April 1, 2026

BAL reaches 200-game milestone

The Basketball Africa League (BAL) will reach its 200^th game on 1 April at the SunBet Arena in Pretoria, South Africa, when Petro de Luanda and Nairobi City face off.

This article highlights some of the BAL's milestones achieved over the last six seasons.

The first BAL game took place on 16 May 2021 in Kigali, where the Patriots Basketball Club beat the Rivers Hoopers of Nigeria 83–60.

Since then, BAL games have been held in Dakar, Cairo, Rabat, Pretoria and Kigali, the latter of which has hosted four of the last five finals.

As of 31 March 2026, 33 teams from 22 African countries will have played 199 BAL games.

Over the last five years and at the 2026 Kalahari Conference, 706 players from a variety of backgrounds and nationalities have played in the BAL.

78 referees have officiated in the BAL since 2021, including 36 from FIBA and 42 from the NBA G League.

The league has been so competitive that none of the five champions has ever won back-to-back titles.

On three occasions, the defending champions were eliminated by debutant teams. This happened in 2023, when the ABC Fighters defeated the 2022 winners, US Monastir. The same thing happened in 2024 when Al Ahly Ly eliminated the defending champions Al Ahly from Egypt, and again the following year when Al Ahli Tripoli ended Petro de Luanda’s attempts to become two-time champions.

Since the introduction of the Coach of the Year award in the 2022 season, the following four coaches have received the award: José Neto from Brazil (Petro de Luanda), Mamadou Gueye from Senegal (AS Douanes), Ogoh Odaudu from Nigeria (Rivers Hoopers) and Fouad Chacra from Lebanon (Al Ahli Tripoli).

Walter Hodge #00 of Zamalek poses with the Championship Trophy and the MVP trophy after Zamalek won the Basketball Africa League finals game against Union Sportive Monastirienne at Kigali Arena on May 30, 2021, in Kigali, Rwanda.

Petro de Luanda of Angola has appeared in more BAL Finals (three) than any otherS club.

Since the introduction of the BAL Conference in 2022, only one conference winner has gone on to win the league. This occurred in the 2025 season with Al Ahli Tripoli.

Two former BAL players have been drafted into the NBA: Khaman Maluach and Ulrich Chomche. Mayan Kirr became the first former BAL player to be drafted to the NBA G League.

The day before the 200th BAL game, Al Ahly Ly beat Dar City 118–97, setting a record for the most points scored in a single game.

The BAL has grown in popularity over the years and now has a growing fanbase.