The Basketball Africa League (BAL) is set to tip off its sixth season at the SunBet Arena in Pretoria, South Africa. The 2026 BAL season features 12 top club teams from across Africa, including five new teams making their debut.
The league’s sixth season will feature the top 12 club teams from 12 African countries playing a total of 42 games across the Kalahari Conference group phase from Friday March 27 to Sunday April 5 in Pretoria.
The league continues to grow yearly, so has its popularity, which is exemplified by the expansion of the number of host cities, from 3 to 4 and the number of games played per season from 38 to 48 per season.
The Sahara Conference group phase from Friday April 24 toSunday May 3 at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Sports Complex in Rabat, Morocco, and the Playoffs and Finals from Friday May 22 to Sunday, May 31 at BK Arena in Kigali, Rwanda.
The 12 teams include Dar City, which is the first-ever BAL participant from Tanzania as well as first-time BAL participants JCA Kings (Côte d’Ivoire), Maktown Flyers (Nigeria), Johannesburg Giants (South Africa) and Club Africain (Tunisia), 2024 BAL champion Petro de Luanda (Angola), that’s the only team to have qualified for all six BAL seasons – and 2023 BAL champion Al Ahly (Egypt).
“Welcoming five new teams into the BAL family is a powerful sign of the league’s continued growth, the impact it is having on the African basketball ecosystem, and the incredible talent developing across the continent,” said BAL President Amadou Gallo Fall, adding that they look forward to engaging their passionate fans in South Africa, Morocco, Rwanda and those watching across Africa and around the world as they continue to establish the BAL as the continent’s preeminent sport and entertainment property.
“This season, the national league champions from seven countries – Angola, Egypt, Morocco, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal and Tunisia, automatically qualified for the BAL. The other five teams qualified through the Road to the BAL qualifying tournaments conducted by FIBA Africa across the continent from October to December 2025.”
Amadou Gallo Fall added that each conference will play a 15-game group phase during which each team will face the other five teams in its conference once.
“In the season opener, APR will face Al Ahly Ly at 4:00 p.m. CAT. In the second game, the Johannesburg Giants will take on Dar City at 7:00 p.m. CAT. Tickets for the Kalahari Conference group phase in Pretoria are on sale now at Ticketmaster.za. Eight teams from across the two conferences will qualify for the Playoffs in Kigali.”
Tickets for the Sahara Conference group phase in Rabat and the Playoffs and Finals will be available soon and the public will be informed together with information about the 2026 BAL season will be announced in the coming weeks.
Fans can register their interest in tickets at BAL.NBA.com and Fans who purchase tickets will also have free access to the BAL Fan Zone at each arena.
The Basketball Africa League (BAL), a partnership between the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) and NBA Africa, is a professional league featuring 12 club teams from across Africa that will tip off its sixth season in March 2026.
“Headquartered in Dakar, Senegal, the BAL builds on the foundation of club competitions FIBA Africa has organized across the continent and marks the NBA’s first collaboration to operate a league outside North America. Fans can follow the BAL (@theBAL) on Facebook, Instagram, Threads, X, and YouTube and register their interest in receiving more information at BAL.NBA.com”
