The highly-anticipated FIBA Intercontinental Cup 2024 tipped off in spectacular fashion at the Singapore Indoor Stadium on 12th September. This is the most global edition of the tournament, with six teams representing six continents as they compete to be crowned champion of champions. Over 2,500 fans enjoyed free entry on the first day of the four-day tournament and witnessed exhilarating action as NBA G League United defeated Quimsa 78-65, while Unicaja saw off Petro De Luanda 94-78.

The 34^th FIBA Intercontinental Cup features teams from all five FIBA regions for the first time. Oceania’s first-ever representatives, the Tasmania JackJumpers, will make their historic debut on September 13 when they play Argentinian outfit Quimsa. The second game on Friday will see Spain’s Unicaja take on inaugural Basketball Champion League Asia champions Al Riyadi.

The FIBA Hall of Fame Class of 2024 induction ceremony will also be held in Singapore for the first time on September 14, further underlining the global character of the event. USA’s Reggie Miller and Serbia’s Predrag Stojakovic headline the 2024 inductees, which also include fellow former players Miao Lijie of China, Danira Nakic-Bilic of Croatia, Kirk Samuel Penney of New Zealand, Romain Sato of Central African Republic, Skaidrite Smildzina-Budovska of Latvia and Italian-American coach Dan Peterson.

“The FIBA Intercontinental Cup has been evolving into a truly global club competition and, with the inclusion of Oceania this year, it now encompasses every single FIBA region. Singapore will concurrently host the FIBA Hall of Fame induction ceremony for the first time, as well as the Basketball Matters conference, that brings together FIBA, the NBA and global industry leaders. The 2024 edition of the FIBA Intercontinental Cup and the parallel events consolidate progress but will also initiate a new cycle, that will culminate in 2027 in Qatar, with what is poised to be a milestone for basketball in Asia and the biggest ever FIBA Basketball World Cup,” commented FIBA Secretary General Andreas Zagklis.

“The FIBA Intercontinental Cup 2024 promises three more exciting days of top-tier basketball and community events, building on the success of 2023. It’s a great opportunity for the community to join in the fun and for young players to fuel their love for the sport. We are also proud to partner FIBA to honour the eight basketball legends as new inductees into the FIBA Hall of Fame and celebrate their achievements – a momentous milestone for international basketball,” said Marcus Tan, Chief of Sport Development Group, Sport Singapore.

“Sport Singapore’s partnership with FIBA has also energised our basketball community, offering fans the opportunity to catch world class action through the Intercontinental Cup and 3×3 Asia Cup. Basketball has consistently ranked as the most popular team sport in our annual National Sport & Exercise Participation Survey and the steady growth of our ActiveSG Basketball Academy also reflects growing interest among young players. Together with FIBA, we aim to harness this increasing enthusiasm to shape the future of Singapore’s basketball scene,” he continued.

Best friends Oliver Ong and Noah Lai, both 11, made use of a free day amid their exam preparations to attend the first day of the FIBA Intercontinental Cup. Oliver had seen a poster advertising the event and invited Noah to join him.

Noah, who joined basketball as his co-curricular activity two years ago, said: “I’m really interested in watching the professional players play. I like playing basketball because we get to know more people (connect with them) and become friends. Having free entry is good because it means that more people can come and watch.”

Oliver added: “When you watch the sport, I find that it’s really cool and energetic. That energetic feeling makes you want a specific team to win and you’ll like a specific person from that team, so I enjoy watching basketball.”

Basketball clinics and activities taking place across the precinct will engage eventgoers and the community throughout tournament week. These include the SMU3x3 tournament at OCBC Arena and the OCBC Square from September 13 to 15 where the community can cheer on the 35 teams competing in three categories.

This year, in addition to community activations, there is an added emphasis to further develop different segments of the sports ecosystem.

Yazed Osman, Group Head, Events & Placemaking and Place Management, Kallang Alive Sport Management, shared: “Through our hosting of international sport competitions at the Singapore Sports Hub, we have built a wealth of experience and expertise, and are empowered to help develop the sport ecosystem and continuously build the technical proficiency of our local sports officials. We are pleased to share that at this year’s FIBA Intercontinental Cup, an all-Singaporean statistician crew will make their debut, playing a pivotal role in the tournament. Additionally, we will host Basketball Matters, a conference that will serve as a catalyst for deeper industry collaboration and the exchange of ideas, to take basketball to the next level.”

On the sidelines of the FIBA Intercontinental Cup 2024, 80 local coaches and educators participated in an interactive engagement with the head coaches of Al Riyadi, Unicaja and Petro de Luanda. This will be the first of more of such engagements to come where international coaches will shed light on their training and coaching methodologies.

In addition, for the first time, FIBA Foundation has organised a four-day workshop for youth leaders, nominated by basketball federations across Asia, and local coaches, equipping them with strategies to interact with persons with hidden disabilities. These trained individuals will have the opportunity to apply what they’ve learnt at basketball clinics that include SportCares special needs constituents. Joining in these clinics are Tim Hardaway, a Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame inductee, and Stephon Marbury, the ambassador of the FIBA Intercontinental Cup.

Photo Credit: Singapore Sports Hub

FIBA Intercontinental Cup 2024 ran from 12th to 15th September 2024 at the Singapore Indoor Stadium. More information available here