Basketball Africa League announced Tuesday that 12 teams will play in the 2022 season. It also revealed the complete schedule and any other changes to the season format.
Reigning BAL champion Egypt Zamalek, Angola Petro de Luanda, Morocco AS Sale, Rwanda’s Rwanda Energy Group, Senegal Dakar Université Club and Tunisia US Monastir earned their participation in the season by winning their respective African leagues.
Cameroon F.A.P., the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s BC Espoir Fukash, Guinea Seydou Legacy Athlétique Club, Mozambique CFV – Beira, South Africa Cape Town Tigers and South Sudan Cobra Sport secured their participation through the Road to BAL qualifying tournaments.
The BAL season opens with Dakar Université Club playing Seydou Legacy Athlétique Club on March 5 at the Dakar Arena in Dakar, Senegal.
Amadou Fall, president of BAL, said that seven new teams and four countries will be joining the BAL’s second season. After representing the BAL at the FIBA Intercontinental Cup in Cairo this month, Zamalek, the defending champion, will be the anchor of the five returning teams.
“The competition for the 2022 BAL Championship Trophy has heated up. We are excited to offer more fans the chance to view the games in three great African cities. BAL fans all over Africa and around the globe.
Over three months, 38 games will be played in Cairo, Egypt, and Kigali (Rwanda). Twelve teams, five of which were part of the initial BAL season in 2021 will be divided into two conferences: the Sahara Conference, and the Nile Conference. Each conference will have a 15-game group phase, during which each team will meet the five other teams from its conference once.
The Sahara Conference’s Group Phase will be at the Dakar Arena between March 5-15. While the Nile Conference’s Group Phase will be at Hassan Mostafa Indoor Sports Complex (Cairo) from April 9-19.
The BAL Playoffs will see the top four teams from each conference qualify for the Finals at Kigali Arena on May 21-28.