Rwanda Basketball League

The Rwanda Basketball League (RBL) (formerly the National Basketball League Rwanda) is the top professional basketball league in Rwanda.^[1] Its season usually runs from November to September. The winners of the NBL season qualify for the qualifiers for the Basketball Africa League (BAL).

Rwanda Basketball League

Organising body	FERWABA
Founded	1977
First season	1977
Country	Rwanda
Number of teams	10
Level on pyramid	1
Relegation to	Rwanda Basketball League Division 2
Domestic cup(s)	Rwanda Cup
Supercup	Rwanda Super Cup
International cup(s)	Basketball Africa League (BAL)
Current champions	APR (15th title) (2024)
Most championships	APR (15 titles)
2025 RBL season

The league currently consists of 10 teams, most of them being from the country's capital Kigali. The current champion of the RBL are APR, who are the league’s most decorated team with a record 15 championships. Other notable teams are REG and their rivals Patriots, who have been powerhouses in recent years.

Since the 2021–22 season, the FERWABA also organises the RBL Division 2 to which the bottom two teams of the RBL relegate.^[2]

History

Basketball was introduced in Rwanda in 1930 by Catholic priests, who first thought the sport at high schools in the Southern Province. The following decades, the presence of the sport increased as the military and some public institutions created basketball teams. In 1974, the national basketball federation FERWABA was established. Three years later, in 1977, the first national league was created.^[3]

The 1994 Rwandan genocide threw the sport back, because Tutsi players, spectators and administrators died and crucial infrastructure was destroyed.^[3]

In the 2000s, APR was the dominant team in Rwanda and it participated in the FIBA Africa Clubs Champions Cup thrice. Its best result was a bronze medal in 2009.

From 2011 to 2015, Espoir BBC won four straight national titles. From then, two newly established teams REG (owned by the Rwanda Energy Group) and Patriots entered the league. The two teams became rivals and played each other in the finals for several years.

In the 2020s, the Basketball Africa League (BAL) was introduced – the first editions were hosted by the BK Arena in Kigali. Patriots finished in fourth place in the inaugural 2021 season. The league changed its name to the Rwanda Basketball League (RBL) in 2023. FERWABA introduced two new competitions, the Rwanda Cup and the Rwanda Super Cup, for the 2024 season.^[4]

Venues

The BK Arena hosts important games, as well as the finals series

The league games in the regular season are usually stated in the Lycée de Kigali's indoor hall, which can seat 1,500 spectators, after it was revamped by FERWABA and NBA Africa in 2023.^[5] Other games are played at Kepler University's indoor hall. Playoffs games are usually held at the 10,000-seater BK Arena (formerly the Kigali Arena), which was opened in 2019.^[6] Another hall that is used is the Petit Arena, which was recently renovated to hold 1,500 people.

Current teams

2025 teams

The following teams will play in the 2025 BAL season:

Team	City	Founded	Joined
APR	Kigali	1993
Azomco Global Flame	Bugesera	2022	2025
Espoir	Kigali	2003
Flame
Patriots		2014
Kepler		2022	2024
REG		2016
Orion BBC		2022	2023
Tigers		2019
UGB		1998

Sources:^[7]

Former teams

Team	City	Founded	Last season
30 Plus	Kigali (Kimisagara)	2006	2021
Inspired Generation	Kigali	2022	2024
IPRC-Huye	Huye
IPRC-Kigali	Kigali
IPRC-Musanze	Ruhengeri, Musanze
Kigali Titans	Kigali	2021	2024
Rusizi	Rusizi
Shoot for the Stars	Kigali
University of Rwanda	Huye
University of Rwanda – CHMS	Kigali

^{[nb 1]}

Champions

The following is a list of all documented Rwandan top-flight league champions:^[9]

• 1995: APR
• 1996: APR
• 1997: APR
• 1998: APR
• 1999: APR
• 2000: APR
• 2001: APR
• 2002: APR
• 2003: APR
• 2004: Espoir
• 2005: APR
• 2006: APR
• 2007: Marines
• 2008: APR
• 2009: APR
• 2010: Kigali Basketball Club
• 2011: Kigali Basketball Club
• 2012: Espoir
• 2013: Espoir
• 2014: Espoir
• 2015: Espoir
• 2016: Patriots
• 2017: REG
• 2018: Patriots
• 2019: Patriots
• 2020: Patriots
• 2021: REG
• 2022: REG
• 2023: APR
• 2024: APR

Finals (2007–present)

The following is a list of the league's final playoff series, or if not applicable the season's final standings.

