The 2019 FIBA Africa Basketball League was the 33nd edition of FIBA Africa's premier club Basketball tournament and the 1st under the new format and new name. The season saw an expansion from twelve to sixteen teams.
The season began on February 8, 2019, and ended on May 26, 2019, with the conclusion of the Final Four. The Final Four was hosted at the Kilamba Arena in Luanda, Angola.
FIBA Africa has increased the number of participating teams from twelve to sixteen.[1] These teams get their ticket for the Africa Basketball League through regional qualifiers (Zone 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 of FIBA Africa).
The qualifiers for the Africa Basketball League Group stage was held from September and until mid-December 2018, while the final phase will take place from January 11 to April 21, 2019, in various African cities.
The 16 teams qualified for the round of 16 will be divided into 4 groups of 4 teams each and the competition will take place in the form of a championship where each team will face respectively the 3 opponents of his group. Then, the first two clubs in each group will qualify for the Elite 8 where the clubs will be divided into four groups of two teams each and then games will be played in a home and away format.[2] At this stage, the competition will be played in a one-way match against the principle of direct elimination. The Four winners will advance to the Final 4, that will be played on April 20 while the final take place the next day.[3]
^Despite being from Porto-Novo, Elan Sportif hosted the team games at the Hall des Arts Loisirs et Sports Boulevard Saint-Michel (H.A.L.S.) in Cotonou.
Schedule
Phase
Round
Draw date
Games
Group stage
January 12, 2019
February 8 – March 10, 2019
Elite 8
First leg
March 22, 2019
Second leg
April 14, 2019
Final Four
Semi-finals
April 27, 2019
May 24 and May 26, 2019
Final and third place
Group stage
The draw was held in Abidjan on 12 January 2019.[4]
The two teams with the best records for each group qualified to Elite 8.[5]
