The NBA and Abu Dhabi’s Department of Culture and Tourism announced an extension of their partnership Thursday, with the league agreeing to continue bringing preseason games to the Middle East and the sides completing talks to launch a new global academy in the United Arab Emirates’ capital for top boys players.
Financial terms were not disclosed, though it’s reasonable to expect that the nine-year extension would be worth well over $300 million — based on how the DCT agreed to pay the EuroLeague a reported $29.2 million to play host to that league’s Final Four last year.
The extension also comes at a time where the NBA and FIBA are working toward launching a new league in Europe, possibly as early as next year. And the DCT has deep ties to Manchester City, which is believed to be one of the franchises that has met with the NBA about the possibility of bidding for a spot in the new basketball venture. Manchester City also has a stake in the Co-Op Live Arena, where the NBA is bringing a regular-season game in 2027.
“Extending our partnership with the NBA further strengthens Abu Dhabi’s position as the new home of basketball in the Middle East and reinforces our commitment to our youth, inspiring our community, diversifying the economy, and elevating the emirate’s standing as a global destination,” said Mohamed Khalifa Al Mubarak, the chairman of DCT Abu Dhabi.
He is the brother of Khaldoon Al Mubarak, who chairs Manchester City and is a top executive with Mubadala, one of Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth funds.
The NBA has played in Abu Dhabi in each of the last four preseasons: Milwaukee and Atlanta went in 2022, Dallas and Minnesota went in 2023, Boston and Denver went in 2024 and New York and Philadelphia went in the 2025 preseason.
USA Basketball also visited Abu Dhabi for games preceding the 2023 Basketball World Cup in the Philippines and the 2024 Paris Olympics. It’s logical to expect that USA Basketball will return there in 2027 in advance of the next World Cup, which will be played in Qatar.
NBA games have aired in the UAE for nearly 40 years, and the league — citing research provided by YouGov — says “basketball participation has increased by 60 per cent in the UAE and basketball’s fanbase in the country has grown by more than 25 per cent” since the annual preseason trips started in 2022.
“Our collaboration with DCT Abu Dhabi has been instrumental in growing basketball participation and fandom in the UAE and across the Middle East,” NBA Deputy Commissioner and Chief Operating Officer Mark Tatum said.
The planned NBA Global Academy in Abu Dhabi will be considered the global hub for the league’s NBA Academy program. The Abu Dhabi site, the league said, will operate year-round and serve as an “elite basketball development and academic program for top high-school-age student-athletes from the UAE, the Middle East and around the world.” The academy will also have some basketball development activities for local girls, the league said.
