Defending the crown
In 2026, Expósito is back with his country in Poland to defend their world title. But while some players might feel added pressure coming into a tournament as reigning champions, Expósito is not one of them.
“I wouldn’t say we have additional pressure,” he says. “We know what we are capable of, we know we can beat anyone. So we put pressure on ourselves to say, ‘OK, let’s try to beat everyone again’.”
They’re a seasoned team with a lot of experience, but as this discipline has demonstrated time and time again, there are no guarantees. The simple fact that they are World Cup holders is not a guarantee that they will make it to the medal games – or even get out of the group.
But whatever happens in Warsaw, the rhythm of Expósito’s life will not change much when he returns home. Unlike the stars of basketball, most 3×3 players operate without the safety net of big clubs and big salaries, which means they balance their playing careers with full-time work. Expósito is no exception.
“You’re travelling around the world — Thursday travelling, Friday arriving in a different city, playing Saturday and Sunday, coming back Monday,” he said.
To make it work, he has built a career off the court that bends around the demands of the FIBA 3×3 World Tour. Today he is Growth Strategy Lead at Placenet, a Barcelona-based tech startup.
“Startups are a perfect combination,” he says. “Small companies that give you flexibility to work remotely or take some days off during the season, rather than needing the regular summer holiday block. It was a perfect fit.”
It is a long way from the €1,000-a-month contracts that once made the professional game feel unsustainable. And in settling into a corporate career, it shows that Expósito, at 32 (an advanced age in the lightning-tempo world of 3×3), knows that this chapter of his life has an expiry date.
But there is one more thing he wants to achieve before it closes.
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