Basketball World Cup 2023 in Asia but with little to no attention in Macau
The 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup will commence today at 4 p.m. at the Philippine Arena in the city of Manila.
The choice could not be grander as the venue is known for being the world’s largest indoor arena with a maximum capacity of 55,000 seats.
The 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup will continue until September 10. The organizers of this year’s FIBA’s biggest tournament will be the Philippines, Japan, and Indonesia.
While the World Cup is an exciting opportunity for several countries to showcase not only their basketball skills but also their ability to organize major events, it seems to be receiving little to no attention in Macau.
When contacted by the Times, local broadcaster TDM said there were no plans to broadcast any of the matches live on TV, not even on their dedicated sports channel, leaving any potential report on the World Cup to sports news programs.
Spain is the defending champion, having won in China four years ago in a tournament where the traditionally strong US side came only seventh. Still, the Americans are the favorites this year and will not lack support from the many NBA fans in this part of the world.
The tournament includes 32 teams that have been split into eight different groups for the first round.
The top two teams from each group will make the second round, while the top eight teams after the second round advance to the quarter-finals.
Among those participating from Asia is the Philippines, playing in Group A at Manila with Angola, Italy, and the Dominican Republic. China will play in Group B, also in Manila with matches scheduled with South Sudan, Puerto Rico, and Serbia.
Most matches will be played on Filipino soil, which will host four out of the eight groups of the first round. The other four groups are split (2-2) between Okinawa, Japan, and Jakarta, Indonesia.
The final phase of the quarter-finals until the final match will be played in the Philippines, but this time at Manila’s Mall of Asia Arena.
Live matches can be watched via Live Streaming at (https://www.courtside1891.basketball/)
