Nairobi City Thunder Basketball Club will make its second appearance in the Basketball Africa League (BAL), joining 11 other teams for the 2026 season. The club will compete in the Kalahari Group Phase, scheduled for March 27 to April 5 at the SunBet Arena in Pretoria, South Africa.
The two-time Kenya Basketball Federation (KBF) Premier League champions earned their second BAL appearance by qualifying through the Road to BAL tournaments, continuing Kenya’s representation on the continental stage.
Now in its sixth season, BAL will feature the top 12 club teams from 12 African countries, playing a total of 42 games across the Kalahari Conference group phase from March 27 to April 5 in Pretoria.
The other phase, the Sahara Conference group phase, is scheduled for April 24 to May 3 at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Sports Complex in Rabat, Morocco, with the Playoffs and Finals set for May 22 to May 31 at BK Arena in Kigali, Rwanda.
Among the 12 teams participating this season, some interesting clubs expected to make an impact include Dar City, the first-ever BAL participant from Tanzania, as well as first-time participants JCA Kings from Côte d’Ivoire and Maktown Flyers from Nigeria.
South Africa's Johannesburg Giants and Tunisia's Club Africain—whose management has revamped the club’s financial resources—are also teams to watch.
2024 BAL champion Petro de Luanda from Angola is the only team to have qualified for all six BAL seasons and will be aiming for their second title.
However, pundits have rated 2023 BAL champion Al Ahly from Egypt ahead of them, presenting a psychological challenge Petro de Luanda must overcome if they are to reclaim the holy grail of African basketball for Angola.
