Featured image credit: EASL
Basketball’s East Asia Super League (EASL) has expanded for its second full season with the addition of two clubs in Hong Kong and Macau.
Hong Kong Eastern and the Macau Black Bears will compete in the forthcoming 2024-25 season, in a major expansion of East Asia’s professional club basketball championship. The teams will play their home games in Hong Kong and Macau, respectively, bringing a full season of EASL action to the Greater Bay Area for the first time.
EASL today (Wednesday) said that the teams’ home arenas will be confirmed soon. The South China Morning Post said one of the reason’s Eastern’s home court has yet to be finalised is that Kai Tak Sports Park, one of the potential venues, will not be ready when the season starts.
The addition of Hong Kong Eastern and the Macau Black Bears increases the number of competing teams in the 2024-25 season from eight to 10, and ramps up representation from Greater China.
The Hong Kong and Macau sides will face off against the best teams from Chinese Taipei, Japan, Korea and the Philippines, to decide East Asia’s champion.
Eastern is one of Hong Kong’s most storied teams and the reigning domestic champion. The team won its third domestic A1 Division title in 2023 and is also a two-time winner of the ASEAN Basketball League (2016-17 and 2023).
Macau Black Bears was formed in 2018 as Macau’s first-ever professional team. The team is the reigning Macau basketball league champion and has also represented the region in the ASEAN Basketball League and The Asia Tournament.
EASL CEO, Henry Kerins, said: “EASL is getting bigger and it’s getting better. It was always our ambition to expand and bring in more leagues, representing more regions in Asia. We have accelerated those plans due to the strong demand from the regional leagues to join, and their readiness to do so.
“The 2024-25 season now includes two powerful teams from two amazing cities, in one of the biggest basketball markets in the world – China’s Greater Bay Area. Both teams have great ownership and ambitions to be major brands in Asian basketball.”
Today’s expansion announcement comes after EASL last month named Mark Fischer as president as part of nine new senior appointments ahead of the 2024-25 season.
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