MIES (Switzerland) - FIBA, the International Basketball Federation, 2K, the publisher of NBA 2K, and the NBA 2K League have entered into an agreement that will offer a unique platform to organize international events for National Federations and the esport gaming community.

The multiyear deal highlights the desire of all parties to further strengthen bridges between eFIBA events and the NBA 2K League by providing an opportunity to identify regional talent, offering eFIBA participants a chance to participate in NBA 2K League events or the NBA 2K League Draft, as well as establishing a clear national team competition system. 

The eFIBA calendar will include Qualifiers, four Regional Finals (Africa, Asia including Oceania, Americas and Europe), and the eFIBA World Finals each year.

Starting this fall, the creation of this first eFIBA window, in partnership with ESL FACEIT Group (EFG), will act as a key lever in extending the reach of esports by making it more accessible and attractive to new players.

Additionally, the collaboration will help grow the global basketball audience in alignment with FIBA's existing fan engagement strategy. By reaching out to 'Gen Z', a demographic that is highly engaged with esports, FIBA has a unique opportunity to leverage the growing popularity of esports and create a new generation of fans. 

FIBA's close working relationship with the NBA 2K League and 2K is significant in the context of the world governing body's vision to bring together National Federations and esport players worldwide. NBA 2K, is the top-rated and top-selling NBA video game simulation series of the past 21 years* and provides an innovative platform for showcasing skills and passion for the online game.

This agreement also meets FIBA's clear mission to establish and structure a global competitive gaming ecosystem for national teams. In turn, this will increase the popularity of esports and enlarge the FIBA Family, which is one of FIBA's current strategic priorities, while also cultivating a new community of fans and players.

Finally, a central strand of the agreement will be the onboarding of more National Federations to the esports ecosystem who will be encouraged and supported in entering national teams for participation in the new competitions.  

* According to 2008 - 2022 Metacritic.com

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About FIBA
FIBA (fiba.basketball) - the world governing body for basketball, is an independent association formed by 212 National Basketball Federations throughout the world. It is recognized as the sole competent authority in basketball by the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

For further information about FIBA, visit fiba.basketball or follow FIBA on facebook.com/fiba, twitter.com/fiba,  instagram.com/fiba and youtube.com/fiba

About 2K
Founded in 2005, 2K develops and publishes global interactive entertainment for console and handheld gaming systems, personal computers and mobile devices, with product availability including physical retail and digital download. The Company is home to many talented development studios, including Visual Concepts, Firaxis Games, Hangar 13, Cat Daddy Games, 31st Union and Cloud Chamber. 2K's portfolio currently includes the renowned BioShock®, Borderlands™, Mafia and XCOM® franchises; NBA® 2K, the global phenomenon and highest rated* annual sports title for the current console generation; the critically acclaimed Sid Meier’s Civilization® series; the popular WWE® 2K and WWE® SuperCard franchises, as well as emerging properties NBA® 2K Playgrounds 2, Carnival Games and more. Additional information about 2K and its products may be found at 2k.com.
* According to 2008 – 2020 Metacritic.com

About NBA 2K League
The NBA 2K League, a professional esports league co-founded by the NBA and Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (NASDAQ:TTWO), launched in 2018 and features 25 teams and the best NBA 2K players in the world.  NBA 2K League partners include Anheuser-Busch, AT&T, Champion Athleticwear, Coinbase, Google, Loco, Meta, Mondelēz International, SAP, Snickers, Sony Interactive Entertainment, SPS, Wilson and YouTube.  For more information about the NBA 2K League, visit NBA2KLeague.com.