Denmark men's national basketball team

This article is about the men's team. For the women's team, see Denmark women's national basketball team.

Denmark

FIBA ranking	59 (25 February 2025) [1]
Joined FIBA	1951
FIBA zone	FIBA Europe
National federation	DBBF
Coach	Allan Foss
Nickname(s)	De rød-hvide (The Red and White)
Olympic Games
Appearances	None
FIBA World Cup
Appearances	None
EuroBasket
Appearances	3
Medals	None
Championship for Small Countries
Appearances	1
Medals	Gold: (2010)
Home Away
First international
Denmark 13–109 Soviet Union   (Paris, France; 3 May 1951)
Biggest win
Denmark 99–51 Cyprus   (Copenhagen, Denmark; 26 April 1986)
Biggest defeat
Soviet Union 118–14 Denmark   (Moscow, Soviet Union; 25 May 1953)

The Denmark men's national basketball team (Danish : Danmarks landsbasketballhold) represents Denmark in international basketball competition. The national team is controlled by the Danish Basketball Association.

The Denmark national team competed regularly at the EuroBasket in the 1950s, the top European tournament. Their best appearance came in 1951. Although since then, the team has struggled to maintain consistency to challenge the international elites. Denmark also has yet to reach qualification to play on the global stage at the FIBA World Cup.

History

EuroBasket 1951

Denmark debuted in the European championships at the EuroBasket 1951 in Paris. They were defeated in all of their preliminary round games, going 0–4. They ended up in last place in their group. In a direct elimination match against Luxembourg, Denmark took a 46–45 lead with 5 seconds left. A final half-court shot by Luxembourg bounced off the rim, giving Denmark its first ever win at the EuroBasket tournament and advancing the team to the first classification round. They picked up another win there, against Scotland, finishing in third place in the group at 1–2. Their third win of the tournament came against Portugal in the 13th–16th place classification semifinal. Denmark then lost to Switzerland in the 13th/14th place match to finish 14th of the 18 teams with a record of 3–7.

EuroBasket 1953

Two years later, at the EuroBasket 1953 in Moscow, Denmark did not fare as well. They dropped eight of their matches (three in the preliminary round, three in the first classification round, and the two-second-round classification games) on their way to a 16th-place finish out of the 17 teams in the tournament.

EuroBasket 1955

At the EuroBasket 1955 in Budapest, the national team struggled there as well just as they did at the prior EuroBasket. Losing all eight of their matches in non competitive fashion, this time they finished in last place of the 18 teams at the event.

Later years

After the EuroBasket 1955, the Danish national team regressed and never qualified for a major tournament again. Though, they did achieve some success on a lower level, at the European Championship for Small Countries, where they won Gold in 2010.

Competitive record

FIBA World Cup World Cup Qualification Year Position Pld W L Pld W L 1950 No national representative 1954 Did not qualify 1959 Did not enter Did not enter 1963 1967 1970 Did not qualify EuroBasket served as qualifiers 1974 1978 1982 1986 Did not enter Did not enter 1990 Did not qualify EuroBasket served as qualifiers 1994 1998 2002 2006 2010 2014 Did not enter Did not enter 2019 2023 Did not qualify 4 0 4 2027 To be determined In progress Total 0/18 4 0 4 Olympic Games Olympic Games Qualifying Year Position Pld W L Pld W L 1936 No national representative 1952 Did not enter 1956 Did not qualify 1960 Did not enter Did not enter 1964 1968 1972 Did not qualify 3 0 3 1976 Did not enter Did not enter 1980 1984 1988 Did not qualify 4 0 4 1992 Did not enter Did not enter 1996 to 2016 2020 2024 Did not qualify Did not qualify 2028 To be determined To be determined Total 0/19 7 0 7 Championship for Small Countries FIBA European Championship for Small Countries Year Position Pld W L 2010 5 5 0 Total 5 5 0

