British Basketball Federation Refutes Claims of Illegality

The British Basketball Federation strongly refutes any claims of illegality or criminality in the tender process and subsequent award of the Men’s professional league licence to GBBL.

We can confirm the BBF is not being investigated by DCMS or UK Sport on any matter regarding the allegation of criminality or illegality of the tender process. The BBF does not intend to get drawn into a public ‘tit for tat’ exchange with SLB Ltd but at this point must correct the record.

As the National Governing Body, it was our duty to run an open, transparent and non-discriminatory tender process to award the long-term licence for the Men’s professional league in Great Britain. We have fulfilled this obligation, working hard to promote the best interests of the whole sport and to achieve long-term viability and success for professional basketball in Great Britain.

Since allegations were made to the Sports Minister in February, we have provided considerable evidence to support our rebuttal to the misleading claims, and have offered to open our books on the men’s league licence tender process to provide full transparency. We have liaised closely with UK Sport and Sport England to provide reassurance on the proper use of public funds and good governance more generally. We are proud to be recipients of UK Sport and Sport England investment for the LA funding cycle. This is a reflection of the progress we have made both on and off the court, and a vote of confidence in the future success of British basketball on the European and global stage.