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Leagues and Governing Bodies

NBA Spans The Globe With Exhibitions In Canada, Brazil, Italy, China, Spain, Africa

The NBA again this season is hosting an expansive list of international exhibitions, with a total of 10 games being played in Canada, China, Brazil, Italy, Spain and the league’s first-ever contest in Africa. The Raptors will play three games; the Celtics, Clippers, Hornets and T’Wolves will be featured twice; and the Wizards and Magic once. Games will be broadcast in more than 200 countries and territories throughout the world. The sold-out exhibition in Africa on Saturday will see Team Africa host Team World at Ellis Park Arena in Johannesburg, South Africa. The game will be televised live in the U.S. on ESPN at 9:00am ET and on SuperSport throughout all of Africa. NBA President of Global Operations & Merchandise Sal LaRocca said, “We have had tremendous support from the NBPA, the players that are making the trip, and the coaches and GMs. There will probably be a certain point in time where will continue to expand our reach not only in South Africa, but throughout the entire continent.” The NBA thus far has agreements in place to the air the exhibitions in Milan and Madrid on Sky Italia and Canal+, respectively. TSN2 will broadcast the Canada Series with the exception of the Winnipeg game, which is still to be determined. The league has partnerships with CCTV and Tencent in China and ESPN and SporTV in Brazil, but has yet to finalize agreements for those games.

'15-16 NBA GLOBAL GAMES & INT'L SCHEDULE
DATE TEAMS CITY VENUE
Aug. 1 Team World-Team Africa Johannesburg Ellis Park Arena
Oct. 4 Clippers-Raptors Vancouver Rogers Arena
Oct. 6* Celtics-Olimpia Milano Milan Mediolanum Forum
Oct. 8* Celtics-Real Madrid Madrid Barclaycard Center
Oct. 10 Bulls-T'Wolves Winnipeg MTS Centre
Oct. 11* Clippers-Hornets Shenzhen Shenzhen Universiade Center
Oct. 14* Clippers-Hornets Shanghai Mercedes-Benz Arena
Oct. 14 T'Wolves-Raptors Ottawa Canadian Tire Centre
Oct. 17* Magic-Flamengo Rio de Janeiro HSBC Arena
Oct. 23 Wizards-Raptors Montreal Bell Centre
Dec. 3*^ Celtics-Kings Mexico City Mexico City Arena
Jan.14*^ Magic-Raptors London The O2

NOTES
: * = Global Games ^ = Regular-Season Game

MARKET SHARE: A variety of metrics are used in deciding what markets to target. LaRocca views China, Europe, Canada and Brazil as emerging markets, and noted the heavy presence of European players and an all-time high of 12 Canadian players in the NBA last season as major factors in identifying high-priority markets. He said, “We look at the markets in terms of what the long-term potential can be and what the appetite and history of basketball is.” Facilities are important in determining locations, though the league does not view that as a determining factor. LaRocca said the NBA is more concerned with player safety and whether the venue itself can handle the expected crowds. LaRocca: “Markets like London with The O2 and the O2 World in Berlin are world-class, state-of-art facilities. They are as good as any facility we have in the NBA. But in some of the smaller markets, the facilities are not as developed. By and large, we have run the full gamut. The facility is Johannesburg only seats 6,300, but the one in Berlin seats nearly 20,000.”

STAYING ACTIVE: Brands will engage fans in and around the games through numerous live events, media promotions, consumer sweepstakes and retail. Several events are planned prior to the contest in Africa, including the 13th edition of Basketball Without Borders Africa -- the NBA and FIBA’s global basketball development and community outreach program. Ford is sponsoring a Jr. NBA clinic today at the American Int'l School of Johannesburg. Global Games China is supported by promoters AEG Live Asia and IRENA Group, while Bell Media is the presenting sponsor of the Canada Series. League partners for the other contests -- Master Kong (China), Oi (Brazil), Unilever (China), BBVA (Europe), SAP, and Harman -- will also activate through community events as well as with in-arena signage. Digital and social activation will be done through NBA.com, league apps and national and local TV partners. LaRocca said the NBA has also put together a cohesive marketing plan on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. “We are far and away the most popular U.S. sports league on social media,” he said. “It is the primary means for us to market the sport and for us to have fan interaction leading up to and after the games.”

PHYSICAL CHALLENGE: This season’s international schedule will also feature two regular-season matchups. The Celtics and Kings will play Dec. 3 in Mexico City, while the Magic-Raptors Jan. 14 game is set for London. Although the league continues to hold regular-season games overseas, LaRocca acknowledges there are many challenges in scheduling them. “Fans are very sophisticated, and they certainly recognize the importance of a regular-season game as opposed to a preseason game. Unfortunately, we haven’t figured out a way to make planes go faster, so we are limited to where we can play.”

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