- 3 December 2025
The governance crisis in UK basketball
British basketball has become a genuine grassroots success story. According to research by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, it is now the second most played sport among children aged 11–15, with an estimated 1.5 million people taking part regularly. This rising popularity has attracted new funding too: the NBA committed £5 million towards grassroots development in September, alongside a further £5 million investment from the UK Government.
Yet despite this progress in participation, the men’s game has been hit by a period of prolonged governance turmoil. The origins lie not on community courts but in disputes over licensing, international investment and the wider repercussions of private equity investment in sport.
FIBA steps in
In October, the sport’s international governing body FIBA imposed severe disciplinary measures on the British Basketball Federation (BBF), including the temporary barring of the Great Britain men’s senior team from competition and suspension of the BBF’s authority to license or recognise national men’s competitions. This threw the national team’s involvement in the current World Cup qualifying cycle into doubt.
The immediate cause of the crisis was a dispute arising from a 15-year licence awarded in April by the BBF to GBB League Ltd (GBBL) to run the men’s professional league from 2026/27. Super League Basketball (SLB), which operates the current men’s league, disputed the process. It issued a Letter Before Action in March, alleging a lack of transparency, exclusion from the tender, and breaches of UK competition law and FIBA regulations.
The BBF denied acting improperly, stating that bids were assessed by a majority-independent panel and that the home nations supported the process. SLB subsequently declined to join the new league and initiated High Court proceedings, further accusing the BBF of abusing its dominant position and breaching its duties as a governing body to act reasonably or lawfully.
Private investment and wider instability
Underlying this dispute is the fate of 777 Partners, the US investment firm that in 2021 acquired a 45% stake in the British Basketball League. Much has been written about the company’s portfolio of football clubs across Europe, Brazil and Australia, and about its agreement in 2023 to purchase a controlling stake in Everton FC – a deal which the Premier League was reportedly ‘minded to approve' . That sale ultimately collapsed amid increasing questions about the firm’s wider financial position, including the failure of its budget airline Bonza in mid-2024.
In the UK, a winding-up petition was filed against 777 Partners in October 2024, and several group assets have faced bankruptcy proceedings internationally. By October 2025, co-founder Josh Wander had been indicted in the United States on allegations relating to an alleged $500 million fraud scheme, charges he denies.
As concerns over its finances mounted, 777 Partners’ operating licence in British basketball was suspended in June 2024, with SLB awarded a temporary licence the following month.
Escalation and FIBA’s intervention
The dispute over the deal with GBBL Ltd, a US consortium backed by private equity, brought the situation to public attention. The BBF heralded the agreement as a ‘defining moment for the sport’ that featured ‘the greatest ever direct investment of funds into the professional league’, including an upfront commitment of £15 million in the first two years.
Amid rising tensions and legal action, FIBA established a Taskforce for British Basketball Club Matters in August to investigate governance and regulatory concerns within the men’s competitions. Following its recommendations, FIBA suspended the BBF’s licensing and recognition powers in October – the organisation’s first suspension of a national federation since Russia and Belarus in 2022, following the invasion of Ukraine.
FIBA subsequently announced a direct recognition agreement with SLB to ensure continuity of top-tier men’s basketball: a delay to the start of the BBF’s long-term deal with GBBL would have left the sport without a functioning sanctioned league until 2027. The ban on fielding GB national teams was lifted, but the suspension of the BBF’s domestic licensing authority remained.
Only a week later, the BBF announced it would enter liquidation, citing a ‘significant and unanticipated reduction in income and unforeseen expenditure‘. The collapse poses serious questions about the long-term future and structure of British basketball and the status of the GBBL. UK Sport acknowledged that the development would create ’uncertainty for the sport‘, committing to work with DCMS and the basketball community to safeguard public investment.
A broader warning for UK sport
The UK remains an attractive destination for domestic and international investment in sport. Private equity funds, sovereign wealth funds, institutional investors and individuals alike are drawn to opportunities in broadcasting, sponsorship, merchandising and asset growth. In turn, clubs and leagues can benefit from improved competitiveness and long-term planning.
But as British basketball’s experience shows, this model carries risks. When a league or club becomes one element within a diversified investment portfolio, it also becomes vulnerable to external shocks or unrelated corporate failures, as well as to potential bad actors. The rise of multi-club ownership models in football and other sports illustrates similar tensions: while offering potential scale and talent development benefits, it also raises concerns around sporting integrity and conflicts of interest. Crystal Palace’s demotion from the Europa League to the Conference League earlier this year, due to rules governing control or influence in more than one competing club, is a recent example.
The governance lessons
The current crisis in UK basketball provides clear reminders of key governance principles:
- Robust risk management, especially around ownership models, investor concentration and financial robustness.
- Transparent and well-designed tender processes, where stakeholder engagement is meaningful rather than assumed.
- Quality of oversight and regulatory compliance, particularly when responsibility is shared across international governing bodies.
- Consistent and open dialogue with stakeholders, including clubs, home nations, funders and international bodies.
- Scenario planning and continuity management, ensuring essential competitions can operate even in the face of commercial disruption.
Basketball in the UK has enjoyed remarkable growth on the court. It would be unfortunate if its momentum were undermined by the failure to apply fundamental governance standards off it.
Further help
If you’re interested in exploring these issues further, visit the Sports Governance Academy for resources, events and expert guidance on good governance in sport: www.sportsgovernanceacademy.org.uk