British Level 2 Basketball coach here - So for the first half of the video I thought you were gonna completely miss the main issue, but in the second half you nailed it. It's got zero to do with potential talent of players, initial desire for participation or level of coaching, but all to do with government and sporting bodies funding. In fact recently we lost our regular training slot to a fully funded netball program whilst our hall costs went up. Kids and adults across the whole of the UK love the sport, but until the higher ups give it the same funding and attention, we'll forever be stuck in this cycle.
If the NBA succeeded on their wemby project, I'm sure Europe will get more games soon. Don't know if England has the infrastructure to host an NBA game though.
@jasonebi7308 I don't know the viability of these global league rumours we've heard thrown about if that's what you mean but we definitely have the capacity as the NBA has games in London every single year for the past however long. Which by the way, sell out every time, but higher ups insist there's no interest for basketball here 🤷🏼♂️
@@jasonebi7308 it's not always about the NBA. There is basketball outside the NBA and the British are bad even by those standards. At this point British talent isn't even up to European standards, let alone NBA standards. Let them get on par with other European countries first and then we can talk about the NBA.
Are there really better opportunities for young Serbians, French, Spaniards, and Lithuanians than young English lads though? I don’t think so. So it’s an interesting mystery why British are not as represented in the NBA
@gj1234567899999 I've played basketball my entire life in Britain and in the small time I've been in places such as Lisbon and Amsterdam I saw more basketball facilities then I ever have in the uk. There is also the fact are government absolutely refuses to fund basketball no matter the amount of people that play I don't know why you would say something so braindead
@gj1234567899999 Absolutely. You got school of basketball for children at basically every elementary school in Serbia (I'm from Serbia). Perhaps those halls where they play are not in accordance to standard court dimensions, but that is not the point even. When kids start learning basketball its all about developing all around techniques because at that stage you never know if someone will be 6 feet or 7 feet tall. Tactics and specialized techniques comes later when a kid is already at the end of his growth spurt.
OG Anunoby is British and essentially the best British player. He came over from Britain and has said himself that he wants to be a pioneer and inspiration for other British kids. He even a minority stake owner of the London basketball club. So they can produce players. But there's no infrastructure, promotion and support for the sport.
The comparisson gets even worse when you look at European basketball. Spain, France, Germany, Serbia, Italy, Greece, Turkey, Lithuania and others produce lots of talent and have teams in the Euroleague. The UK has almost no players and not one team in Euroleague.
@@nickklavdianos5136 The men's European national team perform better overall in International basketball competition and at the Olympics. As for the European womens national team they are still lagging behind talent wise and performance wise.....
@@nickklavdianos5136 Yes I understand that I use the European national teams to save space from writing down all the country's national teams. Yes the women's national teams of these various countries are still lagging behind in basketball development and their performance on the international stage is still subpar compared to the men's national teams who have won Olympic gold medals and world cups. In women's basketball FIBA America and Asia-oceania are above Africa and Europe in basketball performance in these international competitions. The Australian women team has won the women's basketball world cup in the past, China and Japan,and South Korea all three have won Olympic medals and all three countries have competed in the World cup finals. And all three countries have produced players that have played in the WNBA not so for many countries in Europe for women..
W video I've been saying this for a long time, the Euroleague needs to tap into the British market instead of expanding a team to Dubai. The potential is there but no one is tapping into it.
i disagree i would say philippines, as a Filipino basketball is a religion and we are the most crazed basketball country in asia other than China. Yet no Nba player and barely won anything
@@jmgonzales7701huh? would you tell a half Nigerian that he’s not Nigerian? what sense does that make? Jordan even plays for the Philippines national team dude…
You know its bad when Britain's former best player Luol Deng formed the South Sudanese (a country that didn't exist 20 years ago) squad that only lost to the USA national team cuz LeBron channeled his inner "George Washington leading his men down the Deleware" and carried them to victory
Another problem you missed is the lach of infastructure, living in the UK I know that outdoor hoops are either non-existent, badly made (wrong height etc), or in bad condition. Without outdoor courts to play you either need to have your own hoop (expensive), or book a gym (expensive). Great video though
@@mellowado6184idk if ur from the uk but most of our courts are also football pitches and are the opposite of good smooth ground causing the rain to make mud
Theres no funding crucially, indoor courts are very expensive no deals are given to charitys either even schools mostly have basketball courts but the insurance and supervisors are very expensive. Secondly the bad weather combined with a lack of decent outdoor courts means unless its summer virtually no one is playing basketball in the uk in the winter and spring
@@bg357wg yeah but football is supposed to be played outdoors. its a lot easier to slip without studs on your shoe's sole playing in the grass. and it might just be me, but i hate bouncing a ball when its raining and getting my hand all dirty
at this point, I start to think that basketball in UK is being sabotaged out of principle. London Lions were doing so well, they were a footstep away from Euroleague, which would have been crazy. All the best teams would have been visiting London, and that's exactly what Euroleague wanted as well - a big city market. Then, all of a sudden the league goes bankrupt. How strange is that, and it's the second time happening.
The league went bankrupt because 777 Partners are, depending on who you ask, a Ponzi scheme interested in money laundering, racketeering and people trafficking. Given they have been exposed by multiple people and their empire is tumbling, the only way to get them out of the game was to strip the BBL of its license and start a new league. That's what they've done and things have returned to how they were before the clubs sold 45% of the league to 777.
@@SI-cd7xsI’m sure he was talking about the peak in the 90s and 2000s. I was shocked London didn’t have a team. And yeah as others said soccer can’t be used as an excuse since places like France, Spain, Germany, and Italy prove you can have both.
@ basketball is being sabotaged because it's not a british sport. In Spain for example it's a top sport among tennis and football. Whereas in UK, the priority is given to rugby, cricket, snooker and even darts.
Maybe the problem with the British basketball league was not the contract, it was the league itself. The fact that they play in Europe, but have American style league. Sharks vs Giants? This is a mockery of American basketball. In European countries with good basketball programs, their top sports clubs have football and basketball teams. In Spain you get Real Madrid and Barcelona, in Serbia you get Red Star and Partizan, in Greece you get Panathinaikos and Olympiakos. If there was basketball league with Manchester United and Liverpool basketball teams, that would be way more successful. They could recruit better talent and negotiate involment in continental competitions.
That works only in countries where such clubs had offshot teams in other sports But in UK that was never the case, Man Utd wouldn't even have a Futsal team Only recently they formed their Women's Football team
@@elennet4116 so, the problem is that UK doesn't have traditions in Basketball. They only tried yo make basketball league relatively recently and when they did it, they tried to copy-paste American basketball rather than European.
