Dubai:NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball is coming to Dubai in 2021 as Inspirus expands its successful concept of the Belfast Basketball Classic to the UAE. Inspirus Sports, in partnership with Falcon and Associates and the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC), will bring the first ever ‘Dubai Basketball Classic’ to the state-of-the-art Coca Cola Arena, Dubai November 25-27, 2021.

For the first time in NCAA collegiate sports history, a Multi-Team Event (MTE) will take place in Dubai, UAE, and be broadcast to a global audience.  Inspirus previously brought college basketball to Europe with its Belfast Classic played at the SSE Arena in Northern Ireland.

Organised in partnership with Dubai Sports Council, the 2021 event will feature a high-profile field of eight NCAA Division I programs in a Multi Team Event (MTE). The eight institutions will compete in two four-team brackets in Dubai while one early round game will take place in the United States the week prior to the games.

Inspirus Sports, a sports event company based in Northern Ireland, operates premium inspirational sporting events in communities around the World. Inspirus has been working closely with Falcon and Associates and the MAAC to bring this event to Dubai with the goal of showcasing Dubai and its people to viewing audiences around the world and introducing top level intercollegiate basketball to the UAE.

The games will be hosted in the state-of-the-art Coca-Cola Arena in the heart of Dubai.  The 17,000-seat facility, in the upscale City Walk neighbourhood, opened in June 2019 and is the Middle East’s largest multi-purpose indoor arena.

This event will attract local fans along with a large traveling fan base from the participating university, all while being televised to audiences across the globe through Inspirus’ distribution partners. 

"We are really pleased to add another exciting new event to Dubai's sports calendar," said HE Saeed Hareb, Secretary General of Dubai Sports Council. “This is the first time Dubai will be hosting elite teams from the popular NCAA Division 1 Men’s Basketball and the country’s basketball fans will be waiting with bated breath for the teams to arrive in Dubai for the aptly-named Dubai Basketball Classic.

“We at Dubai Sports Council pride ourselves on organising and supporting more than 400 different sports events through the year. The variety that you see on Dubai’s sports calendar is a reflection of the Emirate’s rich diversity, where people from across the world, belonging to different cultures and races, live together in harmony and happiness.”

“We are so proud and excited to make this announcement today. This has been an exciting journey working with our partners Falcon and Associates and the MAAC as, together, we bring the world of NCAA College basketball to the people of Dubai. Inspirus Sports Management was created to bring Inspirational events to communities all over the world.  Our mission is to use the positive impact of sport to encourage generations of people to get involved, whether to improve their own health and well-being, to play, or to simply volunteer in a sports,” Gareth Maguire, Chairman, Inspirus Sports. 

Greg Sproule, CEO of Falcon and Associates: “Basketball continues to grow in popularity in Dubai and the rest of the world, and college basketball is to many the most exciting of all.  While college basketball is at the core of this event, our commitment to community engagement is significant and it stretches far beyond the three days of competition.  Boys and girls in Dubai will benefit from the lead-up competitions, clinics and other engagements so that this is truly a long-term celebration of basketball.  We are thrilled to be working together with Inspirus, Dubai Sports Council, the MAAC and the many other stakeholders involved.” 

“The MAAC is a proud partner of this event.  The MAAC’s mission is to showcase its member schools for their excellence in sports and academics. We are very fortunate to have this international opportunity to showcase collegiate basketball to the people of Dubai. We welcome the participating schools as the first of many to travel to Dubai and represent the best of what the collegiate basketball has to offer and would like to thank all of our partners for their help in making this a reality for the student-athletes who won’t forget this experience, “said Rich Ensor, MAAC Commissioner who is in his 32nd year of leading the conference.

Formal announcements surrounding specific team announcements, travel packages and ticket information will be released at a later date.