Basketball has enjoyed a boost in popularity in the UK in recent years, and the BBA hope to capitalise on this interest in the sport by establishing a league that can "rival some of the best in Europe".

The new competition, which will be a rival to the British Basketball League (BBL), in operation since 1987, plans to begin with eight franchises based in different cities in the UK, with the BBA having the option to extend to 14 teams, dependant on how the initial campaign pans out.

"There's an established and fast-growing basketball fan-base in the UK and, with a mix of star talent and the best in sport entertainment," said Ken Olisa, the chairman of the BBA, which has former NBA star John Amaechi as a co-director,

"We're passionate about complementing what the NBA stands for globally and we have the right management team in place and an inviting business proposition that we hope will attract considerable interest."

The current major basketball league in the UK is the British Basketball League (BBL), which also features franchises in major cities across the country.

The BBL generally attracts crowds of around 1,000 with the exception of the most successful team in the league, Newcastle Eagles, who average more than double that amount.

Newcastle Eagles attract the highest attendances in the BBL, averaging around 2,000

The BBA hope to achieve larger investment in franchises and to televise games in order to differentiate from the BBL.

They also hope to attract higher attendances, as well as making the league highly profitable through sponsorship and ticket sales.

Britain is represented by a very small number of players in the world's premier basketball league, the American NBA, with Chicago Bulls forward Luol Deng undoubtedly the biggest star from the UK currently playing in the league.

However, Joel Freeland of the Portland Trail Blazers is the only British player not to have attended an American college to compete in the NBA, having forged a career in Spain before moving to the US.

"Learning from the successful US model, the BBA intends to do for basketball what the Premier League has done for soccer," said Olisa.

"The league will be irresistible to major TV channels, powerful sponsors, players and most importantly-the fans"

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