Stepping up its efforts to expand the British Basketball League (BBL) in the US, the league has secured a ‘ground-breaking’ media rights agreement with NBC Sports Regional Networks (RSN).
The deal means that the 2023-24 BBL season will be available for US fans in select regions to watch British basketball, marking a “significant milestone in the league’s expansion strategy”.
Basketball fans in the San Francisco Bay Area, Chicago and Philadelphia regions will be able to watch BBL games on NBC Sports Bay Area and NBC Sports California, NBC Sports Chicago and NBC Sports Philadelphia, respectively.
RSN feeds will broadcast two weekly games every Thursday and Friday, alongside men’s and women’s tentpole events, including the 2024 BBL Trophy Finals – 27-28 January – the 2024 BBL All-Star Game – 17 March – and the BBL Playoff Finals – starting 19 May.
US basketball fans will also be handed additional programming, including the brand-new ‘UNBEATABLE’ magazine show.
British Basketball League CEO, Aaron Radin, commented: “This deal between NBC Sports Regional Networks and the British Basketball League signifies a major step forward for our League.
“Bringing the excitement of British basketball to fans across these regions gives us an opportunity to welcome new fans into our League and showcase our world-class talent – a number of whom hail from American colleges – to new audiences.
“As the CEO of the league and a former NBC Universal employee, I am incredibly proud of this partnership because I know the opportunities this gives our organisation, and British basketball, to reach new fans.”
This collaboration with NBC RSN opens new avenues for British basketball, underscoring the league’s ambition of reaching a broader audience and solidifying its position as a globally competitive sports entertainment product.