American here. I lived in London for 6 months when I was 12. I was never good at basketball, always a below average player, never played anything outside of pickup at the park. When I got to England I was the best basketball player in the entire grade. Kids there just aren't interested in it.
That was back in the day, people are interested there just isn’t much incentive for them to pursue it because they’re are barely any good courts or other players
Also important to mention that the lack of funding means there are very few indoor courts. Something that matters more in the UK than most other countries in Europe / North America because of how much rain we get
Few Indoor courts? How did you even say that? Nearly every leisure center with a sports hall has in indoor court. Most senior schools and colleges with a sports hall have a court. There are out door courts everywhere. It's just not a popular sport. More people in the UK watch ice hockey in the uk than basketball with way less than 1% of the available venues to play or train
@@chrisdouglas1158 No sure where you’re getting your figures from. No leisure centres near me have a court. You’re right that most schools do but those are typically just for use in PE lessons and not for use outside of school hours
@JakeBayley but it's still more than most sports. Anywhere where there is indoor netball there is generally I indoor basketball. Plus outdoor courts in parks.
Representing Cape Verde here, we might have an island population of 600k but most Cape Verdeans don’t live in the islands they live in places like Portugal, U.S and France.
@Immaculatevibesonly no one really goes to the park and plays casual tennis and definitely not casual rugby. When comparing tennis and basketball the reason its probably played more is cause in tennis max 4 people can be on the court as apposed to 10 (usually 8 for casual play) in basketball
in December 2024, UK Sport announced a significant increase in funding for basketball, more than doubling the previous allocation for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic cycle.
One massive problem growing up is the lack of access to teams, where I’ve grown up in the UK, there was never a team to join… school basketball is completely lost on us and likewise outside of school you can’t join a basketball team. Even if your area has a club chances are you’re the only club within 50-100 miles. You’re more likely to find females playing Basketball to a competitive standard, but even then there’s netball which is more popular..
As a British youth basketball player, its kinds crazy that a few months ago, the BBL went bankrupt and all that is left for youth is the YBL (youth basketball league) and NL (national league) until college and university. We barely even have outdoor hoops, and the ones that do exist are merged with tarmac football courts, meaning that you have to go along to the very few sessions you can manage, under different coaches with a lot of traveling from place to place. I watch the NBA and hear about how so many of the current players had camps run by actual NBA players at their time, while we are stuck with generic coaches who are mostly PE teachers trying to get a good look, with very few actually having a passion for basketball. I have played here for 11 years and watched as its popularity fluctuated and the funding was cut and cut, most of the teams i have played for in the past have gone under, especially in COVID and post-COVID. Most of the teams in the highest league are university students or regular guys, especially since the fall of the BBL, and after it fell, most players went to Asian leagues such as China and Japan. We have so many problems with the sport here, its hard to uncover in one TH-cam comment, I'll just leave it here.
We don't give a toss about basketball in England. People may play it, but not in a particularly organised way and no one wants to watch it. Rugby, football and cricket are all more popular.
British basketball fan and someone who worked in the BBL here. Really well made/informed video. I did a dissertation on British basketball and you hit all of the main issues. Sadly Britain in its roots is a deeply racist country and giving money to minorities that play basketball is not something people will support or be prepared to wait for the rewards. Football is in its own universe, rugby and cricket are both British sports so basketball will never get the attention it deserves. It could explode here, there's so much appetite and I really hope it does. Another problem is owners of bbl teams give it a go for a few years, get bored and teams end up going bankrupt which makes the whole league so unsustainable
@@OfficialFoshiznik I concur, class issue and nation pride issue. All the sports that got most of the govt funding was made in England or deeply entrenched since the ancient time, while basketball is a newish imported sport from the ex-colony.
With the strangle hold the Premier league has over fan attention, it's difficult for even established sports like Rugby and Cricket to compete. The Super league (division 1 rugby) teams can't even pay their non playing staff properly, and the league always seems to be teetering on bankruptcy. Basketball just doesn't have a chance in our market, especially when the demand that there is, is sweaped up entirely by the NBA. It's an ugly situation, and the government should be doing more, but it's never going to be a priority.
I'm English and used to go to an afterschool basketball club ran by 2 US Air Force guys. I didn't appreciate how truely awful we were as kids until I got a bit older. Those guys had saintly patience to put up with how bad we were. Sadly the club ended after they got deployed.
Don't want to be a hater but honestly you can't start a video with saying that basketball is the second most popular sport in Britian. Is not close to the second spot and it's hard for basketball to get even into top 10 in any year.
Football is obviously 1st but then Rugby Union, Rugby League, Cricket, Darts, Tennis, Snooker, F1, Golf, Moto GP, Horse Racing are all definitely more popular than Basketball. The NFL has probably overtaken Basketball now
@@robertotampioc7318The only participation for 99% of people is playing a couple of times in the school gym, and I think the only reason that happened is because gyms always have a hoop and it rains here. I played tons of sports growing up and played basketball like 5 times max
Im from the UK and tbh, most of the interest in the NBA is primarily the pop culture/celebrity aspect. People will say they like the NBA, wear a jersey but would have no clue about a recent major trade when you strike up a convo. More people stay up to watch the Super Bowl here than a game 7 of the finals. France is way more tapped in.
its so hard to get any sort of recognition here as so little people look at the uk for basketball. Even if you are good its very hard to get recognised and have a chance at the nba or euroleague
Even running a casual scrimmage is hard in the uk. I can’t count the amount of times our uni teams lost training slots because of fucking badminton.. BADMINTON!
I think we're at the start of a cycle, basketball fandom is on the rise here but it will take 10-15 years for the funding infrastructure to progress to the point where we can produce NBA level talent
Just need to get those old wankers from their positions who administrate the funding and think basketball is not a british sport, so won't receive the funding.
@@ragomonkey except the US is doing decently well at soccer development and has made every World Cup since 1990 with 2018 being the only exception. MLS also is pretty healthy and has a streaming deal (albeit it’s iffy). UK basketball on the other hand is a mess that unless the government shows effort in helping clean up will not go anywhere. The national team has not really made it to many big tournaments outside of EuroBasket.
@@lc9245Fym 😂, Top league in the world, made the last 2 Europa league finals… Jude Bellingham, Cole palmer, Harry Kane, Declan rice, Phil Foden, Bukayo Saka, TAA. Even players who don’t play for the English national team like Haaland, Musiala,Frimpong,Olise, Robinson…
At a young age all anyone wants to do is play football. I remember bringing my basketball down to a playground regularly, yet barely ever played because everyone would just want to play football 24/7.
