FIBA is taking its presence to the next level with the launch of FIBA Americas TV, a new channel offering international basketball play to the US and Latin America for the first time on its own dedicated TV network. THEMA-Alterna’TV, a Canal+ Company, is launching the branded network to cable operators in stateside and marks the first time officially sanctioned games from FIBA leagues that include teams from the US, Argentina, Brazil, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Venezuela, Canada, Uruguay and Panama. The network will have a pool of around 1,852 games per season, including FIBA Championship games such as FIBA Americas, Centrobasket, the FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup, the COCABA and South American Championships and Youth Olympics.

“Basketball is one of the world’s most popular sports, appealing to millennials and mature viewers alike, and transcending language and geography,” said Patrick Rivet, Senior Vice President Distribution at THEMA. “Our content strategy for acquiring Alterna’TV was to capitalize on its relationships and knowledge of the U.S. and Latin America market in an effort to create complementary programming offerings and greater efficiencies with our sister companies. “FIBA Americas TV is the ideal channel to kick off the new THEMA-Alterna’TV partnership and also give cable operators a unique offering for sport fans.”