketball team () represents France in international basketball and is administered by the French Federation of Basketball. France is currently ranked ninth in the FIBA World Ranking.
France has been a regular at the EuroBasket, qualifying for 39 appearances all-time. Their best finish came in 2013, winning the gold medal. They have also come away with three silver (1949, 2011, 2022) and six bronze medals (1937, 1951, 1953, 1959, 2005, 2015). France has also won two bronze medals at the FIBA World Cup in 2014 and 2019. While at the Summer Olympics, France has won three silver medals (1948, 2000, 2020).
History
Rise and decline (1919–1979) Throughout its history, France's national basketball team has experienced many ups and downs. The time periods where the national team earned medals have been quite streaky.
In Europe, team France started out as a fierce competitor. The team won five medals at the EuroBasket between 1937 and 1959. 1937: Bronze Medal, 3–2 overall, second in preliminary group, lost semi-final, won bronze medal match 1949: Silver Medal, 5–1 overall, round robin tournament, no playoffs 1951: Bronze Medal; 6–3 overall, second in preliminary group at 3–1, won semi-final group in three-way tie-breaker with 2–1 record, lost semi-final, won bronze medal match 1953: Bronze Medal, 6–4 overall, second in preliminary group at 2–1, second position of four-way tiebreaker for 2nd place in final round with 4–3 record 1959: Bronze Medal, 6–3 overall, second in preliminary group at 3–1, first in semi-final round at 3–0, third in final round with 1–2 record.
Their period of glory on the world stage began in the late 1940s / early 1950s. At the 1948 Olympics in London, the France team led by Robert Busnel won an Olympic silver medal, the first Olympic medal in their history. France finished second only to the United States.
In the wake of this Olympic medal, France, led by captain André Vacheresse won three consecutive medals. Including silver at the EuroBasket in 1949, and bronze in 1951 and 1953 respectively.
The following years were less glorious. France's basketball team seemingly declined gradually, to completely fail to medal at major international competitions during the 1960s and 1970s.
Generation of hope (1980–1989) After the disappointing 60s and 70s, the 1980s were marked by a generation of hope, counting in its ranks French basketball icons such as Richard Dacoury, Stéphane Ostrowski, and Hervé Dubuisson. During this decade, France returned to the Olympics in 1984, and the World Cup in 1986.
Success and struggle (1990–2000) During the 1990s France had their moments to shine, despite some internal struggles and many injuries to key players. At the European championship, the team did not win a medal despite some good performances. The years 1999 and 2000, however, marked a turnaround for French basketball. The team built around Antoine Rigaudeau, Tariq Abdul-Wahad, Laurent Sciarra, Jim Bilba, and Laurent Foirest finished in the top 4 at the EuroBasket 1999, which France hosted. Their first loss was in the semi-finals followed by their second loss in the bronze medal match to FR Yugoslavia 74–62, despite some internal problems that disrupted the group of players. In 2000, team France qualified for the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, full of ambition, which developed the means for major achievement. At the end of their stint in Australia, the selection of coach Jean-Pierre de Vincenzi helped lead the team to the silver medal, France's first top 3 performance at a major basketball event in 46 years and their first Olympic medal in 52 years.
Tony Parker joins the team (2001) After the 2000 Olympics, French phenom Tony Parker was selected by the San Antonio Spurs in the 2001 NBA draft. However, at the EuroBasket 2001, without Antoine Rigaudeau, who surprisingly decided to retire from the national team, the 19-year-old Parker alone was not enough as France failed to repeat their outstanding performance attained at the 2000 Olympic Games. France lost in the quarter-finals to Germany 77–81 and finished in 6th place overall. During this time, most of France's players cleared their spots for a new generation of players, which were available in abundance as the France Junior national team had won the 2000 junior championship.