Latest news with #BritishBasketballFederation
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Rival league forges ahead in fresh twist to British basketball's civil war
Leicester Riders celebrate winning the Super League Basketball final last weekend. But will they be part of the league next year? Leicester Riders celebrate winning the Super League Basketball final last weekend. But will they be part of the league next year? Photograph: Leicester Riders The machinations over football's European Super League feel like a distant threat compared with the civil war in British basketball between the top-flight clubs and the sport's governing body. Leicester Riders claimed a record-equalling seventh Super League Basketball title in the final on Sunday against Newcastle Eagles at a packed O2 Arena, but it is unclear whether the league will even take place next season. Advertisement Related: Tyrese Haliburton's moment of reflection sheds light on stars' secret struggles | Sean Ingle The Championship game was overshadowed by the announcement last week of more detail surrounding the British Basketball Federation's awarding of a 15-year licence to operate a new Great Britain Basketball League to an American consortium led by the former NBA executive Marshall Glickman. Glickman's group, which is backed by the Seattle-based private equity company West River Group and several unknown athlete investors, has committed to a £15m upfront payment to cover operating costs for the first two years of the new league, which will launch for the 2026-27 season. As a former president of Portland Trailblazers and acting chief executive of EuroLeague Basketball, Glickman has considerable pedigree but also a significant problem: the existing clubs are refusing to join. Advertisement As reported previously by the Guardian the nine existing SLB clubs are threatening legal action against the BBF over allegations that the tender process was unlawful and have asked the sports minister, Stephanie Peacock, to investigate, while the governing body denies any wrongdoing. In footballing terms, the situation is akin to the Football Association setting up a new domestic league without the Premier League clubs. The BBF has triggered a 12-month break clause in the three-year licence it awarded the SLB clubs to run the league last summer; with the GBBL not due to start until 2026‑27, arrangements for next season are unclear, not helped by growing acrimony on both sides. In his first interview since signing the licence, Glickman, who will be aided in an advisory capacity by the London 2012 Games bid chief Sir Keith Mills, says he would like the SLB clubs to join, but is bullish about the league's prospects if they do not. 'We have reached out to the SLB clubs multiple times going back months,' he says. 'They have not been willing to engage. We would really like them to engage, but I don't know if and when they will. There have been written responses that basically said: 'We're not interested in talking to you.' Advertisement 'I don't understand what the clubs are complaining about. They signed the licence. They knew what they were signing. Everybody understood that the federation was going to put a tender out for a long-term licensee. 'We looked at the tender and, frankly, we thought that they were also going to bid. We were quite surprised when they did not. What motivated them to not bid for the tender and then complain about the process is hard to understand.' Glickman's group is planning a major expansion with or without the existing clubs, with an immediate increase from the nine clubs to a 10-team competition in 2026 followed by further growth to 12 and then 14 clubs. Talks are under way with potential operators of new clubs in Leeds, Liverpool, Birmingham, Southampton, Cardiff and Edinburgh, while there will also be a strong presence in London and Manchester. 'I don't think players will be a problem,' Glickman says. Advertisement 'I mean, there's a lot of players, so I'm not concerned about players. And there are a lot of venues. There's a lot of markets that do not have teams today, and there are certain markets that may have teams but there could be other teams. There are multiple open venues that we're in touch with. I would anticipate that ultimately, we will have a mix of SLB clubs and expansion clubs.' A major part of Glickman's strategy is to secure a terrestrial broadcast partner, and there are hopes the BBC will be interested in taking at least one game a week given the data which shows basketball's growing popularity among younger, diverse audiences. 'We want a certain number of games on free-to-air television,' Glickman says. 'We think that's really important, to make it as accessible as possible to the most number of people. 'We all know what's happening right now in sports – it's paywall, paywall, paywall. I think I have 12 different apps on my television. And at the end of the month I go: 'Boy, I just spent $500 in order to watch live sports!' Advertisement 'So live sports is something that's really compelling. And I think over time, we can really begin to build an audience and increase the relevance and popularity of basketball in Great Britain.' The format of the competition will also change, with the number of regular season matches reduced and the playoffs slimmed down, but several extra tournaments added to the league campaign. 'They just did the playoffs – there are nine teams and eight teams made the playoffs,' Glickman says. 'We don't agree with that. In the new league, one and two will reach the playoffs, then three to six play a tournament in one weekend to decide who joins them. 'And we will stage a series of mini-tournaments throughout the season in big arenas, with points available for the league standings. So one weekend it's Birmingham, the next one it's Manchester, the next time it's Liverpool. In that weekend, they play a tournament over two days and those points roll over into the table. 'We'll turn those big weekends into a communal gathering. I'm not British so you'll have to tell me if I'm full of crap here, but Brits like big events and like to hang out. That's what the whole pub thing is all about, right? It's about hanging out. And it's about gathering. So we intend to create the best hangout in Great Britain on those weekends.'