Season	Champions	Runners-up	Finals score	Ref.
2007	Marines	CSK
2007–08	APR	Marines
2008–09	APR
2009–10	Kigali Basketball Club	APR	—	[10]
2010–11	Kigali Basketball Club
2011–12	Espoir (1)	KBC	3–1	[11]
2012–13	Espoir (2)	APR	3–0
2013–14	Espoir (3)	APR	—
2014–15	Espoir (4)	Patriots	3–1	[12]
2015–16	Patriots (1)	Espoir	—
2016–17	Patriots (2)	REG	3–1	[13]
2017–18	Patriots (2)	REG	3–2	[14]
2018–19	Patriots (3)	REG	4–3	[15]
2019–20	Patriots (4)	REG	76–61	[16]
2020–21	REG (1)	Patriots	2–0	[17]
2021–22	REG (2)	Patriots	3–2	[18]
2023	APR (14)	REG	4–0	[19]
2024	APR (15)	Patriots	4–2	[20]

Performance by club

Club	Wins	Runners-up	Seasons won	Seasons runners-up
APR	15	2	1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2023, 2024	2013, 2014
Espoir	5	1	2004, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015	2016
Patriots	4	4	2016, 2018, 2019, 2020	2017, 2021, 2022, 2024
REG	3	4	2017, 2021, 2022	2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2023
Kigali Basketball Club	2	1	2010, 2011	2012
Marines	1	1	2007	2008

Individual awards

Most Valuable Player

After each RBL season, one player is named the Most valuable player of the competition. Olivier Shyaka is the only player to have won at least two MVP awards. Since the 2023 season, the RBL has an award for the best player in the regular season, as well as a separate one for the best player in the playoffs.

Most Valuable Player winners

Season	Player	Club	Ref.
Season MVP
2012	Aristide Mugabe	Espoir	[21]
2013	Bienvenu Ngandu	Espoir (2)	[11]
2014	Mike Buzangu	Cercle Sportif de Kigali	[21]
2015	Olivier Shyaka	Espoir (3)	[12]
2016	Kubwimana Kazingufu Ali	Patriots	[22]
2017	Kami Kabange	REG	[13]
2018	Sedar Sagamba	Patriots (2)
2019	Dieudonné Ndizeye	Patriots (3)	[23]
2021	Olivier Shyaka (2)	REG (2)	[17]
2022	Axel Mpoyo	REG (3)	[24]
Regular Season MVP
2023	Olivier Turatsinze	Espoir (4)	[25]
2024	Chad Jordan	Kepler	[26]

Playoffs MVP

Since 2023, the league also gives an award to the best performing player of the playoffs.

Playoffs MVP winners

Season	Player	Club	Ref.
2023	Jean Jacques Nshobozwabyosenumukiza	APR	[27]
2024	Isaiah Miller		[20]

Defensive Player of the Year

Defensive Player of the Year winners

Season	Player	Club	Ref.
2023	Frank Kamdoh	UGB	[28]
2024	Pitchou Kambuy Manga	REG	[26]

Most Improved Player

Most Improved Player winners

Season	Player	Club	Ref.
2024	Fabrice "Musinza" Muhoza	Espoir	[26]

Team of the Year

Players in bold were named the season's Most Valuable Player.

RBL Team of the Year selections (2014–present)

Season	Players					Coach of the Year
	PG	SG	SF	PF	C
2014–15[12]	Aristide Mugabe (Espoir)	Mike Buzangu (KBC)	Lionnel Hakizimana (Espoir)	Olivier Shyaka (Espoir)	Bienvenue Ngandu (Espoir)
2016–17	Aristide Mugabe (Patriots)	Benjamin Mukengerwa (REG)	Dieudonné Ndizeye (iPRC-Kigali)	Olivier Shyaka (Espoir)	Kami Kabange (REG)
2019–20[23]	Guibert Nijimbere (REG)	Wilson Nshobozwa (REG)	Dieudonné Ndizeye (Patriots)	Bienvenu Niyonsaba (APR)	Junior Kasongo (Patriots)	Henry Mwinuka (REG)
2020–21[17]	Adonis Filer (REG)	Engelbert Beleck Bell (Patriots)	Dieudonné Ndizeye (Patriots)	Olivier Shyaka (REG)	Tom Wamukota (Patriots)	Henry Mwinuka (REG)
2021–22[24]	Adonis Filer (REG)	Kenny Gasana (Patriots)	Steven Hagumintwari (Patriots)	Axel Mpoyo (REG)	Pitchou Kambuy Manga (REG)	Henry Mwinuka (REG)
2023	Not announced					Maz Trakh (APR)[28]
2024						Henry Mwinuka (Patriots)[26]

In African competitions

Each year, the champions of the NBL were placed for the qualifiers of the FIBA Africa Basketball League, the premiere pan-African competition. Since 2020, this league is replaced by the Basketball Africa League (BAL). The following list shows Rwandan teams which played in a main tournament:

Rwandan participants in the FIBA Africa Basketball League / BAL

Club	Participations	Seasons	Best result
APR	4	2007, 2008, 2009, 2024	3rd place (2009)
REG	2	2022, 2023	Quarterfinals (2022)
Patriots	1	2021	Fourth place (2021)

In the Basketball Africa League

Since the 2023 season, the champions of the RBL qualify directly to the BAL, as the competition has determined them as designated market.