I watched the national British team and was pleasingly surprised about how skilled they were. In the past it took a while for basketball historically to advance since some associated basketball with the women's variant Netball. It took the US awhile to have a Footy culture but in terms of talent - if not business organization - Britain could catch up in the next five years. Getting more financial support though will be key.
Sadly, the main reason is.. It's just not popular. Most kids either play rugby or football. The services also do not support basketball in the same way that other sports are supported. My current situation is that if I want to play the game, i would have to travel 20/30 minutes to get there. I don't have time for that. On the other hand, i can join a rugby or football team regardless of where I live
From the 90s there was John Amaechi (born USA, raised UK). He played for the Cavs, Orlando Magic, and Utah Jazz, famously turning down an offer the LA Lakers :( He also co-presented a UK TV basketball show in the 90s. The lack of support/TV for basketball in the UK is annoying. I am noticing a pickup of shops selling NBA kit now, dedicated shops in London, and mixed sports shops in the northwest ... so they're realising there's money and interest there. I can only hope it picks up!
It's mainly because of the Commonwealth. Rugby, cricket, and netball have to subsidies heavily as otherwise basketball would easily take over. Same in Australia and New Zealand.
The ruling class of Britain does/will not fund grass root sports. It goes to their friends and families posh sports. Where due to a lack of talent pool/participants they can be in the olympics. - Horse riding events, sailing. etc. Even if athletes does not perform their sport will receive funding.
Quid is more casual, so, giving your mate a fiver or what not. Whereas sums as big as £22,000,000 tend to only be spoken by professionals. So... Well, Pounds or Pounds Sterling will get used. Get what you mean, though.
If you look at the teams in France and Spain, like Barcelona, Real Madrid, they are sports clubs with team for example Barcelona has football and basketball section. Football clubs in England are just football clubs so basketball teams have no big infrastructure and fan base to rely on and had to build everything from new.
As an Australian I often wonder about this. Basketball is a middling sport in Australia as far as public interest but is among the most played. However when it comes to attendance and viewership it is beneath the Australian Football League, Cricket, racing cars, tennis, Rugby and even netball. Yet we have consistently been a top 10 team in the world, and more recently top 4 despite a population of only 21 million (roughly the size of new york). Whereas in the UK, they have the demographics and size and they have the interest yet basketball cant get off the ground. I remember laughing so hard when Australian Darryl Corletto became MVP of the BBL, knowing that in the Australian league he was a handy bench player at best. Clearly whatever is wrong with basketball in the UK comes down to grass roots coaching and identifying talent.
I'm from the Uk & Basketball has been the first sport I've ever taken to & loved. Unfortunately there's not many courts to practice on as most of the courts double as a football cage & not a lot of coaches. I had one for about a month or so, but it was only ever me & one person doing it so he had to stop it. A lot of teams & coaches only focus on teaching young kids, so finding a place to practice & get better as an adult is hard I really wish Basketball was more accessible here
I've watched some BBL games time when their TH-cam channel streamed it and quite enjoyed the couple games I saw. Good and great basketball is everywhere for sure. Had no idea they had this much of a lack of funding though, makes a lot more sense as to why they seem to struggle.
Good vid, but the fact that cape verde is a small country dont mean nothing. We arent the best but we still try to enjoy the game. (we got a few solid players like Tavares or Marcus)
That’s according to Basketball England figures. Amounts to less than 1% of the UK population. Bear in mind badminton has over 3million weekly participants in the UK over 16.
Certainly our issues with developing more elite talent and having a commercially successful professional league go beyond just lack of funding. There is certainly cause for optimism though and we are doing our best to be part of the change!
America and UK are reflections of each other. America is good in basketball but still learning in football (soccer). UK is good in football (soccer) but still learning basketball.
Do a video on why the US sucks at "soccer" next. The size of the country doesn't matter, the interest in the support does. No one cares about or plays basketball here. Also Basketball is nowhere near the second biggest sport.
Yh totally agree, I’m 17 years old and barely no anyone who plays it, the study at 1:19 is BS and he misleads us with it. Of the “1 million” only 14% actually play weekly and it was tied with 4 other sports including softball of which I’ve never met someone that plays it
As the guy explained in the video there is interest in Basketball. By participation figures and the interest in the NBA We know football is king here and we have our traditional sports like Cricket and the Two Rugby codes but the funding issue does sum up the UK as a country . Elite niche sports get funding so that people can sit down and watch them on the box every four years and a sport like Basketball get none despite the positive impact it can have on Youth and Community.
Most British people don’t even consider playing basketball, it’s viewed like American football mostly, as just a sport for Americans. It’s always an interesting curiosity to go to another European country like Spain or France and see their teams playing basketball on tv, it’s like “oh what they watch basketball here?”
idc what your survey says, basketball is not popular in britain. also the narrative that there is no funding is also bullshit. Here in London there are so many basketball courts even though it was never that popular, they were built in the 90s because theyre cheaper and smaller than football cages and make less noise and it was assumed that basketball would be big but it never happened
@@sahulianhooligan7046 nope, basketball was actually more popular in the 90s. These days the nba isn’t even that hot in America. NFL blew past the NBA in the UK.
When I was 18 (I'm 41 now), the regional basketball scene was gatekept by a pedaphile ring. Many good players were left out of important squads because they weren't liked by the pedaphiles that controlled it. I even played against the team coached by the pedaphiles in a championship game and beat them despite them having multiple England internationals. These players weren't good, I wonder what they did to get on the team...I've noticed many times how there's some incredible players but don't ever get a sniff of an opportunity and then when I see top players, I wonder why they are elevated so easily (overated). The rest of your video makes a lot of sense also but I thought I'd disclose this other reason. I don't know if it's still going on today or who is in control of things now but back then, I was quite close to this whole scene and had many friends in and around them and what went on.
You forgot Ogugua British Guy as another British Basketball player (OG Anunoby). As a Blazers fan, I KNEW Joel Freeland was going to be mentioned haha. To be completely fair to him, he really wasn't that bad while here with us.
No actually ,Britain has great talent for basketball but government doesn't recognise that. There's a talent from all around the world but there isn't many clubs with their own facilities for training . What I've seen so far in my 25 years living in UK basketball is very underfunded and not once I have seen some advertisement for basketball .
It’s because the Olympic funding was slashed as it’s a working class sport and they’d rather we excel at upper class sports like equestrian, tennis, rowing, etc. it’s sad given the sport’s popularity. Edit: wrote this before watching the video and you hit the nail on the head!
Im 18 playing basketball national league, there is plenty talent and i seen older guys who could definitely perform in Europe, its just that there is no investment into facilities, leagues etc. Also, surrounding countries don't scout in the UK because for one, they have their own players, and 2, its not invested enough here where players can get on their radar and actually lead their career to something further.
