Twitch is expanding its reach into the world of sports broadcasting, announcing deals today with both USA Basketball and the NBA.
The USA Basketball deal is likely to draw more immediate viewers, as the men’s national team is in training camp now ahead of the FIBA World Cup that begins at the end of August. Twitch will now be the streaming home for USA basketball exhibitions, including five in the run-up to the World Cup.
Beginning this summer, Twitch will stream all USA Men’s National Team exhibition games to fans globally.
Twitch will also stream select USA Women’s National Team friendly games, select USA Basketball 3×3 events and the 2020 Nike Hoop Summit, as well as coverage of the men’s and women’s training camps and other USA Basketball events. Twitch will offer the option to co-stream all events, giving fans a chance to connect with their community by offering their own commentary.
As to the five exhibitions this summer, if you’re curious:
| Aug. 9 | USA Blue vs. USA White | Las Vegas, Nev. | 10:00 p.m. |
| Aug. 16 | Spain | Anaheim, Calif. | 10:00 p.m. |
| Aug. 22 | Australia | Melbourne, Australia | 5:30 a.m. |
| Aug. 24 | Australia | Melbourne, Australia | 12:00 a.m. |
| Aug. 26 | Canada | Sydney, Australia | 5:30 a.m. |
In addition to the USA Basketball deal, Twitch and the NBA announced a new partnership that will see Twitch stream the Jr. NBA Global Championship, which involves top boys and girls youth teams. That deal starts today.
From the NBA’s release:
Beginning Tuesday, Aug. 6 at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World Resort near Orlando, Fla., Twitch will live stream up to 76 games during the weeklong youth basketball tournament for the top 13- and 14-year-old boys and girls teams from around the world.
Twitch will provide live streams of select games from both the boys and girls divisions to a worldwide audience, beginning with round-robin play Aug. 6-7 and continuing with the single-elimination competition Aug. 9-11. The schedule consists of 42 pool play games, 12 quarterfinal games and seven semifinal games, as well as the international girls championship game and select Positive Finish consolation games. All games will be co-streamed, giving fans a chance to connect with their community by offering their own commentary.
“We look forward to working with Twitch to provide fans of youth basketball with an innovative viewing experience during the Jr. NBA Global Championship,” said David Denenberg, NBA Senior Vice President, Global Media Distribution and Business Affairs. “Through this partnership, Twitch will spotlight more than 300 of the top youth players from around the world to a young and engaged global audience.”
The deal is a further expansion of Twitch’s work with the NBA, as Twitch already streams both G League and 2k League games. These deals serve as signs that the streaming platform sees sports as a very viable extension for their users.
