British Basketball League
The British Basketball League (BBL) is a men's professional basketball league in Great Britain and represents the highest level of play in the countries. The league is contested by 10 teams from England and Scotland. There are no clubs from Wales, or Northern Ireland. The BBL runs three additional knockout competitions alongside the BBL Championship which are the BBL Cup, BBL Trophy and the end-of-season BBL Playoffs. In March 2024, there will be a BBL All-Star game which will replace the BBL Cup knockout competition.
| Founded | 1987 |
|---|---|
| First season | 1987–88 |
| Country | Great Britain |
| Federation | British Basketball |
| Confederation | FIBA Europe (Europe) |
| Number of teams | 10 |
| Level on pyramid | 1 |
| Domestic cup(s) | BBL Trophy BBL Cup (defunct) |
| International cup(s) | EuroCup Champions League FIBA Europe Cup |
| Current champions | London Lions (3rd title) (2023–24) |
| Most championships | Newcastle Eagles (7 titles) |
| TV partners | Sky Sports YouTube |
| Website | BBL.org.uk |
| 2023–24 British Basketball League season | |
The BBL sits above the National Basketball League and the Scottish Basketball Championship which effectively form the second tier of British basketball. There is currently no automatic promotion or relegation between the lower leagues and the BBL because of the franchise system in use in the BBL although several clubs have been successful in making the step up from the NBL in recent years.
The 10 member franchises of the BBL jointly own the league and a chairman is elected by the teams to oversee league operations. The head offices are located in Leicester where the country's oldest team the Leicester Riders are also based.
In partnership with Basketball England the BBL launched a women's league in 2014 branded as the Women's British Basketball League (WBBL).