Now it’s official: the NBA will also fly to the UAE for a couple of preseason games in October. The league announced that the Atlanta Hawks ei 2021 NBA champions, the Milwaukee Buckswill play two preseason games at the Etihad Arena on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi on Thursday 6 and Saturday 8 October 2022.
The words of the CEOs of Milwaukee and Atlanta
The happiness on both sides is clear for a partnership that will also be extended to other related events. At the beginning of the year, in fact, the league launched the first Jr. NBA Abu Dhabi League, a youth basketball championship open to 450 boys and girls aged between 11 and 14, from local schools throughout Abu Dhabi. . The partnership also includes a series of interactive fan events featuring NBA players from yesterday and today.
On the sidelines of the announcement, the words of Steve Koonin, CEO of the Atlanta Hawks also came:
“The NBA continues to do an amazing job in growing the game internationally and we are thrilled to have the opportunity to participate in Abu Dhabi’s first NBA Games. As we look to the future of the Hawks brand, being recognized as one of the leading NBA franchises globally is something we aspire to and believe the experience for our players and staff to learn about the culture in Abu Dhabi will be both incredibly memorable and of great impact. “
Peter Feigin, President of the Milwaukee Bucks and the Fiserv Forum, commented
“We are honored to have been selected to participate in the first NBA Games in the United Arab Emirates. The NBA continues to expand globally, and we look forward to visiting Abu Dhabi and promoting the league’s goals of inspiring people through basketball. We are proud to represent our city, our state and Bucks fans around the world next October ”.