EuroBasket EuroBasket Qualification Year Position Pld W L Pld W L 1935 to 1949 No national representative 1951 14th 10 3 7 1953 16th 8 0 8 1955 18th 8 0 8 1957 Did not enter 1959 1961 1963 Did not enter 1965 1967 Did not qualify 3 1 2 1969 3 0 3 1971 4 1 3 1973 6 1 5 1975 Did not enter Did not enter 1977 Did not qualify 5 2 3 1979 4 1 3 1981 4 2 2 1983 Did not enter Did not enter 1985 Did not qualify 4 3 1 1987 4 2 2 1989 3 1 2 1991 4 1 3 1993 10 3 7 1995 Did not enter Did not enter 1997 Did not qualify 5 2 3 1999 15 5 10 2001 5 1 4 2003 15 4 11 2005 Division B 6 4 2 2007 Did not qualify 14 2 12 2009 Division B 8 0 8 2011 Did not enter Did not enter 2013 2015 Did not qualify 12 2 10 2017 6 2 4 2022 18 6 12 2025 20 9 11 2029 To be determined To be determined Total 3/36 26 3 23 178 61 117

Results and fixtures

  Win  Loss

2024

Denmark   v   Serbia

21 November 2024 EuroBasket 2025 qualifiers	Denmark	52–72	Serbia	Copenhagen, Denmark
18:00 (UTC+1)	Scoring by quarter: 6–29, 13–14, 16–19, 17–10
	Pts: Engelhardt 13 Rebs: Knudsen, Sorensen 5 Asts:four players 3	Boxscore	Pts: Koprivica 13 Rebs: Ristić 6 Asts: Avramović, Jović 6	Arena: Farum Arena Attendance: 2,993 Referees: Wojciech Liszka (POL), Nicolás Maestre (FRA), Ilias Kounelles (CYP)

Serbia   v   Denmark

24 November 2024 EuroBasket 2025 qualifiers	Serbia	98–51	Denmark	Belgrade, Serbia
20:00 (UTC+1)	Scoring by quarter:25–17, 25–11, 20–11, 28–12
	Pts: Avramović 18 Rebs: Dobrić 8 Asts: Avramović 8	Boxscore	Pts: Lundberg 15 Rebs: Lundberg 6 Asts: Lundberg 6	Arena: Aleksandar Nikolić Hall Attendance: 6,300 Referees: Paulo Marques (POR), Mihkel Männiste (EST), Orhan Hekimoğlu (TUR)

2025

Georgia   v   Denmark

21 February 2025 EuroBasket 2025 qualifiers	Georgia	62–60	Denmark	Tbilisi, Georgia
21:00 (UTC+4)	Scoring by quarter: 19–21, 18–4, 11–20, 14–15
	Pts: Shengelia 19 Rebs: Shengelia 13 Asts: Andronikashvili, Shengelia 4	Boxscore	Pts: Larsen 14 Rebs: Berg 8 Asts: Berg 3	Arena: Tbilisi Arena Attendance: 9,000 Referees: Luis Castillo (ESP), Ventsislav Velikov (BUL), Ilias Kounelles (CYP)

Denmark   v   Finland

24 February 2025 EuroBasket 2025 qualifiers	Denmark	77–83	Finland	Copenhagen, Denmark
20:00 (UTC+1)	Scoring by quarter:25–24, 22–17, 23–18, 7–24
	Pts: Larsen 22 Rebs: Larsen 11 Asts: Lundberg 6	Boxscore	Pts: Nkamhoua 26 Rebs: Nkamhoua 8 Asts: Salin 6	Arena: Farum Arena Attendance: 2,391 Referees: Ariadna Chueca (ESP), Igor Mitrovski (MKD), Péter Praksch (HUN)

Denmark   v   Norway

2 August 2025 2027 FIBA World Cup pre-qualifiers – 2nd round	Denmark	89–71	Norway	Farum, Denmark
18:00 (UTC+2)	Scoring by quarter:25–15, 20–21, 20–17, 24–18
	Pts: Jensen 21 Rebs: Erikstrup 8 Asts: Berg, Jensen 5	Boxscore	Pts: Frey 23 Rebs: Nordheim 6 Asts: Odfjell, Savić 4	Arena: Farum Arena Attendance: 1,133 Referees: Gatis Saliņš (LAT), Péter Praksch (HUN), Juozas Barkauskas (LTU)

