Birmingham Granted Rights For BBL Franchise
The British Basketball League has today announced they have granted the rights for a franchise to begin operating in Birmingham for the beginning of the 2012/12 season.
The franchise rights have been granted exclusively to Oaks Consultancy, a consultancy firm for sports related businesses and organisations based in the West Midlands.
The introduction of the franchise marks a welcome return to BBL Club basketball for a City steeped in tradition in the sport but lacking competitive action since the disastrous sole season of Team Birmingham Panthers in 2007/08. A team name is yet to be decided for the new club, but is expected to be announced by the end of this summer.
Mark Walker, a managing partner of Oaks Consultancy is looking forward to bringing professional basketball back to Birmingham:
‘We are extremely excited about the opportunity to develop a successful BBL franchise in the City. The club will have a strong community ethos and work will be starting immediately in this area through an extensive community programme. We recognise that a significant amount of basketball is already ongoing in the City and are looking forward to working alongside the existing basketball stakeholders’.
BBL Chairman Paul Blake said:
“We are delighted to have secured a new franchise in Birmingham as this meets one of our key strategic targets for franchise development. Birmingham is a basketball city which is already synonymous with some of the biggest games in the BBL calendar, we have every confidence that the new franchise will develop in to a significant player in UK Basketball’”
The addition of another franchise displays the BBL’s eager expansion plans; with the recent announcement of Durham Wildcats entering the BBL, along with rumours of a Manchester franchise and a willingness from the league to see a side back in London since the demotion of PAWS London Capital.
What do you think? Looking forward to seeing the BBL back in Birmingham? Drop a comment!
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