Rwanda is once again hosting the playoff games of the 2024 Basketball Africa League (BAL). This Friday, May 24, at the BK Arena, the games will kick off with eight teams vying to win the championships title. BAL, an initiative of the National Basketball Association (NBA), has been attracting buzz and record crowds since it began in 2021. Although no team will represent Rwanda at the finals this year, the love for the game has been arguably growing on the continent, thanks to countries like Rwanda, Egypt and Senegal that have mobilised the masses and invested in sports. BAL games are now played in four cities across the continent including Cairo, Dakar, Kigali, and Pretoria. The growing expansion of BAL from two conferences to now three – Sahara in Senegal, Nile in Egypt, and now Kalahari in South Africa – reflects the growing appetite for Africa’s sporting activities. BAL is a sport, but it offers more than prestige and visibility to countries that host it. The eight teams in Rwanda for the playoffs have travelled with their staff – their coaches, managers, doctors, name them, not to mention referees that will officiate at the matches, and the musicians that will perform at the games. The teams are spending thousands of dollars on hotels, transport, restaurants, etc. The Arena at which the games will be played are expected to attract thousands of paying crowds as it has been the case everywhere. Last year alone, BAL brought in more than $5 million to Senegal through transport, hotels, shows and many other sectors. The economic potential behind this league is more than just recreation, it is business. It makes complete sense that countries like Rwanda, Senegal, Nigeria, South Africa, and others are deliberately investing in sports infrastructure such as arenas, hospitality and entertainment facilities, as well as renovating stadiums. Broadly, sport is a big business. The current sports market in Africa is estimated to be worth more than $12 billion but could reach over $20 billion by 2035. That’s barely nothing compared to the $600 billion global sports market. Africa has a chance to claim its fair share of the global sports market.