@@kingdave855 it isnt. multiple comments in here calling that out. the survey source was some england basketball org tryna get funding from the government clearly lying about how popular the sport is for money.
I used to live in England and I barely saw any basketball courts anywhere. Even in my home country of Bulgaria pretty much every school has an outdoor court
Yeah, back in the late 2000s and early 2010s, there are actually some British players who made it in the NBA like Ben Gordon and Luol Deng. I think British Basketball would flourish if they started going to American college and conquer the NCAA.
In order to be good at any sport as a nation, you must have quality coaching staff for all stages of players development. It is not all about the money, being from Serbia, where funding was very often scarce; we never stopped producing great basketball talent. It is also a cultural thing; they maybe like the sport, but they don't have passion for it, and give up easily when they don't see financial incentives right away. Without quality expertise and a lack of motivation, there is only one outcome.
In most of Europe, Basketball fills the “indoor team sport” niche. Bball doesn’t have to compete for venues with football like NFL or Rugby does and is different enough in structure/pace to attract crowds. Basketball is super or very popular in countries like Lithuania, Greece, Russia, Italy, Spain, Serbia, Turkey and somewhat popular in France . In Scandinavia, Austria, Switzerland, Slovakia etc where handball and ice hockey fill the indoor niche much better it isn’t popular at all. One of the reasons it is only moderately popular in Germany because there is competition (handball etc).
Imagine playing in a league called the BBL 💀 that is crazy work! You couldn’t have called it the BBA? Or the BLB? They had to have known what they were doing
The video began by highlighting small countries ranked above the UK, which have even smaller budgets. While budget may partly explain why the UK is not at the top of the rankings, it does not account for why it performs worse than these smaller countries.
Good research. The talent exists. I've spoken to people that have got to play for American colleges. It's mostly a summer sport because indoor gyms are expensive.
There is no school league system. Teachers have to reach out to other teachers to get a match organised. Over the past 3 yrs we have had 7 games and this season we havent had 1. So the only real way to get lots of games is to join an academy which are few and far between and very expensive if u do get in. We only have 1 practice a week which is just a halfcourt game becuase there are not enough qualified staff to run an actual practice and it sometimes gets cancelled for netball games etc.
British Level 2 Basketball coach here -
So for the first half of the video I thought you were gonna completely miss the main issue, but in the second half you nailed it.
It's got zero to do with potential talent of players, initial desire for participation or level of coaching, but all to do with government and sporting bodies funding. In fact recently we lost our regular training slot to a fully funded netball program whilst our hall costs went up.
Kids and adults across the whole of the UK love the sport, but until the higher ups give it the same funding and attention, we'll forever be stuck in this cycle.
If the NBA succeeded on their wemby project, I'm sure Europe will get more games soon. Don't know if England has the infrastructure to host an NBA game though.
@jasonebi7308 I don't know the viability of these global league rumours we've heard thrown about if that's what you mean but we definitely have the capacity as the NBA has games in London every single year for the past however long.
Which by the way, sell out every time, but higher ups insist there's no interest for basketball here 🤷🏼♂️
Bullshit. Australia also has shit funding but come up with nba players and champions
It's talent too...we will smoke you know matter what support ya get tbh.
@@jasonebi7308 it's not always about the NBA. There is basketball outside the NBA and the British are bad even by those standards. At this point British talent isn't even up to European standards, let alone NBA standards.
Let them get on par with other European countries first and then we can talk about the NBA.
There’s actually a great deal of people who play basketball here but there’s just not as much opportunities as noone cares it’s sad smh
Are there really better opportunities for young Serbians, French, Spaniards, and Lithuanians than young English lads though? I don’t think so. So it’s an interesting mystery why British are not as represented in the NBA
Coaching is terrible in the UK, no funding, we develop players like the US, even though Europe has shown us how to develop players properly.
@gj1234567899999 I've played basketball my entire life in Britain and in the small time I've been in places such as Lisbon and Amsterdam I saw more basketball facilities then I ever have in the uk. There is also the fact are government absolutely refuses to fund basketball no matter the amount of people that play I don't know why you would say something so braindead
@gj1234567899999 Absolutely. You got school of basketball for children at basically every elementary school in Serbia (I'm from Serbia). Perhaps those halls where they play are not in accordance to standard court dimensions, but that is not the point even. When kids start learning basketball its all about developing all around techniques because at that stage you never know if someone will be 6 feet or 7 feet tall. Tactics and specialized techniques comes later when a kid is already at the end of his growth spurt.
Fr Lithuania basketball most underrated in the whole world
OG Anunoby is British and essentially the best British player. He came over from Britain and has said himself that he wants to be a pioneer and inspiration for other British kids.
He even a minority stake owner of the London basketball club.
So they can produce players. But there's no infrastructure, promotion and support for the sport.
Ben Gordon?
Not a UK product
He's Niigerian
The man I love calling "Ogugua British Guy"
@DCranYT Ben Gordon was very good but it would be a toss up OG got a ring and he is acc rlly good
The comparisson gets even worse when you look at European basketball. Spain, France, Germany, Serbia, Italy, Greece, Turkey, Lithuania and others produce lots of talent and have teams in the Euroleague. The UK has almost no players and not one team in Euroleague.
The London lions have been capable a couple times but there's just not the funding to keep players good enough
@@sebastianpert7625 iirc the Lions have been to Eurocup, not Euroleague.
@@nickklavdianos5136
The men's European national team perform better overall in International basketball competition and at the Olympics. As for the European womens national team they are still lagging behind talent wise and performance wise.....
@@iakadayrneh did you mean teams plural? Because there isn't one unified European national team. Every country has it's own.
@@nickklavdianos5136
Yes I understand that I use the European national teams to save space from writing down all the country's national teams. Yes the women's national teams of these various countries are still lagging behind in basketball development and their performance on the international stage is still subpar compared to the men's national teams who have won Olympic gold medals and world cups. In women's basketball FIBA America and Asia-oceania are above Africa and Europe in basketball performance in these international competitions. The Australian women team has won the women's basketball world cup in the past, China and Japan,and South Korea all three have won Olympic medals and all three countries have competed in the World cup finals. And all three countries have produced players that have played in the WNBA not so for many countries in Europe for women..
W video
I've been saying this for a long time, the Euroleague needs to tap into the British market instead of expanding a team to Dubai. The potential is there but no one is tapping into it.
they were, and London Lions were a footstep away from Euroleague. But what can you do if BBL just went bankrupt
British Basketball as a whole is the saddest story in the world of basketball.
i disagree i would say philippines, as a Filipino basketball is a religion and we are the most crazed basketball country in asia other than China. Yet no Nba player and barely won anything
@@jmgonzales7701 no offence but Filipino are mad short
@@jmgonzales7701 jordan clarkson is fillipino
@xelaki9360 he is only half filipino. Doesnt count.
