• → Game to take place at Nokia Arena, Tampere on Wednesday, August 27 at 20:30 EEST (18:30 BST).
• → Finland open on home floor with Lauri Markkanen headlining a veteran core (Salin, Maxhuni, Jantunen, Nkamhoua); Sweden counter with playmaking and size around Ludvig Håkanson and Simon Birgander.
• → Form line: Finland sharp through tune-ups; Sweden went 1–4 in friendlies. The neighbors split their last competitive meetings in 2021–22 (SWE 72–62, FIN 85–69).

Sweden vs Finland - Group B Nightcap Preview

The lights come up in Tampere for a derby with real stakes as FIBA EuroBasket 2025 co-hosts Finland tip off their campaign in an all-Scandinavian derby. The Susijengi have built toward this window for two summers, and they bring continuity: Markkanen’s star power, Sasu Salin’s gravity off movement, Edon Maxhuni’s poise at the point, plus a modern, switchable frontcourt (Jantunen/Nkamhoua/Madsen/Muurinen) that keeps spacing clean. On home floor, that identity tends to scale: defend, secure, and run into early threes.

Sweden arrive with a clear blueprint of their own. Håkanson’s pick-and-roll craft, Birgander’s screening and touch on the glass, and two-way length on the wings (Gaddefors, Andersson, Spires) define a disciplined outfit. Add the pop of Pelle Larsson and the pace of Melwin Pantzar and there’s enough guard play to stress help defenders - if the ball security holds.

Sweden and Finland traded wins the last time they met in the FIBA World Cup qualifiers in 2021 and 2022 - who will come out on top in Tampere?.

What it means

For Finland, an authoritative opener eases rotation stress ahead of Germany and Lithuania. For Sweden, nicking this would flip Group B’s math and make Round-of-16 probabilities real on day one.

How to watch Sweden vs Finland

Catch Sweden vs Finland live and on-demand on Courtside 1891. Unlock the game with a Max Day Pass, Event Pass, or go Max Annual Pass for every EuroBasket matchup.