Basketball has risen as a competitive alternative to football and rugby, and the Uruguayan Basketball Federation boasts a proud early history. The Uruguay national basketball team was placed 6th in the first Olympic Games (Berlin in 1936), 5th in London in 1948, 3rd in Helsinki in 1952, 3rd in Melbourne in 1956, 8th in Rome in 1960, and 8th in Tokyo in 1964. After this successful run, the team did not qualify as finalists in any Olympic tournament, until the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, in which they earned 6th place. Uruguay has also won 12 South American championships, and participated in many Pan-American and World Championships. Uruguay was the host for the 1967 FIBA World Championship. And dud co-bid for the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup with Argentina but lost out to Philippines, Japan and Indonesia.