From lively street courts to packed arenas, basketball is growing in popularity and becoming big business across Africa.
In 2021, the NBA debuted the Basketball Africa League (BAL), the first professional league outside of North America. It is currently selling the team to private investors through a multi-million dollar bidding process.
NBA Africa says BAL has contributed more than $250 million to the African economy since its inception and created approximately 37,000 jobs. By 2034, that amount will rise to $5.4 billion, creating more than 650,000 new jobs over the next 10 years.
BAL, now in its sixth season, will feature 12 African teams that qualify by winning their domestic leagues and will play 42 games in three cities: Rabat in Morocco, Pretoria in South Africa, and Kigali, the capital of Rwanda.
NBA Africa CEO Claire Akamanzi told CNN that the league was a “proof of concept” that “shows that Africa is ready and there is a demand for sports and entertainment brands at a premium level.” We have proven that there is elite talent on the African continent.
Currently, all teams must qualify each season to play, but NBA Africa wants to make teams a permanent entity that can compete in the BAL every year.
In May, the league held its first investor day in Kigali, where approximately 100 prospective investors learned more about the right to permanently own and operate BAL’s teams.
Akamanzi said investor-owned franchises allow teams to “really make money” through merchandising, ticket sales, media rights and events, and she said a more predictable structure “really unlocks the value of the league.”
The franchise will be sold for “tens of millions of dollars” through a bidding process, Akamanzi said.
NBA Africa does not release financial information, but a 2024 Bloomberg report claiming the BAL lost millions of dollars in its first season was disputed by the NBA at the time.
Among those looking to bet was two-time WNBA All-Star Chiney Ogwumike. “I’m trying to get in. I have to get in,” she said. “Basketball is always something that can change your life.”
“It’s great to be here in Kigali and see a new sports renaissance happening through basketball so that young girls like my sisters and I can actually make our dreams come true,” she added.
NBA Deputy Commissioner and Chief Operating Officer Mark Tatum said investor interest is also coming from Africa and overseas, emphasizing the importance of local ownership.
“The African market is very important,” he told CNN. “Eleven of the world’s 20 fastest-growing economies have young populations, and we see this as a great opportunity to fully embrace basketball and make it an economic engine.”
However, the league’s expansion was not without controversy. Human rights group Amnesty International has criticized the partnership between the Rwandan government and the NBA. The Rwandan government is a key partner of BAL, with the ‘Visit Rwanda’ logo displayed on all players’ jerseys. Last year, it called on the league to review its relationship in light of accusations of atrocities committed in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo by the armed group M23, which is widely believed to be supported by Rwanda.
Amnesty International said Tatum responded with a letter in February 2025 stating that the NBA is following guidance from the U.S. State Department overseas. This season, Rwanda’s basketball club APR (owned by the country’s military) withdrew after the United States imposed sanctions on the Rwandan Defense Forces in March.
For a franchise model to be successful, Africa needs the infrastructure to match. Kigali hosted the first four BAL finals and the 2026 final at the 10,000-seat BK Arena.
The recently opened Zaria Court next to the arena is a community and hospitality hub co-founded by Masai Ujiri, president of the NBA Dallas Mavericks and co-founder of Giants of Africa, a nonprofit organization that uses basketball to empower African youth through training camps and purpose-built courts.
Ujiri believes that BAL needs to be popularized to reach its full potential. “It has to be Nairobi. It has to be Lagos. It has to be Abidjan, Accra, Johannesburg,” he told CNN. “We need to reach other countries to organize tours, so we actually commercialize and create economic value for this whole ecosystem.”