@@jmgonzales7701huh? would you tell a half Nigerian that he’s not Nigerian? what sense does that make? Jordan even plays for the Philippines national team dude…
You know its bad when Britain's former best player Luol Deng formed the South Sudanese (a country that didn't exist 20 years ago) squad that only lost to the USA national team cuz LeBron channeled his inner "George Washington leading his men down the Deleware" and carried them to victory
They have og anunoby ben gordon kellena azibuike
@@DeAnthonyWhitley Wow I'm sure OG Anunoby will do so much for us
@CarmeloAnthonyLover it's better than nothing
@@DeAnthonyWhitley It may as well be nothing
@CarmeloAnthonyLover OG is very good much more impactful than your Cheerios ass licker and he's got a ring
Another problem you missed is the lach of infastructure, living in the UK I know that outdoor hoops are either non-existent, badly made (wrong height etc), or in bad condition.
Without outdoor courts to play you either need to have your own hoop (expensive), or book a gym (expensive). Great video though
Well said
Even outdoor courts aren't the answer because it rains so much 😂
@Jackarius86 Chicago is known for its bad weather
@@mellowado6184idk if ur from the uk but most of our courts are also football pitches and are the opposite of good smooth ground causing the rain to make mud
I guess they never heard of a milk crate nailed to a power pole in the UK.
Same with the Netherlands 😭 tallest country on earth but next to nothing in nba talent
Rik Smits!
They had a player get drafted in the 2024 draft at least
@@matmat6031 Pacer legend!!!
@@TokyoBalletReprise yeah finally after 12 years 😂😂
Francisco Elson is from there... He won it all with the San Antonio Spurs back in the day...
Britain is bad at basketball because they named their basketball league BBL
They had to honor Kyle Lowry
They changed it to SBL now
The german league is also named BBL and we aren't bad... ;-)
Theres no funding crucially, indoor courts are very expensive no deals are given to charitys either even schools mostly have basketball courts but the insurance and supervisors are very expensive. Secondly the bad weather combined with a lack of decent outdoor courts means unless its summer virtually no one is playing basketball in the uk in the winter and spring
But wouldn’t the weather affect football more since the fields are more often outdoors?
@@bg357wg yeah but football is supposed to be played outdoors. its a lot easier to slip without studs on your shoe's sole playing in the grass. and it might just be me, but i hate bouncing a ball when its raining and getting my hand all dirty
you would think because of the bad weather, they'd be focused more on indoor sports as opposed to soccer
Outdoor pavilions are the easiest solution
@@JROB447If you mean covered sheltered outdoor courts I agree. Extremely popular in the Philippines.
at this point, I start to think that basketball in UK is being sabotaged out of principle. London Lions were doing so well, they were a footstep away from Euroleague, which would have been crazy. All the best teams would have been visiting London, and that's exactly what Euroleague wanted as well - a big city market. Then, all of a sudden the league goes bankrupt. How strange is that, and it's the second time happening.
theyre in a city of 9 million and average like 200 ppl at their games. uk does not care about basketball.
The league went bankrupt because 777 Partners are, depending on who you ask, a Ponzi scheme interested in money laundering, racketeering and people trafficking. Given they have been exposed by multiple people and their empire is tumbling, the only way to get them out of the game was to strip the BBL of its license and start a new league. That's what they've done and things have returned to how they were before the clubs sold 45% of the league to 777.
@@SI-cd7xsI’m sure he was talking about the peak in the 90s and 2000s. I was shocked London didn’t have a team. And yeah as others said soccer can’t be used as an excuse since places like France, Spain, Germany, and Italy prove you can have both.
@ basketball is being sabotaged because it's not a british sport. In Spain for example it's a top sport among tennis and football. Whereas in UK, the priority is given to rugby, cricket, snooker and even darts.
@ France Spain Italy and Germany don’t also have cricket, rugby and boxing. It’s not just football.
Maybe the problem with the British basketball league was not the contract, it was the league itself. The fact that they play in Europe, but have American style league. Sharks vs Giants? This is a mockery of American basketball. In European countries with good basketball programs, their top sports clubs have football and basketball teams. In Spain you get Real Madrid and Barcelona, in Serbia you get Red Star and Partizan, in Greece you get Panathinaikos and Olympiakos. If there was basketball league with Manchester United and Liverpool basketball teams, that would be way more successful. They could recruit better talent and negotiate involment in continental competitions.
You gave 4 examples. Now do the German and Italian teams. Olympiad Milano is not AC Milan
But this was never the case for British sport. In Rugby they do not have the Manchester United or Liverpool.
@mechkota Rugby is local sport. Rugby teams have their own traditions.
That works only in countries where such clubs had offshot teams in other sports
But in UK that was never the case, Man Utd wouldn't even have a Futsal team
Only recently they formed their Women's Football team
@@elennet4116 so, the problem is that UK doesn't have traditions in Basketball. They only tried yo make basketball league relatively recently and when they did it, they tried to copy-paste American basketball rather than European.
BBC and BBL are associated to Britian 😭😭very unserious country
I know you're joking, but both came first damn it
bbl brizzy
American here. I lived in London for 6 months when I was 12. I was never good at basketball, always a below average player, never played anything outside of pickup at the park. When I got to England I was the best basketball player in the entire grade. Kids there just aren't interested in it.
That was back in the day, people are interested there just isn’t much incentive for them to pursue it because they’re are barely any good courts or other players
I don’t know anyone that’s interested in basketball
It's also because British dudes can't jump
In the 90s my generation was , it was the Jordon affect , loads of my gen played in 90s
@@Sahim1.4 john amechi
Also important to mention that the lack of funding means there are very few indoor courts. Something that matters more in the UK than most other countries in Europe / North America because of how much rain we get
I will never get how can anyone live in such a climate, I would be depressed ALL the time.
Few Indoor courts? How did you even say that?
Nearly every leisure center with a sports hall has in indoor court.
Most senior schools and colleges with a sports hall have a court.
There are out door courts everywhere.
It's just not a popular sport.
More people in the UK watch ice hockey in the uk than basketball with way less than 1% of the available venues to play or train
@@chrisdouglas1158 No sure where you’re getting your figures from. No leisure centres near me have a court. You’re right that most schools do but those are typically just for use in PE lessons and not for use outside of school hours
@@chrisdouglas1158 Generally there is an indoor court that can be used for basketball but it always busy being used for literally any other sport
@JakeBayley but it's still more than most sports.
