DUBAI (FIBA U17 World Championship for Men) - The draw for the 2014 FIBA U17 World Championship for Men will take place on Wednesday in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The third edition of the youth tournament will take place from Friday 8 to Saturday 16 August 2014 in the emirate. It is the first time a FIBA World Championship - senior or junior - is staged in the Middle East.

The FIBA U17 World Championship is where the stars of tomorrow are born.

The 16 teams from across FIBA's five zones that will compete in the tournament are: Angola, Argentina, Australia, Canada, China, Egypt, France, Greece, Italy, Japan, Philippines, Puerto Rico, Serbia, Spain, UAE and USA.

Seven teams will be making their debut at the U17 world championship level, including the host nation. This ensures the event will be a momentous occasion for the UAE and for the development of basketball in the region.

The draw, which will see the teams divided into four Preliminary Round groups, takes place at 7pm local/GST time (4pm CET/GMT +1).

Ismail Al Gargawi, President of the UAE Basketball Association, said: "This is a first for basketball and a first for the UAE in hosting and participating in one of FIBA's World Championships.

"I'm delighted that we and our partners can help showcase basketball to the nation and increase the interest and participation in our great sport.

"We are looking forward to hosting our friends from FIBA and our other distinguished guests from around the world and showing them all that Dubai has to offer."

The Preliminary Round action will take place in Al Ahli Arena and Al Wasl Arena, with the Hamdan Sports Complex hosting the Final Round.

The inaugural FIBA U17 World Championship was staged in Hamburg, Germany in 2010. The second edition took place two years later in Kaunas, Lithuania.

The USA have won both editions to date, which featured the 12 best national teams in the world from across FIBA's five continental zones on both occasions.

The success and interest in the first two U17s was so high that, starting in 2014, the tournament will consist of a 16-team field - the same competition format as the FIBA U19 World Championship.

The FIBA U17 World Championship for Men came into being following the success of its "older brother", the FIBA U19 World Championship for Men, which made its debut in 1979.

Both U17 and U19 Men's tournaments - and their women's equivalents - cater to the growing potential and popularity of youth competitions and ensure that every generation of global basketball talent gets the chance to compete at the highest international level.

Click here to find out how the 16 teams qualified for the 2014 FIBA U17 World Championship.

FIBA