Concentration on club season
German star player has to cancel EM
09.05.2025 – 11:36 a.m.Reading time: 1 min.
Satou Sabally is the key player of the German basketball players. Your European Championship cancellation is a bitter setback for the DBB team.
The German basketball players have to do without their key player at this year’s European Championship: Satou Sabally will not take part in the tournament. The German Basketball Bund (DBB) confirmed a corresponding report by the specialist magazine “Big-Basketball in Germany” on the SID request.
The 27-year-old, who has been playing for the PHOENIX Mercury WNBA club since this season, focuses on her club career this summer. According to “Big”, Sabally “wants to concentrate more on the WNBA season”. The new season in the North American league begins in a few days. After five years at the Dallas Wings, the Berliner moved to Phoenix in the spring.
For national coach Lisa Thomaidis and the German team, Sabally’s cancellation is a difficult blow. The exceptional player had contributed significantly to the first Olympic qualification last year. In Paris, the team reached seventh place.
The preliminary round of the European Championships contest German women in front of their home crowd in the Hamburg Inselpark Arena. Opponents are Sweden (June 19), Spain (June 20) and Great Britain (June 21). The final round is held in Piraeus (Greece).
As early as 2023, Sabally had waived the European Championship due to injury – at that time the upcoming change of contract in the WNBA also played a role. In the long term, the focus will be on the 2026 home world championship in Berlin.