For 3x3 basket it's been an extraordinary year

“2024 was a record year,” says Alex Sanchez, CEO of FIBA 3x3, talking about the momentum of professional three-on-three basketball and the growth of the sport worldwide. Indeed, the visibility that the sport enjoyed at last summer's Olympic Games confirmed (and reinforced) a trend that had already been evident in recent years: “street” basketball has taken an ever-increasing place on the global stage. And certainly the atmosphere on the courts with the Eiffel Tower int the background in August helped to highlight the qualities of 3v3 basketball and remind us of the full potential of a young, fresh, dynamic and fast-rising game that knows how to entertain and just needs a little spotlight to expand its reach. “Our main goal is to reach new fans,” Sanchez continues, ”because we're sure that anyone who watches a game will fall in love with the sport.” Like just last summer in Paris: “We took the opportunity to capture the hearts of fans around the world and consolidate our position as the world leader in urban sports.”

The discipline, which emerged as a spontaneous expression of streetball, was recognised by the Olympic Committee around 15 years ago, but was only included in the Games with the Tokyo 2020 edition. In the meantime, while waiting for the green light from the IOC, three-on-three basketball sought and found its own dimension, emancipating itself from the five-on-five movement and establishing itself first with the FIBA 3x3 World Tour and then with the BIG3 League. It can be said that the boost provided by the Olympic competitions in Tokyo and Paris - which generally included urban disciplines (the others: sport climbing, skateboarding, BMX freestyle and breakdancing) - took the growth process into a new phase. In the thriving (and equally fascinating) environment of Los Angeles, the stage is set for the next five-ring event.

The 2024 boom

Alex Sanchez is not exaggerating when he describes the3x3 basketball's success over the last twelve months as “extraordinary” The World Tour has expanded its calendar once again, increasing the number of annual stops to 17: one more than in 2023 and more than double the number from six years ago. Now the tour reaches all corners of the world, or almost all: from the iconic “season opener” in Utsonomiya, Japan, to the final in Hong Kong, via Amsterdam, Abu Dhabi, Marseille, Ulaanbaatar and Bahrain, and even the self-proclaimed “city of the future” Neom, Saudi Arabia.

All of this “attracted hundreds of thousands of live viewers",” according to a FIBA report, confirming the “steady growth” in viewing figures after the pandemic. The new opportunities for visibility - on site and on screen - have enabled the circuit's events to lay the foundations for further expansion of the catchment area. Incoming data from the world of broadcasting and social media emphasises this: TV coverage reached more than 150 countries, while on the small screen 352 and 366 million views and impressions were achieved, i.e. +76% and +46% respectively compared to the previous calendar year (and +613% compared to 2021!), while engagement increased from 10 to 12 million (+20%). In short, we can speak of a real boom in increase exposure.

As already mentioned, the presence in Paris 2024 was a turning point. In July, more than 4,000 spectators came to Place de la Concorde every day to watch the games live, with millions of TV viewers from all continents. The women's final between Germany and Spain, for example, was broadcast by the two countries' public broadcasters, ZDF and TVE (with a share of around 35 per cent and 20 per cent respectively) and attracted a total of almost 9 million viewers on the European continent - a result that exceeded expectations for such a young discipline. “The electrifying atmosphere and the presence of passionate fans in Paris highlighted the incredible potential of 3x3 basketball,” emphasised Andreas Zagklis, Secretary General of FIBA. “Going forward, we want to build on this success by further expanding our reach and reaching new audiences around the world.”

At the same time, 2024 was a year of consolidation - which cannot be confirmed with official data for the time being - for the American BIG3 Circuit, which has returned to growth after the pause and the subsequent pandemic-related adjustment phase. Founded in 2017 by rapper Ice Cube, the league has thus resumed its expansion course after enjoying enormous visibility in the first editions (2017-2019) thanks to the support of former NBA stars such as Julius Erving, Clyde Drexler, Allen Iverson and Jason Richardson, as well as partnerships with the official broadcasters of the event in the USA: CBS for television and Triller for online streaming. The Red Bull Half Court Circuit events, launched in 2019, have also shown signs of growth, fuelled by the highly publicised highlight of the season, the last October's final at Brooklyn Bridge Park in New York.

To understand where the movement can aspire to after this year's success, let's take a step back. Let's start with the origins and characteristics of a game that makes a popular, identity-forming element of its experience.

Background and horizons

Starting from the long tradition of urban playgrounds, 3x3 basketball began its path to formalisation thanks to FIBA, which recognised its potential in the early years of the new millennium. Its tentative debut took place at the 2007 Asian Indoor Games in Macau, while its debut in an Olympic context came three years later at the Youth Olympic Games in Singapore. The leap in quality and popularity then came with the introduction of a professional circuit (FIBA 3x3) in 2012, the birth of BIG3 in 2017 and then the Tokyo 2020 Showcase, which set the stage for the consecration in Paris 2024.

The game format - half court, one basket, teams of three players, a maximum of 12 seconds per move, few interruptions - makes 3x3 basketball games a dynamic spectacle characterised by a high tempo and many highlights. And all this in a context that combines sport, street art and pop culture, creating a particularly sexy identity for the younger generation. The resulting mix, inspired by its street origins -it's not for nothing that whoever gets to 21 wins (as on the field) and is often played to hip-hop music in the background and in graffiti-adorned squares - has quickly gained a wide audience. And as they say in such cases, we are only at the beginning of the journey.

Indeed, the future of 3x3 basketball through 2025 and beyond looks electrifying. For both men and women. The enthusiasm shown by the public in the first two Olympic adventures and the organic growth of the movement as a whole, including the prominence of the players and the ability to attract high-profile sponsors (Wilson, Red Bull and Mapei, to name but a few examples), point to the next steps in the growth of 'street' basketball. A movement that appeals to young people, that does not deny its urban origins and that looks to mainstream sport with justified curiosity and ambition. The setting of the upcoming games, Los Angeles and its iconic courts, give us a hint of the rest of the story.