The Evolution of Basketball in the Middle East

Name: The Evolution of Basketball in the Middle East
Start: 2025-05-29T18:00:00+03:00
End: 2025-05-29T19:30:00+03:00

29 May 2025 18:00 - 19:30

Panel: the Evolution of Basketball in the Middle East Poster

The CIRS Panel on “The Evolution of Basketball in the Middle East,” was held on May 29, 2025, at Georgetown University Hilltop Campus in Washington, D.C., and is an extension of the CIRS research initiative on “America’s Game in the Middle East: the 2027 Qatar Basketball World Cup.” Missionaries, merchants and military brought the game of basketball starting in the early 20th century to the Middle East, making it the only American sport that successfully spread throughout the region. In this panel, we are going to discuss the history and today’s popularity of basketball across the Middle East, and American-Middle Eastern engagements in basketball such as NBA pre-season games in Abu Dhabi, Gulf sponsorships of American teams, and Middle Eastern players at U.S. college teams.

Speakers:
– Danyel Reiche, Georgetown University in Qatar
– Sebastian Sons, Center for Applied Research in Partnership with the Orient (CARPO)
– Nadim Nassif, Notre Dame University – Louaize (NDU)
– Onur Yıldırım, Middle East Technical University
– Misba Bhatti, CIRS, Georgetown University in Qatar (Moderator)