Georgia to co-host European continent’s “major basketball event” EuroBasket next week

Tbilisi will be in the centre of the world’s attention during the festive days of basketball, while co-hosting the European continent’s major basketball event FIBA EuroBasket 2022 for the first time in history, along with Czech Republic, Italy and Germany, the Georgian Basketball Federation announced on Saturday.

The Competition for Division A games will run between September 1-7, where the national teams of Georgia, Spain, Türkiye, Belgium, Bulgaria and Montenegro will hold matches at the newly completed Sports Palace in Georgia’s capital Tbilisi.

Photo: Georgian Basketball Federation.

The Federation said that the European Championship has been an “important worldwide event", bringing together “hundreds of thousands” fans in the host cities and millions watching on TV, which would make Tbilisi a sports tourism centre in September, along with co-hosting cities of Milan, Cologne, Berlin and Prague.

“Well-known” sports journalists and bloggers, as well as fans of the participating teams, high-ranking guests and government delegations will visit Tbilisi during the tournament.

Georgia, while hosting the “basketball festival” EuroBasket, will also celebrate Georgian basketball's 100th anniversary, which the Federation called a “pleasant symbolic coincidence”.

Holding the European Championship in Georgia creates a great opportunity for the national basketball team of Georgia to achieve a significant sporting result at home, together with the fans of Georgia”, the Federation said in the statement.

The official fan zone of the EuroBasket will open on Wednesday at Rike Park in the centre of Tbilisi, featuring: 

• Official opening - August 31
• Stage activities - August 31 - September 7
• Georgian Basketball 100-year history alley
• 3X3 basketball games
• Fanshop
• Sponsor spaces and activities
• Food spaces
• Children’s entertainment spaces
• Electronic sports spaces
• Photo exhibition
• Giant hashtag  - #EUROBASKET
• Branded air balloon of Rike park
• Lighting of the bridge and Tbilisi TV tower in EuroBasket, purple and blue colours
• Big screens for fans to watch games

The fan zone will feature the official EuroBasket mascot Dj Bounce.

An additional fan zone will be arranged at the adjacent area of Tbilisi State University Library.