Anywhere where there is indoor netball there is generally I indoor basketball.
Plus outdoor courts in parks.
Representing Cape Verde here, we might have an island population of 600k but most Cape Verdeans don’t live in the islands they live in places like Portugal, U.S and France.
Shout out to Walter Tavares though
ta boa nha man
Boston has a lot of CV hoopers
Edy Tavares
I love basketball, but it is NOT the second most popular sport in the UK.
It is by participation
It's not even close, I read 300,000 people play twice a month in the UK. Rugby and cricket are definitely bigger and there's probably more
@@TSH-sx3ec Tennis is for sure bigger, too. I agree with his overall point, but 2nd most popular sport is so wrong
@Immaculatevibesonly no one really goes to the park and plays casual tennis and definitely not casual rugby. When comparing tennis and basketball the reason its probably played more is cause in tennis max 4 people can be on the court as apposed to 10 (usually 8 for casual play) in basketball
@@TSH-sx3ec 233,000 adults play rugby twice a month and 181,000 cricket. You didn't even complete your research before you started yappin
Spot on commentary. Its so disappointing being British and loving Basketball. Hopefully it will change.
something id like to also mention at 1:38 is that other "football" countries outside of europe are good at basketball like brazil and Argentina too
in December 2024, UK Sport announced a significant increase in funding for basketball, more than doubling the previous allocation for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic cycle.
double 0 is still 0 brudda
One massive problem growing up is the lack of access to teams, where I’ve grown up in the UK, there was never a team to join… school basketball is completely lost on us and likewise outside of school you can’t join a basketball team. Even if your area has a club chances are you’re the only club within 50-100 miles. You’re more likely to find females playing Basketball to a competitive standard, but even then there’s netball which is more popular..
No funding and no money in it.
This was incredibly well done. It's so easy to just blame something such as culture and walk away. I appreciate you diving into the nitty-gritty.
As Polish person i think Sochan just willingly choose Polish national team and it has nothing to do with passports
Downgrades the genetics
As a British youth basketball player, its kinds crazy that a few months ago, the BBL went bankrupt and all that is left for youth is the YBL (youth basketball league) and NL (national league) until college and university. We barely even have outdoor hoops, and the ones that do exist are merged with tarmac football courts, meaning that you have to go along to the very few sessions you can manage, under different coaches with a lot of traveling from place to place. I watch the NBA and hear about how so many of the current players had camps run by actual NBA players at their time, while we are stuck with generic coaches who are mostly PE teachers trying to get a good look, with very few actually having a passion for basketball. I have played here for 11 years and watched as its popularity fluctuated and the funding was cut and cut, most of the teams i have played for in the past have gone under, especially in COVID and post-COVID. Most of the teams in the highest league are university students or regular guys, especially since the fall of the BBL, and after it fell, most players went to Asian leagues such as China and Japan. We have so many problems with the sport here, its hard to uncover in one TH-cam comment, I'll just leave it here.
this gotta be the longest comment I every wrote, but I had a lot to say.
We don't give a toss about basketball in England. People may play it, but not in a particularly organised way and no one wants to watch it.
Rugby, football and cricket are all more popular.
This is why people from the Balkans are special in sports. We play almost anything and we great in almost any sport.
@@Unwoken_European but they don't play rugby and cricket.
Wow very well made video and we all learnt a lot from it, I hope funding and care for basketball improves and changes there. Thanks for the video!
British basketball fan and someone who worked in the BBL here. Really well made/informed video. I did a dissertation on British basketball and you hit all of the main issues. Sadly Britain in its roots is a deeply racist country and giving money to minorities that play basketball is not something people will support or be prepared to wait for the rewards. Football is in its own universe, rugby and cricket are both British sports so basketball will never get the attention it deserves. It could explode here, there's so much appetite and I really hope it does. Another problem is owners of bbl teams give it a go for a few years, get bored and teams end up going bankrupt which makes the whole league so unsustainable
Gfy this isn't a race issue
It’s a class issue over a racial one although i suspect the racial aspect is some part of why the working classes get done dirty every time
Athletics
Basketball is a fake abnormally tall circus people sport. Nothing to do with racism . Why isn't the usa college system giving money to cricket
@@OfficialFoshiznik I concur, class issue and nation pride issue. All the sports that got most of the govt funding was made in England or deeply entrenched since the ancient time, while basketball is a newish imported sport from the ex-colony.
Take on Filipino basketball please! The channel has great potential.
With the strangle hold the Premier league has over fan attention, it's difficult for even established sports like Rugby and Cricket to compete. The Super league (division 1 rugby) teams can't even pay their non playing staff properly, and the league always seems to be teetering on bankruptcy. Basketball just doesn't have a chance in our market, especially when the demand that there is, is sweaped up entirely by the NBA. It's an ugly situation, and the government should be doing more, but it's never going to be a priority.
Cricket makes massive profits in uk
I have actually never thought of this, but yes, they are missing from all major competitions - good vid
Me from the UK my dream is to play for Britain basketball league and my other dream is to be in the nba
I'm English and used to go to an afterschool basketball club ran by 2 US Air Force guys. I didn't appreciate how truely awful we were as kids until I got a bit older. Those guys had saintly patience to put up with how bad we were. Sadly the club ended after they got deployed.
Don't want to be a hater but honestly you can't start a video with saying that basketball is the second most popular sport in Britian. Is not close to the second spot and it's hard for basketball to get even into top 10 in any year.
Football is obviously 1st but then Rugby Union, Rugby League, Cricket, Darts, Tennis, Snooker, F1, Golf, Moto GP, Horse Racing are all definitely more popular than Basketball. The NFL has probably overtaken Basketball now
He's not telling about popularity.. he tell participation..
@@robertotampioc7318The only participation for 99% of people is playing a couple of times in the school gym, and I think the only reason that happened is because gyms always have a hoop and it rains here. I played tons of sports growing up and played basketball like 5 times max
They mean playing, bsskeball you can just have a ball and play on your own, you cannot play Rugby and Cricket on your own
@@robertotampioc7318participation stats are so stupid . Do they count backyard cricket
one factor is scheduling. NBA games are scheduled at around 1 am and ends at 6 in the morning
Im from the UK and tbh, most of the interest in the NBA is primarily the pop culture/celebrity aspect. People will say they like the NBA, wear a jersey but would have no clue about a recent major trade when you strike up a convo. More people stay up to watch the Super Bowl here than a game 7 of the finals. France is way more tapped in.
its so hard to get any sort of recognition here as so little people look at the uk for basketball. Even if you are good its very hard to get recognised and have a chance at the nba or euroleague
Even running a casual scrimmage is hard in the uk. I can’t count the amount of times our uni teams lost training slots because of fucking badminton.. BADMINTON!
