The NBA strengthened its partnership with the UAE as the basketball association and the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi) announced an extension of their existing collaboration.
Apart from pre-season games, the latest deal includes the launch of NBA Global Academy in Abu Dhabi. The long-term deal will also bring additional youth development and fan programming.
The NBA Global Academy will be based in Abu Dhabi and serve as the global hub for the league’s NBA Academy programme – a year-round elite basketball development and academic programme for top high-school age student athletes from the UAE, the Middle East and around the world.
“Extending our partnership with the NBA further strengthens Abu Dhabi’s position as the new home of basketball in the Middle East and reinforces our commitment to our youth, inspiring our community, diversifying the economy, and elevating the emirate’s standing as a global destination,” said Mohamed Khalifa Al Mubarak, chairman of DCT Abu Dhabi.
“The establishment of the NBA Global Academy in Abu Dhabi will open pathways for Emirati and UAE-based athletes, coaches and sports professionals to learn from the world’s best, while our long-term hosting of the NBA Global Games will inspire the next generation.”
The Global Academy will include elite development programmes for up to 20 local boys, basketball development activities for local girls and residential programmes for up to 24 male prospects from the rest of the world.
“Our collaboration with DCT Abu Dhabi has been instrumental in growing basketball participation and fandom in the UAE and across the Middle East,” said NBA deputy commissioner and chief operating officer Mark Tatum.
“We look forward to building on those efforts in the years to come, including through the launch of an NBA Global Academy that will help develop elite-level players from the region and around the world.”
The collaboration will also include expansion of youth development programmes that has already reached more than 20,000 boys and girls since 2022. There are four Jr. NBA/Jr. WNBA leagues in Abu Dhabi and Al Ain region, with plans to increase it to six leagues this season and 12 by 2028.
Abu Dhabi will continue to host annual basketball tournaments featuring top youth and elite players from around the world. Last year, the NBA Academy Showcase was held at the NYU Abu Dhabi campus in September and featured players from four programmes – NBA Academy Africa (Senegal), IMG Academy (US), INSEP (France) and the Basketball Australia Centre of Excellence.
The NBA Abu Dhabi Games last year featured two sold-out pre-season games between the New York Knicks and Philadelphia 76ers in October at Etihad Arena on Yas Island.
