2006 FIBA World Championship for Women
The 2006 FIBA World Championship for Women took place in Brazil from September 12 to September 23, 2006. It was co-organised by the International Basketball Federation and Confederação Brasileira de Basketball, the Brazilian national federation.
Sixteen national teams competed for the championship. Australia came away with the gold medal by beating Russia 91–74. As of 2025 the USA's semi-final loss to Russia remains their last defeat when fielding professional players.
Competing nations
Except Brazil, which automatically qualified as the host, and the United States, which automatically qualified as the reigning Olympic champion, the 14 remaining countries qualified through their continents’ qualifying tournaments:- FIBA Europe – Spain, France, Lithuania, Czech Republic, Russia
- FIBA Americas – Brazil, United States, Canada, Argentina, Cuba
- FIBA Africa – Nigeria, Senegal
- FIBA Asia – P.R. of China, Chinese Taipei, Korea
- FIBA Oceania – Australia
Squads
At the start of tournament, all 16 participating countries each had 12 players on their roster.Referees
For the World Championship for Women, FIBA selected 25 professional referees:Preliminary round
- The three best squads of each group qualify for second round.
Eighth-final round
- The four best squads of each group qualify for quarter-finals. All Preliminary Round games played by teams qualifying for the Eighth-finals carry over into the Eighth-final standings.
Knockout Stage ([São Paulo])
All times localAwards
| Most Valuable Player |
 |