Ahmedabad, May 13: India will host the FIBA Under-18 Asia Cup 2026 in Ahmedabad from August 13 to 23, as confirmed by FIBA’s regional office for Asia on Wednesday. This marks the third time the country will organize this prestigious youth basketball tournament.
Ahmedabad will welcome the top 16 under-18 national teams from Asia and Oceania for this biennial event. The city is also home to the world’s largest cricket stadium and is set to host the Commonwealth Games in 2030. Additionally, Ahmedabad is bidding for the 2036 Olympics, further solidifying its status as a significant international sports venue.
India previously hosted this tournament in Kolkata in 1998 and in Bengaluru in 2004. Both events were historically significant for Asian basketball. The 1998 tournament in Kolkata is particularly noted for the international debut of Chinese basketball legend Yao Ming. Yao led China to its sixth title out of a record seven, becoming one of the most influential figures in Asian basketball history.
In 2004, Iran won the championship in Bengaluru, claiming victory in all eight matches, including a final win against Korea. This marked Iran’s first continental basketball title, signaling its emergence as a major force in Asian basketball with its team, ‘Melli.’
Australia won the title in 2024 in Amman, Jordan, and will return as the defending champion, joined by New Zealand and 13 other teams that qualified from regional tournaments in Asia.
Kazakhstan was the first team to qualify earlier this year by dominating the Central Asian Basketball Association (CABA) Under-18 Championship.
Qualifiers for the South Asian Basketball Association will take place in Colombo from May 25 to 29. East Asian qualifiers are scheduled for June 2 to 7 in Fukuoka, Japan, while Southeast Asian qualifiers will occur from June 10 to 14 in Krabi, Thailand. The Gulf region qualifiers will be held in Doha.
During the group stage, the 16 teams will be divided into four groups of four. The top three teams from each group will advance to the knockout stage, with group winners moving directly to the quarter-finals. The top four teams will qualify for the FIBA Under-19 Basketball World Cup 2027, set to take place from June 26 to July 4, 2027, in Pardubice, Czech Republic.
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