Basketball at the 1968 Summer Olympics — international basketball tournament
The U.S. men's basketball team won their seventh consecutive Olympic gold medal, a record that stood until matched and surpassed decades later.
Key Facts
- Tournament dates
- October 13–25, 1968
- Venue
- Palacio de los Deportes, Mexico City
- Gold medal
- United States (def. Yugoslavia)
- Bronze medal
- Soviet Union (def. Brazil)
- U.S. consecutive golds
- 7
- Olympic appearance (basketball)
- 7th
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Basketball had been an official Olympic sport since 1936, and the United States had dominated every edition of the tournament since its introduction. Entering the 1968 Mexico City Games, the U.S. had won six consecutive gold medals, establishing a pattern of unbroken supremacy in the sport at the Olympic level.
The basketball tournament at the 1968 Summer Olympics was held at the Palacio de los Deportes in Mexico City from October 13 to October 25. The United States defeated Yugoslavia in the gold medal game to claim their seventh consecutive Olympic basketball title, while the Soviet Union took bronze by defeating Brazil.
The seventh consecutive gold medal extended the United States' unprecedented Olympic basketball winning streak. This record was not matched until the U.S. women's team also won seven consecutive golds at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics in 2021, and the men's record was ultimately surpassed in 2024.
Result
at Palacio de los Deportes, Mexico City