European Championship success at the end of the summer. Now two straight losses in the World Cup qualifiers.
Sweden has had the worst possible start in the hunt for a ticket to the championship in Qatar 2027.
After the away loss against the Czech Republic on Friday, Sweden had the chance in front of just over 9,100 home fans in Gothenburg instead.
But neither the audience support nor Ludvig Håkanson's great performance was enough.
"We get some very good minutes, but we have to keep fighting to get back. We do it two, three times but the fourth time it's too tough," says Håkanson, who plays for top Spanish club Joventut.
“Creator for others”
Ludvig Håkanson offered a brilliant second period and played out his entire arsenal as Sweden ate closer and closer from a 16–31 deficit.
The Spanish professional made three-pointers, won duels and grabbed rebounds – which inspired his teammates.
"My role in the national team is to be a creator for the others and to take a lot of shots, even more so now that we are missing some of the important players," he says.
The comeback in the second period is incredibly strong. It would have been difficult to do away from home.
It looked like you had a good time out there today?
Yes, it's home ground. I'm not a big celebrator in the Spanish league, but in the national team and here at home, I celebrate every three-pointer like a football goal.
At the European Championship at the end of the summer, Sweden advanced from the group stage for the first time ever and then pushed Turkey in the round of 16.
Compared to the European Championship, however, almost all of the most influential players were missing – among them Miami star Pelle Larsson in the NBA and Viktor Gaddefors, who remains with his club team in Taiwan. Barra Njie, Melwin Pantzar and Simon Birgander were also missing for various reasons.
"New chances"
With Ludvig Håkanson at the helm, Sweden put in a good performance against the big team Slovenia. The difference was only seven points at halftime (42–49), but it wasn't enough even though it was 55–55 a bit into the third period.
This means that Sweden has started the World Cup qualifiers with two straight losses.
It's a tough situation. But we have new chances this spring and hopefully we'll get back some of those who were missing now, says Ludvig Håkanson.
Sweden's men's basketball team has never managed to make it to a World Cup.
Here are the conditions for the ongoing qualifiers for the 2027 World Cup in Qatar.
Sweden faces Estonia, the Czech Republic and Slovenia in Group H in the first qualifying round.
The top three teams in the group will take their results into the second qualifying round, against the three best-placed teams from Group G (Belgium, Finland, France and Hungary).
The top three teams from the second qualifying round are qualified for the World Cup.
The qualifiers continue for Sweden with a double match against Estonia at the turn of February–March and conclude with the return matches against the Czech Republic and Slovenia in July.