Croatia   v   Denmark

9 August 2025 2027 FIBA World Cup pre-qualifiers – 2nd round	Croatia	100–71	Denmark	Opatija, Croatia
20:30 (UTC+2)	Scoring by quarter:24–14, 32–29, 21–16, 23–12
	Pts: Smith 24 Rebs: Drežnjak 5 Asts: Smith 6	Boxscore	Pts: Dibba 17 Rebs: Berg 5 Asts:three players 3	Arena: Marino Cvetković Sports Hall Attendance: 500 Referees: Kerem Baki (TUR), Michał Proc (POL), Zdenko Tomašovič (SVK)

Norway   v   Denmark

13 August 2025 2027 FIBA World Cup pre-qualifiers – 2nd round	Norway	70–79	Denmark	Bergen, Norway
18:00 (UTC+2)	Scoring by quarter: 12–15, 15–22, 22–18, 21–24
	Pts: Savić 21 Rebs: Savić 10 Asts: Frey 5	Boxscore	Pts: Erikstrup 32 Rebs: Erikstrup 9 Asts: Heede-Andersen, Jensen 4	Arena: Åsane Arena Attendance: 1,030 Referees: Saverio Lanzarini (ITA), Fernando Calatrava (ESP), Mihkel Männiste (EST)

Denmark   v   Croatia

20 August 2025 2027 FIBA World Cup pre-qualifiers – 2nd round	Denmark	76–79	Croatia	Farum, Denmark
19:00 (UTC+2)	Scoring by quarter:21–12, 17–24, 19–24, 19–19
	Pts: Dibba 19 Rebs: Webb 11 Asts: Heede-Andersen 8	Boxscore	Pts: Šarić 30 Rebs: Šarić 8 Asts: Badžim 5	Arena: Farum Arena Attendance: 1,763 Referees: Wojciech Liszka (POL), Lorenzo Baldini (ITA), Mihkel Männiste (EST)

Denmark   v   Spain

27 November 2025 2027 FIBA World Cup qualifiers – 1st round	Denmark	vs.	Spain	Denmark
--:-- (UTC+1)
		Boxscore

Ukraine   v   Denmark

30 November 2025 2027 FIBA World Cup qualifiers – 1st round	Ukraine	vs.	Denmark	TBD
		Boxscore

2026

Denmark   v   Georgia

27 February 2026 2027 FIBA World Cup qualifiers – 1st round	Denmark	vs.	Georgia	Denmark
--:-- (UTC+1)
		Boxscore

Georgia   v   Denmark

2 March 2026 2027 FIBA World Cup qualifiers – 1st round	Georgia	vs.	Denmark	Georgia
--:-- (UTC+4)
		Boxscore

Spain   v   Denmark

2 July 2026 2027 FIBA World Cup qualifiers – 1st round	Spain	vs.	Denmark	Spain
--:-- (UTC+2)
		Boxscore

Denmark   v   Ukraine

5 July 2026 2027 FIBA World Cup qualifiers – 1st round	Denmark	vs.	Ukraine	Denmark
--:-- (UTC+2)
		Boxscore

Team

Current roster

Roster for the 2027 FIBA World Cup Pre-Qualifiers matches in August 2025 against Norway and Croatia. ^{[2] [3]}

Denmark men's national basketball team roster
Players	Coaches
Pos. No. Name Age – Date of birth Height Club Ctr. PF 0 Bakary Dibba 23 – (2001-10-23)23 October 2001 2.01 m (6 ft 7 in) Breogán C 2 Marcus Engelhardt 18 – (2006-12-01)1 December 2006 2.16 m (7 ft 1 in) Unicaja SF 3 Sylvester Berg 27 – (1998-05-27)27 May 1998 2.01 m (6 ft 7 in) Bakken Bears G 6 Ogbemudia Uagboe 19 – (2006-05-07)7 May 2006 1.92 m (6 ft 4 in) SISU PG 12 Adam Heede-Andersen 28 – (1996-07-04)4 July 1996 1.87 m (6 ft 2 in) Svendborg PF 13 Kevin Larsen 32 – (1993-07-17)17 July 1993 2.07 m (6 ft 9 in) Lucentum SF 15 Zarko Jukic 32 – (1993-07-28)28 July 1993 2.02 m (6 ft 8 in) ÍR C 22 Jermaine Ballisager 22 – (2003-02-22)22 February 2003 2.13 m (7 ft 0 in) Portland Pilots F/C 32 Dane Erikstrup 22 – (2003-04-03)3 April 2003 2.12 m (6 ft 11 in) Donar C 33 Johan Munch 20 – (2005-06-21)21 June 2005 2.12 m (6 ft 11 in) Oregon State Beavers SF 35 Niklas Polonowski 20 – (2005-01-11)11 January 2005 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) Penn Quakers PG 71 Jonathan Klussmann 22 – (2002-10-06)6 October 2002 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) Unattached G/F 77 Tobias Jensen 21 – (2004-05-08)8 May 2004 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) Ulm	Head coach Allan Foss Assistant coach(es) Michael Bree Jeffrey Jensen Legend (C) Team captain Club – describes last club before the competition Age – describes age on 2 August 2025

