BAL names 12 teams for 2026 Season, tip off for March 27

•Maktown Flyers headline five debutants

By Joe Apu

The Basketball Africa League (BAL) has unveiled the 12 teams and full group-phase schedule for its 2026 season, with Nigeria’s Maktown Flyers among five debutants set to make history when the campaign begins on March 27 at the SunBet Arena in Pretoria, South Africa.

The sixth edition of the continental club championship will feature 42 games played across three cities. The Kalahari Conference group phase will hold in Pretoria from March 27 to April 5, before action shifts to the Prince Moulay Abdellah Sports Complex in Rabat for the Sahara Conference from April 24 to May 3. The season will conclude with the playoffs and finals at BK Arena in Kigali from May 22 to May 31.

Nigeria’s Maktown Flyers are joined by fellow first-time participants Dar City (Tanzania), JCA Kings (Côte d’Ivoire), Johannesburg Giants (South Africa) and Club Africain (Tunisia), underscoring the league’s continued expansion. Returning heavyweights include 2024 champions Petro de Luanda — the only side to feature in all six BAL seasons — and 2023 winners Al Ahly.

BAL President Amadou Gallo Fall described the influx of new teams as evidence of the competition’s rising profile across the continent.

He said: “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.”

Seven national league champions — from Angola, Egypt, Morocco, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal and Tunisia — secured automatic qualification, while the remaining five teams emerged from the Road to BAL qualifying tournaments organised by FIBA Africa between October and December 2025.

Each conference will stage a 15-game round-robin group phase, with teams facing all other opponents once. In the opening fixture, APR will meet Al Ahly Ly at 4:00 p.m. CAT, followed by Johannesburg Giants against Dar City at 7:00 p.m. CAT.

Tickets for the Kalahari Conference games in Pretoria are already on sale, while sales for the Sahara Conference and the Kigali finals are expected to begin soon. The top eight teams across both conferences will advance to the playoffs.

Further details on the 2026 BAL season are expected to be released in the coming weeks.