Badminton is a million times superior sport to basketball
same in korea haha
I think we're at the start of a cycle, basketball fandom is on the rise here but it will take 10-15 years for the funding infrastructure to progress to the point where we can produce NBA level talent
Just need to get those old wankers from their positions who administrate the funding and think basketball is not a british sport, so won't receive the funding.
1:54 this far in and all I hear is this dude slating England lol
Fr
Britain in basketball is like America in Football
@@ragomonkey except the US is doing decently well at soccer development and has made every World Cup since 1990 with 2018 being the only exception. MLS also is pretty healthy and has a streaming deal (albeit it’s iffy).
UK basketball on the other hand is a mess that unless the government shows effort in helping clean up will not go anywhere. The national team has not really made it to many big tournaments outside of EuroBasket.
Football is funded well in usa
It's not a fluke that Lionel Messi got lured into playing in the MLS
British football isn’t even good compare to the level of investment it received.
@@lc9245Fym 😂, Top league in the world, made the last 2 Europa league finals… Jude Bellingham, Cole palmer, Harry Kane, Declan rice, Phil Foden, Bukayo Saka, TAA. Even players who don’t play for the English national team like Haaland, Musiala,Frimpong,Olise, Robinson…
At a young age all anyone wants to do is play football. I remember bringing my basketball down to a playground regularly, yet barely ever played because everyone would just want to play football 24/7.
I watched the national British team and was pleasingly surprised about how skilled they were. In the past it took a while for basketball historically to advance since some associated basketball with the women's variant Netball. It took the US awhile to have a Footy culture but in terms of talent - if not business organization - Britain could catch up in the next five years. Getting more financial support though will be key.
Any tall kid starts at football
The Brits are crazy about soccer,not basketball.
Rugby Union, Rugby League, and Cricket are popular too. Australia likes the same sports AND they're pretty good at basketball.
but europe country good at basketball like spain, serbia, france also crazy about soccer
Sadly, the main reason is.. It's just not popular. Most kids either play rugby or football. The services also do not support basketball in the same way that other sports are supported.
My current situation is that if I want to play the game, i would have to travel 20/30 minutes to get there. I don't have time for that. On the other hand, i can join a rugby or football team regardless of where I live
Keep making videos like this and your channel is going to blow up. Great insights, well argued, with data.
From the 90s there was John Amaechi (born USA, raised UK). He played for the Cavs, Orlando Magic, and Utah Jazz, famously turning down an offer the LA Lakers :( He also co-presented a UK TV basketball show in the 90s. The lack of support/TV for basketball in the UK is annoying. I am noticing a pickup of shops selling NBA kit now, dedicated shops in London, and mixed sports shops in the northwest ... so they're realising there's money and interest there. I can only hope it picks up!
It's mainly because of the Commonwealth. Rugby, cricket, and netball have to subsidies heavily as otherwise basketball would easily take over. Same in Australia and New Zealand.
The ruling class of Britain does/will not fund grass root sports. It goes to their friends and families posh sports. Where due to a lack of talent pool/participants they can be in the olympics. - Horse riding events, sailing. etc. Even if athletes does not perform their sport will receive funding.
As a brit why does 22 million quid sound weird, sounds normal for like 5 quid but 22 mil quid sounds off
Quid is more casual, so, giving your mate a fiver or what not. Whereas sums as big as £22,000,000 tend to only be spoken by professionals. So... Well, Pounds or Pounds Sterling will get used. Get what you mean, though.
If you look at the teams in France and Spain, like Barcelona, Real Madrid, they are sports clubs with team for example Barcelona has football and basketball section.
Football clubs in England are just football clubs so basketball teams have no big infrastructure and fan base to rely on and had to build everything from new.
As an Australian I often wonder about this. Basketball is a middling sport in Australia as far as public interest but is among the most played. However when it comes to attendance and viewership it is beneath the Australian Football League, Cricket, racing cars, tennis, Rugby and even netball. Yet we have consistently been a top 10 team in the world, and more recently top 4 despite a population of only 21 million (roughly the size of new york). Whereas in the UK, they have the demographics and size and they have the interest yet basketball cant get off the ground. I remember laughing so hard when Australian Darryl Corletto became MVP of the BBL, knowing that in the Australian league he was a handy bench player at best. Clearly whatever is wrong with basketball in the UK comes down to grass roots coaching and identifying talent.
OG ANUNOBY IS BRITISH AND IS VERY GOOD
he moved to missouri at 4
He is a product of the US development system and does not play for the UK national team. He is as british as Cam Thomas is japanese
@@acuothacuoth502 Where was he born though?
@@harrymail7 the uk but he lived there for two yrs
@@acuothacuoth502 So you're telling me he is British.
You hit it on the head. Great video
I'm from the Uk & Basketball has been the first sport I've ever taken to & loved. Unfortunately there's not many courts to practice on as most of the courts double as a football cage & not a lot of coaches. I had one for about a month or so, but it was only ever me & one person doing it so he had to stop it. A lot of teams & coaches only focus on teaching young kids, so finding a place to practice & get better as an adult is hard
I really wish Basketball was more accessible here
There’s loads of talent here. But no investment for development. The government doesn’t care about young people.
that "Tottenham timing" line =)))
Japan's B league is very underrated
1:59 an NBA channel saying "Tottenham Timing" is hilarious! U know soccer really well, great research.
I've watched some BBL games time when their TH-cam channel streamed it and quite enjoyed the couple games I saw. Good and great basketball is everywhere for sure. Had no idea they had this much of a lack of funding though, makes a lot more sense as to why they seem to struggle.
You’re too talented, you finna blow up soon. 🔥
The Uk has a massive problem with classism but it’s almost never spoken about…
Good vid, but the fact that cape verde is a small country dont mean nothing.
We arent the best but we still try to enjoy the game. (we got a few solid players like Tavares or Marcus)
Facts
"In 2023, almost 300,000 adults aged 16 and older played basketball at least twice a month" there's no way basketball is as big in the UK as you said.
That’s according to Basketball England figures. Amounts to less than 1% of the UK population. Bear in mind badminton has over 3million weekly participants in the UK over 16.
Certainly our issues with developing more elite talent and having a commercially successful professional league go beyond just lack of funding. There is certainly cause for optimism though and we are doing our best to be part of the change!
Britain’s most popular basketball player is Ovie Soko, a love island contestant, who plays for London Lions
America and UK are reflections of each other.
America is good in basketball but still learning in football (soccer).
UK is good in football (soccer) but still learning basketball.