Depth chart

Pos.	Starting 5	Bench 1	Bench 2	Bench 3
C	Jonas Zohore	Asbjørn Midtgaard	Sami Eleraky	Jacob Jensen
PF	Kevin Larsen	Daniel Mortensen	Zarko Jukić	Sylvester Berg
SF	Darko Jukic	Jonathan Gilling	Chris Nielsen	Morten Sahlertz
SG	Shavon Shields	Philip Hertz	Thomas Laerke	David Knudsen
PG	Iffe Lundberg	Adama Darboe	Frederik Nielsen	Chanan Colman

Head coach position

• Per Huyghebaert – (early 1990s – 1994)
• Allan Foss – (2004–2009)
• / Peter Hoffman – (2010–2011)
• Pieti Poikola – (2013–2016)
• Erez Bittman – (2017–2021)
• Arnel Dedić – (2021–2022)
• Allan Foss – (2022–present)

Past rosters

1951 EuroBasket: finished 14th among 18 teams

3 Knud Lundberg, 4 Knud Norskov, 5 Erik Korsbjerg, 6 Erik Wilbek, 7 Peter Tantholdt, 8 Belger Can, 9 Bent Sondergaard, 10 Erik Melbye, 11 Sven Thomsen, 12 John Christensen, 13 Ove Nielsen, 14 Kai Sogaard, 15 Erik Carlsen, 16 Niels Mygind (Coach: ?)

---

1953 EuroBasket: finished 16th among 17 teams

3 Kai Sorensen, 4 Knud Norskov, 5 Knud Lundberg, 6 Peter Tantholdt, 7 John Christensen, 8 Erik Madsen, 10 Torben Starup-Hansen, 11 Ivan Rasmussen, 12 Ove Nielsen, 13 Erik Wilbek, 14 Pierre Meilsej, 15 Willi Mouritsen, 16 John Nielsen (Coach: ?)

---

1955 EuroBasket: finished 18th among 18 teams

3 Kai Sogaard, 4 Erik Korsbjerg, 5 Peter Tantholdt, 6 Pierre Meilsej, 7 An Lillelund, 8 Ivan Rasmussen, 9 Ove Nielsen, 10 T Storup, 11 P Hintz, 12 T Malmquist, 13 Willi Mouritsen, 14 S Sparre (Coach: ?)

Kit

Manufacturer

• 2018–present: Spalding

See also

• Sports portal
• Denmark portal

• Sport in Denmark
• Denmark women's national basketball team
• Denmark men's national under-20 basketball team
• Denmark men's national under-18 basketball team
• Denmark men's national under-16 basketball team
• Denmark men's national 3x3 team

References

1. "FIBA World Ranking Presented by Nike". FIBA. 25 February 2025. Retrieved 25 February 2025.
2. "Foss vil videre fra gruppen: Norge må ikke undervurderes – igen". basket.dk (in Danish). Retrieved 29 July 2025.
3. "Denmark during the 2027 FIBA World Cup European Pre-Qualifiers in August 2025" . Retrieved 2 August 2025.

External links

• Official website (in Danish)
• Denmark FIBA profile
• Denmark National Team – Men at Eurobasket.com
• Denmark Basketball Records at FIBA Archive

Videos

• Denmark v Belarus – Full Game – FIBA EuroBasket 2022 Pre-Qualifiers Youtube.com video