HONG KONG (AP) — The East Asia Super League is expanding to Hong Kong and Macau for its 2024-25 season, increasing the professional basketball league to 10 teams.
League officials said in a statement Wednesday that Hong Kong Eastern and the Macau Black Bears would join the league which also features teams from Taiwan, Japan, South Korea and the Philippines.
Hong Kong Eastern won its third domestic A1 Division title in 2023 and is a two-time winner of the ASEAN Basketball League in 2016-17 and 2023.
The Black Bears were formed in 2018 as Macau’s first-ever professional team. The team is the reigning Macau league champions and has also represented the region in the ASEAN Basketball League.
EASL officials said they plan to announce the schedule soon and that the season will begin in early October.
“It was always our ambition to expand and bring in more leagues, representing more regions in Asia,” said league chief executive Henry Kerins. "We have accelerated those plans due to the strong demand from the regional leagues to join, and their readiness to do so.”
Japan's Chiba Jets won the 2023-24 title, the league's second season.
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The Associated Press
