CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – From August 2-12, the Illinois women's basketball team will travel to Europe for a foreign tour of Italy and Greece. The Fighting Illini will look to grow on and off the court with multiple exhibition games, educational tours, excursions, local cuisine, and authentic experiences on the schedule.
"I am very excited about this amazing opportunity that we have as a team to go on this trip," shared head coach Shauna Green. "This allows us to have more practice time this summer and, obviously, gives us the early opportunity to compete together in a real game setting. The best thing about these trips is the amount of time our student-athletes get together to grow our relationships and become more connected. They will also get to experience different cultures, which helps in our overall development as people. We are very grateful for this opportunity and can't wait for August!"
NCAA programs are allowed to take foreign trips once every four years, with the 2024 tour marking the first under Green at Illinois. Entering her third season at the helm of the Fighting Illini program, the tour will mark the second of Green's head coaching career after a 2018 trip to Italy while at Dayton.
Illinois has five newcomers on its 13-player roster for the 2024-25 campaign and is coming off a WBIT championship run that afforded the eight Illini returners great experience and growth. The championship run into April, 10 additional summer practices, and international exhibition games add extra opportunities for the team to continue to grow and gel.
While the Orange and Blue's itinerary is still being finalized, the squad will be visiting Rome, Florence, and Naples in Italy as well as Athens and Glyfada in Greece.
The previous foreign trip for the Illinois women's basketball program was a 2019 trek to Australia.
ILLINOIS WOMEN'S BASKETBALL FOREIGN TRIPS
2024 – Italy and Greece – August 2-12
2019 – Australia – August 6-17
2015 – France – August 10-20
2006 – Italy – May 22 - June 1
2001 – Russia, Latvia, and Lithuania – August 7-19
"I am very excited about this amazing opportunity that we have as a team to go on this trip," shared head coach Shauna Green. "This allows us to have more practice time this summer and, obviously, gives us the early opportunity to compete together in a real game setting. The best thing about these trips is the amount of time our student-athletes get together to grow our relationships and become more connected. They will also get to experience different cultures, which helps in our overall development as people. We are very grateful for this opportunity and can't wait for August!"
NCAA programs are allowed to take foreign trips once every four years, with the 2024 tour marking the first under Green at Illinois. Entering her third season at the helm of the Fighting Illini program, the tour will mark the second of Green's head coaching career after a 2018 trip to Italy while at Dayton.
Illinois has five newcomers on its 13-player roster for the 2024-25 campaign and is coming off a WBIT championship run that afforded the eight Illini returners great experience and growth. The championship run into April, 10 additional summer practices, and international exhibition games add extra opportunities for the team to continue to grow and gel.
While the Orange and Blue's itinerary is still being finalized, the squad will be visiting Rome, Florence, and Naples in Italy as well as Athens and Glyfada in Greece.
The previous foreign trip for the Illinois women's basketball program was a 2019 trek to Australia.
ILLINOIS WOMEN'S BASKETBALL FOREIGN TRIPS
2024 – Italy and Greece – August 2-12
2019 – Australia – August 6-17
2015 – France – August 10-20
2006 – Italy – May 22 - June 1
2001 – Russia, Latvia, and Lithuania – August 7-19
