International News | Sports

 Basketball mecca’: FIBA World Cup passion spikes in co-hosts Philippines

Manila, Philippines – As the 2023 FIBA World Cup kicked off in the Philippines, co-hosts of the championship along with Indonesia and Japan, on Friday, basketball-crazy Filipinos in an arena north of the capital, Manila, set a FIBA single-game attendance record of 38,115 fans for the home side’s opener against the Dominican Republic.

It eclipsed the previous record of 32,616 spectators in the 1994 World Cup final in Toronto, Canada, where the USA defeated Russia for their third title.

The feat is no surprise for the Philippines, where basketball is deeply embedded in the culture.

There are basketball courts in every district, where locals play ball in their flip-flops and wear the jerseys of their favourite NBA players.

The country’s main league, the Philippines Basketball Association (PBA), has a solid base of passionate fans, while Filipinos are also avid NBA fans. The NBA Facebook page tallies nine million followers from the Philippines, making it the most significant online fan base outside the United States.

Parents name their children after NBA players, as seen in the Philippines’ current pool of college players – Ray Allen Torres, Steve Nash Enriquez and LeBron Lopez.