See the best that British basketball has to offer with British Basketball Tickets on StubHub! Basketball across the United Kingdom is becoming more and more popular every season with a high level of skill and competition across the various tournaments. The premier basketball league, or BBL, is the main competition and consists of teams from both Scotland and England. The competition runs from Septemeber to April each season and culminates in an exciting playoff series featuring the top eight teams. There are also two knockout competitions complementing the main BBL Championship - the BBL Cup and BBL Trophy. Support your local team and witness the thrill of a British Basketball Championship live game with British Basketball Tickets on StubHub!
British Basketball History
The history of professional British basketball dates back to 1987 when the professional BBL was formed. Rapidly becoming the benchmark for basketball across the United Kingdom, the BBL witnessed a quick surge in growth throughout the 1990s. The opening match of the 1995-1996 season saw the Manchester Giants play the London Leopards in front of a record 14,251 crowd at the Nynex Arena. This attendance was the record for a basketball game in the United Kingdom until the NBA began staging preseason matches in the O2 Arena in London in 2006.
A rough few years, including the collapse of ITV Digital, cost the BBL significant finances in the early 2000s. Many of the stable franchises from the early years of the BBL collapsed including Derby Storm, Birmingham Bullets, and Thames Valley Tigers. Recovery was slow, however, the BBL gradually found its feet again and in 2015 announced that the playoff final would take place at the O2 Arena in London. A record-breaking crowd of 14,700 attended the match, signaling the revival of the BBL. British basketball also established two main knockout tournaments to complement the league. The BBL Trophy was established alongside the BBL in 1987 and invites teams from the English Basketball League and Scottish Basketball to compete. The BBL Cup was established in 2003 and is a straight knockout competition with no seedings.
British Basketball Big Achievements
The BBL has been dominated by Northern teams, with the Newcastle Eagles holding the record for both the most regular season wins and the most playoff victories with 6 a piece. They have also made the playoff final more times than any other team with a total of ten final appearances. The record attendance for a regular season match remains 14,251 from the clash between Manchester Giants and London Leopards in 1995-1996.
The BBL Trophy is also dominated by the Newcastle Eagles, who have lifted the cup on 5 occasions and appeared in a total of 9 finals. Unsurprisingly, Newcastle Eagles also hold the most titles in the BBL Cup, with 5 victories and 8 final appearances. See if anyone can put a halt to the dominance of the Newcastle Eagles with British Basketball Tickets on StubHub!
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