I've always wondered about this. Thanks for this video keep it up
John Amaechi represent
nah frr j'avoue c une folie on en parle pas assez de ça bonne vidéo
Chris Finch and Nick Nurse coaching against each other in the UK is crazy lore
Do a video on why the US sucks at "soccer" next.
The size of the country doesn't matter, the interest in the support does.
No one cares about or plays basketball here. Also Basketball is nowhere near the second biggest sport.
Yh totally agree, I’m 17 years old and barely no anyone who plays it, the study at 1:19 is BS and he misleads us with it. Of the “1 million” only 14% actually play weekly and it was tied with 4 other sports including softball of which I’ve never met someone that plays it
I think he meant 2nd most played by youths not by popularity
As the guy explained in the video there is interest in Basketball. By participation figures and the interest in the NBA
We know football is king here and we have our traditional sports like Cricket and the Two Rugby codes but the funding issue does sum up the UK as a country .
Elite niche sports get funding so that people can sit down and watch them on the box every four years and a sport like Basketball get none despite the positive impact it can have on Youth and Community.
Most British people don’t even consider playing basketball, it’s viewed like American football mostly, as just a sport for Americans.
It’s always an interesting curiosity to go to another European country like Spain or France and see their teams playing basketball on tv, it’s like “oh what they watch basketball here?”
idc what your survey says, basketball is not popular in britain. also the narrative that there is no funding is also bullshit. Here in London there are so many basketball courts even though it was never that popular, they were built in the 90s because theyre cheaper and smaller than football cages and make less noise and it was assumed that basketball would be big but it never happened
That was a different demographic. Basketball is popular with the younger generation who are more exposed to American culture because of social media
@@sahulianhooligan7046 nope, basketball was actually more popular in the 90s. These days the nba isn’t even that hot in America. NFL blew past the NBA in the UK.
When I was 18 (I'm 41 now), the regional basketball scene was gatekept by a pedaphile ring. Many good players were left out of important squads because they weren't liked by the pedaphiles that controlled it. I even played against the team coached by the pedaphiles in a championship game and beat them despite them having multiple England internationals. These players weren't good, I wonder what they did to get on the team...I've noticed many times how there's some incredible players but don't ever get a sniff of an opportunity and then when I see top players, I wonder why they are elevated so easily (overated).
The rest of your video makes a lot of sense also but I thought I'd disclose this other reason.
I don't know if it's still going on today or who is in control of things now but back then, I was quite close to this whole scene and had many friends in and around them and what went on.
i always asked myself that thanks for making the video
You forgot Ogugua British Guy as another British Basketball player (OG Anunoby). As a Blazers fan, I KNEW Joel Freeland was going to be mentioned haha. To be completely fair to him, he really wasn't that bad while here with us.
No actually ,Britain has great talent for basketball but government doesn't recognise that. There's a talent from all around the world but there isn't many clubs with their own facilities for training . What I've seen so far in my 25 years living in UK basketball is very underfunded and not once I have seen some advertisement for basketball .
Damn well made vid, u deserve a bunch more subs
It’s because the Olympic funding was slashed as it’s a working class sport and they’d rather we excel at upper class sports like equestrian, tennis, rowing, etc. it’s sad given the sport’s popularity.
Edit: wrote this before watching the video and you hit the nail on the head!
Im 18 playing basketball national league, there is plenty talent and i seen older guys who could definitely perform in Europe, its just that there is no investment into facilities, leagues etc. Also, surrounding countries don't scout in the UK because for one, they have their own players, and 2, its not invested enough here where players can get on their radar and actually lead their career to something further.
the short answer is we don't care about basketball
But that's a lie just listen to the video it's literally the second most played sport in the country
@@kingdave855 it isnt. multiple comments in here calling that out. the survey source was some england basketball org tryna get funding from the government clearly lying about how popular the sport is for money.
Nah ya all don't care cause you suck at it
I used to live in England and I barely saw any basketball courts anywhere. Even in my home country of Bulgaria pretty much every school has an outdoor court
Yeah, back in the late 2000s and early 2010s, there are actually some British players who made it in the NBA like Ben Gordon and Luol Deng. I think British Basketball would flourish if they started going to American college and conquer the NCAA.
The BBL’s downfall is crazy…😅
In order to be good at any sport as a nation, you must have quality coaching staff for all stages of players development. It is not all about the money, being from Serbia, where
funding was very often scarce; we never stopped producing great basketball talent. It is also a cultural thing; they maybe like the sport, but they don't have passion for it,
and give up easily when they don't see financial incentives right away. Without quality expertise and a lack of motivation, there is only one outcome.
Why Britain should be good at basketball when they have 3-5 main sport to focus?
They suck at all of them anyways
@@drodrig1 They are actually pretty good at their sports but okay.
@@drodrig1 No they don't, not in rugby, football nor athletics.
In most of Europe, Basketball fills the “indoor team sport” niche. Bball doesn’t have to compete for venues with football like NFL or Rugby does and is different enough in structure/pace to attract crowds. Basketball is super or very popular in countries like Lithuania, Greece, Russia, Italy, Spain, Serbia, Turkey and somewhat popular in France . In Scandinavia, Austria, Switzerland, Slovakia etc where handball and ice hockey fill the indoor niche much better it isn’t popular at all. One of the reasons it is only moderately popular in Germany because there is competition (handball etc).
For the prestige!
My kid loves basketball but in high school it's not part of the curriculum. Everyone is too stuck up trying to be a damn football player.
Imagine playing in a league called the BBL 💀 that is crazy work! You couldn’t have called it the BBA? Or the BLB? They had to have known what they were doing
W video but you forgot OG Anunoby! He's also a part owner of the London Lions. Let's go Knicks!
Net ball actually older than Basketball and played in many commonwealth countries.
Every "developed" nation's issue with being poor in certain global sports is predominantly about where the best athletes choose to ply their trade.
The video began by highlighting small countries ranked above the UK, which have even smaller budgets. While budget may partly explain why the UK is not at the top of the rankings, it does not account for why it performs worse than these smaller countries.
Good research. The talent exists. I've spoken to people that have got to play for American colleges. It's mostly a summer sport because indoor gyms are expensive.
You nailed it in the second half of the video
There is no school league system. Teachers have to reach out to other teachers to get a match organised. Over the past 3 yrs we have had 7 games and this season we havent had 1. So the only real way to get lots of games is to join an academy which are few and far between and very expensive if u do get in.
We only have 1 practice a week which is just a halfcourt game becuase there are not enough qualified staff to run an actual practice and it sometimes gets cancelled for netball games etc.
Its the class system....Sailing, equestrian, rowing get massive funding despite few participants. Rich people sports.
It really is that simple.
Britain is to basketball like America is to soccer.