ABU DHABI: With New York Knicks orange and Philadelphia 69ers blue splashed across the stands, fans streamed into Etihad Arena on Yas Island last October to watch two of the National Basketball Association’s most well-known franchises take center stage.
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The sell-out games were another sign of how far the NBA’s presence in Abu Dhabi and the region has spread, and that footprint expanded further this week when the league and the Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi confirmed a long-term renewal of their collaboration.
The extension will see pre-season NBA Global Games continue in the emirate alongside the launch of a new NBA Global Academy and expanded youth and fan programming across the UAE.
The agreement formalizes what has increasingly become a year-round NBA presence in the capital. Since the first Abu Dhabi Games in 2022, a stream of high-profile NBA teams has played preseason games in the city — Milwaukee and Atlanta that year, followed by Dallas and Minnesota in 2023, reigning champions Boston Celtics and Denver Nuggets in 2024, and the New York Knicks and Philadelphia 76ers last October — bringing MVP talent such as Giannis Antetokounmpo and Joel Embiid alongside championship rosters and perennial contenders.