Season	Representative	Road to BAL					Main competition
		W	L	Result	Qualified		W	L	Result
2021	Patriots	9	0	Gold			3	3	Fourth place
2022	REG	Qualified directly					4	2	Quarter-finals
2023	REG	Qualified directly					3	3	Quarter-finals
2024	APR	Qualified directly					2	4	Conference stage
Total		9	0				12	12

See also

• Rwanda Basketball League Division 2
• Rwanda Basketball Cup
• Heroes' Cup (Rwanda)
• FERWABA

Notes

1. From.^[8] Four teams play home games outside Kigali – RP-IPRC Huye BBC and UR BBC-MEN (Butare), RP IPRC MUSANZE (Ruhengeri), and RUSIZI Basketball Club (Cyangugu). The remaining ten teams all play games at Kigali venues Club Rafiki, Kigali Arena, NPC, Petit stade Remera, and RP-IPRC Kigali.

References

1. Rwanda: Basketball League - Espoir Wary of IPRC-Kigali Bishumba, Richard, All Africa. 25 March 2016, retrieved 16 October 2016.
2. "Basketball: Ferwaba releases draw for second division league". The New Times | Rwanda. 29 March 2022. Retrieved 11 April 2022.
3. "About Ferwaba – Rwanda Basketball Federation". Retrieved 2 October 2022.
4. Sikubwabo, Damas (17 December 2023). "2024 basketball league set for February 9". The New Times. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
5. Sikubwabo, Damas (9 February 2023). "What revamped Lycee de Kigali gymnasium means for the school, Rwandan basketball". The New Times. Retrieved 4 August 2024.
6. "10k-cap. Kigali Arena ready to open in Rwanda". 2 August 2019. Retrieved 28 September 2019.
7. "Rwandan Basketball (Men) Teams". AfroBasket. Retrieved 20 May 2020.
8. "Schedule". Archived from the original on 20 May 2020. Retrieved 19 May 2020.
9. Sikubwabo, Damas (21 August 2023). "Basketball: A look at the teams competing in playoffs". The New Times. Retrieved 10 September 2023.
10. "KBC crowned Champions". The New Times | Rwanda. 27 September 2010. Retrieved 22 May 2021.
11. Kamasa, Peter (17 November 2013). "Espoir's Ngangu named MVP". The New Times. Retrieved 9 April 2023.
12. Bishumba, Richard (10 August 2015). "Espoir retain Hoops Play-offs title". The New Times. Retrieved 9 April 2023.
13. Bishumba, Richard (30 July 2017). "Patriots beat REG to win hoops playoff finals". The New Times. Retrieved 9 April 2023.
14. Sikubwabo, Damas (5 May 2018). "Patriots crowned basketball league champions". The New Times. Retrieved 9 April 2023.
15. "Les Patriots sacrés champions du Rwanda après avoir battu le REG BBC dans un Game 7 palpitant". NEWS BASKET BEAFRIKA (in French). Retrieved 5 February 2024.
16. Demba, Varore (25 October 2020). "Basket : Patriots champion du Rwanda". Sport News Africa (in French). Retrieved 22 May 2021.
17. "Basketball: REG crowned national league champions". The New Times | Rwanda. 31 October 2021. Retrieved 31 October 2021.
18. Sikubwabo, Damas (19 September 2022). "REG retain championship after Patriots win". The New Times. Retrieved 19 September 2022.
19. Sikubwabo, Damas (9 September 2023). "PHOTOS: Basketball: APR clinch first championship in 14 years". The New Times. Retrieved 10 September 2023.
20. Sikubwabo, Damas (23 September 2024). "PHOTOS: APR see off Patriots in Game 6, win record 15th championship". The New Times. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
21. "Buzangu named hoops league 2014 MVP". The New Times. 14 September 2014. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
22. Asiimwe, Geoffrey (16 July 2016). "Meet Kubwimana, the 2015-16 MVP primed for stardom". The New Times. Retrieved 9 April 2023.
23. "PHOTOS: Ndizeye named MVP". The New Times | Rwanda. 2 November 2019.
24. Sikubwabo, Damas (24 September 2022). "Photos: Basketball: Axel Mpoyo named MVP as league winds up". The New Times. Retrieved 2 October 2022.
25. "ferwabaRW/status/1700472177521263036". X (formerly Twitter). Retrieved 29 October 2023.
26. Munyeshuri, Evode (23 September 2024). "APR's Isaiah Jaleel Miller Named 2024 RBL Playoffs MVP. | Ground Sports Ground Sports |". Retrieved 26 September 2024.
28. Sikubwabo, Damas (9 September 2023). "Nshobozwa, Trakh lead 2023 basketball league individual awards". The New Times. Retrieved 26 September 2024.

External links

• Rwanda at AfroBasket.com