The Guardian
02-04-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
Minister seeks inquiry into British Basketball's ‘potentially criminal' deal
The sports minister, Stephanie Peacock, has asked the government body responsible for elite funding, UK Sport, to investigate allegations of unlawful tender made against the British Basketball Federation. On Wednesday, the BBF signed a 15-year agreement with an American consortium to operate a new men's professional league from 2026. The existing nine Super League Basketball clubs are deeply unhappy with the BBF's plans for the sport. The Sheffield Sharks owner, Vaughn Millette, wrote to the government on their behalf in February after the BBF had entered exclusive negotiations with Marshall Glickman's GBB League Ltd (GBBL), to outline their concerns. In a reply seen by the Guardian, Peacock describes the issues raised in the letter as varying between 'serious' and 'potentially criminal' and that Department for Culture Media and Sport officials will ask UK Sport to investigate. The allegations are understood to revolve around the legality of the BBF's tender process for operating the new league. SLB had been expected to make a bid to run the league itself, but club sources say they were advised not to on legal grounds. 'Some of the matters you raise in your letter are serious and some are potentially criminal in nature,' Peacock wrote in response to the clubs' concerns. 'The Code for Sports Governance sets out the mandatory governance requirements for organisations receiving public funding from UK Sport or Sport England. DCMS officials will raise the concerns you have set out to UK Sport and Sport England to ensure all of the processes under the Code are being complied with.' The BBF confirmed the new deal with Glickman's group on Wednesday morning, igniting a civil war in the sport that could jeopardise some of the £4.75m in public money basketball receives each year from UK Sport and Sport England, which are responsible for elite and grassroots funding respectively. In response Super League Basketball released a statement in which it threatened to set up a breakaway league in defiance of the governing body, and accused the BBF of running an illegal tender process. 'The new league operator proposed by the British Basketball Federation has no clubs, fans, arenas or expertise to build the infrastructure and future that British basketball and its communities deserve,' an SLB spokesperson said. 'Super League Basketball (SLB) has been clear from the outset that the tender process undertaken by the British Basketball Federation (BBF) was illegal and unjust. 'SLB would like to make clear that it does not legally require the BBF licence to continue to operate the professional basketball league in Britain. SLB clubs and their owners have worked tirelessly and invested well over £15m this season alone to create a sustainable future for professional basketball in Britain, its fans and the communities it serves. All nine partner clubs are united in the vision to continue operating a stable and viable league for the 2025-26 SLB season and beyond.' The British Basketball Federation declined to respond or comment, but has consistently denied claims it has acted improperly and views the backlash as sour grapes from clubs who will no longer be in control of the league. In announcing the deal, the BBF chair, Chris Grant, said: 'We're delighted to welcome GBBL to the British Basketball family. The award of this licence not only heralds the biggest ever level of financial investment into the league, it also brings the knowhow, connections and vision to excite those who already love the game and to attract new fans and participants. Sign up to The Recap The best of our sports journalism from the past seven days and a heads-up on the weekend's action after newsletter promotion 'The GB women's and men's teams have both qualified for Fiba EuroBasket this summer, and our progress on the court will be boosted through the LA Olympic Cycle funding recently announced by UK Sport. To have booming professional leagues which enable our top players to compete in front of British fans, week in and week out, is just what we need in order to fulfil British Basketball's huge potential.' In her letter to the clubs, Peacock suggested appointing an independent mediator if there was insufficient evidence to warrant a criminal investigation into the agreement. 'Should none of the issues you raised be an issue for the police, and should UK Sport and Sport England set out that they do not have subsequent concerns about the BBF's governance, DCMS cannot get involved in commercial disputes between two private parties where there is no criminality and where there has been no misuse of public funds,' the sports minister wrote. 'Were this to be the case and no agreement between the SLB and BBF is reached, then we suggest that both parties enter independent arbitration. We hope that everyone would agree that the survival of a sustainable professional league is the priority and best outcome for the future of basketball in this country, from the elite level to the grassroots game.'
