Cover The NBA is expanding—but what does that really mean? (Photo: Getty Images)
The NBA is expanding—but what does that really mean? (Photo: Getty Images)
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The NBA has not expanded since 2004. When it finally does, the cost of admission could exceed US$5 billion per franchise. Yet the real story isn’t which cities get teams, it’s why the NBA suddenly believes the world is ready for more basketball
For the first time in over 20 years, the National Basketball Association (NBA) is preparing to expand. Since its inception in 1946, the league has grown from 11 teams to its current 30, but new franchises have become increasingly rare as team valuations have soared. The last expansion team, the Charlotte Bobcats—later purchased and led by NBA legend Michael Jordan before being rebranded as the Charlotte Hornets—entered the league in 2004. Now, with potential franchise fees expected to exceed US$5 billion, the NBA is once again preparing to grow.
Team owners have already voted unanimously to formally explore expansion into Las Vegas and Seattle. While most fans are focused on which markets will receive the next franchises, the real story is that the NBA is pursuing growth on several fronts at once—and Las Vegas and Seattle offer an early glimpse of their strategy.
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The case for Sin City and the Emerald City
Both Las Vegas and Seattle offer what modern sports leagues increasingly prize: access to wealth, influence and new audiences. Las Vegas has become a global destination for luxury hospitality, while Seattle combines a passionate sports culture with one of America’s wealthiest technology hubs. Today, franchise values are increasingly driven by corporate partnerships, tourism and hospitality revenue, and the NBA is selecting markets that can support more than just a basketball team.
Las Vegas is no longer just America’s playground. It is becoming America’s premium sports destination. On any given weekend, Formula One executives, high-stakes poker players, investors, celebrities and visiting sports fans can be found sharing the same lobbies, restaurants and casino floors. The arrival of the NBA would make it an even bigger player in the sporting world.
Las Vegas would offer access to luxury hospitality, high-net-worth visitors and global conventions, all converging in a city that has successfully transformed major sporting events into premium entertainment experiences. The scale of the opportunity is already reflected in the numbers. Last week, the Las Vegas Jacks, a group competing to buy the NBA expansion franchise, led by former Phoenix Suns owner Jerry Colangelo, publicly outlined plans for an expansion bid valued at US$8 billion. Whether the NBA ultimately selects that group or a rival bidder remains uncertain, but the proposal highlights how fiercely investors are competing for a stake in the league’s future.
And then there is Seattle. A city once defined by coffee, grunge and the Boeing era now sits at the centre of the cloud-computing revolution, with Amazon and Microsoft helping shape the technologies that power everyday life. The city has increasingly become a destination for major international sporting events, including hosting matches during the 2026 Fifa World Cup.
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Home to global corporations, a growing artificial intelligence sector and some of the most valuable companies on the planet, the city offers the kind of corporate firepower modern sports leagues covet. Seattle now possesses many of the ingredients the league once felt were missing, including the redeveloped Climate Pledge Arena, a state-of-the-art venue widely viewed as NBA-ready. If Las Vegas represents the NBA’s future as an entertainment business, Seattle represents its future as a premium corporate market.
Geographic expansion is the most visible part of the NBA’s growth strategy, but it is far from the only one. As the league explores new franchises in Las Vegas and Seattle, it is simultaneously pursuing competitive expansion in Europe and new innovation in Asia. Together, the initiatives offer a glimpse into what the NBA believes its future could look like.
The NBA heads to Europe
Competitive expansion is taking shape through the NBA’s proposed European league. The project, which could launch as early as 2027, is expected to feature 16 teams comprising 12 permanent franchises and four qualification spots, allowing clubs from across Europe to earn entry based on merit. According to Reuters, more than 20 basketball and football clubs—more on the latter’s involvement shortly—have expressed interest, with bids ranging from US$500 million to more than US$1 billion. If successful, these figures would represent one of the largest investments ever made in European basketball.
The NBA’s European ambitions also reveal just how different the continent’s sporting landscape is. Unlike in North America, where teams typically compete in a single league, Europe’s leading clubs often play in multiple competitions simultaneously. A football club such as Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), Bayern Munich or Manchester United competes domestically and in European tournaments. European basketball follows a similar model, with clubs juggling domestic leagues alongside continental competitions. Rather than relocating NBA franchises overseas, the league is reportedly exploring a European competition that could sit alongside existing domestic structures. In theory, a club could continue competing in its national and continental leagues while also participating in an NBA-backed tournament, giving the league a foothold in Europe without requiring teams to abandon their local rivalries and traditions.
That framework helps explain why football clubs have emerged as potential partners. Among the organisations linked to NBA Europe is PSG, whose global brand, commercial reach and existing fan base make it an attractive candidate should the project proceed. The involvement of football clubs would allow the NBA to draw on something that usually takes decades to build: history, loyalty and identity.
The connections also extend beyond the sports. Earlier this year, basketball power forward Kevin Durant acquired a minority stake in PSG’s ownership group, creating an intriguing overlap between one of basketball’s biggest stars and a club frequently cited in discussions about NBA Europe. Although Durant would not directly own a European basketball franchise, his investment highlights the growing convergence of global sports, private capital and basketball’s international expansion.
Other notable investments include Victor Wembanyama’s investment in his hometown basketball club, Nanterre 92, while PSG has reportedly explored involvement with the team as part of its basketball ambitions.
While the league’s vision extends beyond arenas, ownership groups and new competitions, some of its most important investments are in the technologies that could transform how basketball is played, watched and experienced.
The NBA's search for the next big idea
Last month, at the NBA x Citi investor summit in Singapore, the league announced that it was expanding its Launchpad innovation programme to Asia, effectively turning the region into a testing ground for the next generation of basketball technology. Part start-up accelerator and part innovation laboratory, Launchpad identifies emerging companies and offers them the opportunity to work directly with the league on challenges ranging from player performance and injury prevention to fan engagement and media experiences.
The move was prompted by a striking imbalance. The programme typically attracts hundreds of applicants each year for five or six places, with every successful company to date coming from North America or Europe. Despite Asia’s growing influence across sectors ranging from artificial intelligence and gaming to health technology and consumer products, the region accounted for only around 1 per cent of the programme’s more than 1,300 applications, according to the NBA’s senior vice president and head of basketball research and development Tom Ryan. By expanding into Asia, the NBA is effectively casting a wider net in search of the next breakthrough idea.
For decades, NBA expansion was measured by the number of franchises. Today, it is measured by influence. Whether through luxury hospitality in Las Vegas, investment in Europe or innovation in Asia, the league is positioning itself at the intersection of sport, business and technology.
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