CORONAVIRUS: INAUGURAL AFRICA BASKETBALL LEAGUE POSTPONED

The Basketball Africa League, which was supposed to launch next week in Senegal, has been postponed due to worries over the coronavirus outbreak. This was made known by the NBA in a statement on Tuesday.

The cancellation was done after advice from the Senegalese government, following the confirmation of its first case of COVID-19, the second infection in sub-Saharan Africa.

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12 teams including Algeria, Angola, Cameroon, Egypt, Madagascar, Mali, Morocco, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal and Tunisia were scheduled to compete. The league is being organised in partnership of America’s National Basketball Association (NBA) and the International Basketball Federation (FIBA).

Basketball Africa League President Amadou Gallo Fall confirmed the postponement. In his words, “Following the recommendation of the Senegalese government regarding the escalating health concerns related to the coronavirus, the BAL’s inaugural season will be postponed. I am disappointed we are not able to tip off this historic league as scheduled but look forward to the highly-anticipated launch of the BAL at a later date.”

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