The NBA is to return to the United Kingdom for the first time since 2019, with a match in London in 2026 and Manchester in 2027.
London’s O2 Arena has been selected to host a regular-season game between the Orlando Magic and the Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday, 18 January 2026.
It will be the first NBA game in the UK since the Washington Wizards’ win over the New York Knicks in January 2019, with London previously having hosted yearly matches between 2011 and 2019.
Manchester will host a regular-season game for the first time in 2027 at the Co-op Live, with the teams involved to be revealed before the start of that season.
The city previously held a pre-season match between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Philadelphia 76ers in October 2013 at the city’s other major indoor entertainment venue, which is now called the AO Arena.
The Mayor of London, Sir Sadiq Khan, said: “London is now the undisputed sporting capital of the world and the NBA coming to The O2 in January 2026 will further cement our global status.”
Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, said: “This is great news for the city-region and is an exciting opportunity for us to see some of the best basketball players in the world on our doorstep.”
Councillor Bev Craig, leader of Manchester City Council, added: “Manchester once again has shown what a magnificent draw it is for major events, and we are thrilled to welcome the NBA back to our city.”
The NBA will hold two games in Europe in each of 2026, 2027 and 2028.
Berlin will host the other game in 2026 with Paris doing so in 2027, while in 2028 they will both host a match.
The teams involved in the 2027 and 2028 matches will be named before the start of those seasons.
The 2025-26 season gets under way on Tuesday, 21 October.
