The Rwanda Basketball League (RBL) (formerly the National Basketball League Rwanda) is the top professional basketball league in Rwanda.[1] Its season usually runs from November to September. The winners of the NBL season qualify for the qualifiers for the Basketball Africa League (BAL).
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| Organising body | FERWABA |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1977 |
| First season | 1977 |
| Country | Rwanda |
| Number of teams | 10 |
| Level on pyramid | 1 |
| Relegation to | Rwanda Basketball League Division 2 |
| Domestic cup(s) | Rwanda Cup |
| Supercup | Rwanda Super Cup |
| International cup(s) | Basketball Africa League (BAL) |
| Current champions | APR (14th title) (2023) |
| Most championships | APR (14 titles) |
 2024 RBL season | |
The league currently consists of 10 teams, most of them being from the country's capital Kigali. The current champion of the RBL are APR, who are the league’s most decorated team with a record 14 championships. Other notable teams are REG and their rivals Patriots, who have been powerhouses in recent years.
Since the 2021–22 season, the FERWABA also organises the RBL Division 2 to which the bottom two teams of the RBL relegate.[2]
History
Basketball was introduced in Rwanda in 1930 by Catholic priests, who first thought the sport at high schools in the Southern Province. The following decades, the presence of the sport increased as the military and some public institutions created basketball teams. In 1974, the national basketball federation FERWABA was established. Three years later, in 1977, the first national league was created.[3]
The 1994 Rwandan genocide threw the sport back, because Tutsi players, spectators and administrators died and crucial infrastructure was destroyed.[3]
In the 2000s, APR was the dominant team in Rwanda and it participated in the FIBA Africa Clubs Champions Cup thrice. Its best result was a bronze medal in 2009.
From 2011 to 2015, Espoir BBC won four straight national titles. From then, two newly established teams REG (owned by the Rwanda Energy Group) and Patriots entered the league. The two teams became rivals and played each other in the finals for several years.
In the 2020s, the Basketball Africa League (BAL) was introduced – the first editions were hosted by the BK Arena in Kigali. Patriots finished in fourth place in the inaugural 2021 season. The league changed its name to the Rwanda Basketball League (RBL) in 2023. FERWABA introduced two new competitions, the Rwanda Cup and the Rwanda Super Cup, for the 2024 season.[4]
Current teams
2024 teams
The following teams will play in the 2024 RBL season:
| Team | City | Founded | Joined |
|---|---|---|---|
| APR | Kigali | 1993 | |
| Espoir | 2003 | ||
| Patriots | 2014 | ||
| Inspired Generation | 2022 | 2024 | |
| Kigali Titans | 2021 | 2023 | |
| Kepler | 2022 | 2024 | |
| REG | 2016 | ||
| Orion BBC | 2022 | 2023 | |
| Tigers | 2019 | ||
| UGB | 1998 | ||
Sources: [5]
Former teams
Champions
The following is a list of all documented Rwandan top-flight league champions:[7]
- 1995: APR
- 1996: APR
- 1997: APR
- 1998: APR
- 1999: APR
- 2000: APR
- 2001: APR
- 2002: APR
- 2003: APR
- 2004: Espoir
- 2005: APR
- 2006: APR
- 2007: Marines
- 2008: APR
- 2009: APR
- 2010: Kigali Basketball Club
- 2011: Kigali Basketball Club
- 2012: Espoir
- 2013: Espoir
- 2014: Espoir
- 2015: Espoir
- 2016: Patriots
- 2017: REG
- 2018: Patriots
- 2019: Patriots
- 2020: Patriots
- 2021: REG
- 2022: REG
- 2023: APR
Finals (2007–present)
The following is a list of the league's final playoff series, or if not applicable the season's final standings.
| Season | Champions | Runners-up | Finals score | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Marines | CSK | ||
| 2007–08 | APR | Marines | ||
| 2008–09 | APR | |||
| 2009–10 | Kigali Basketball Club | APR | — | |
| 2010–11 | Kigali Basketball Club | |||
| 2011–12 | Espoir (1) | KBC | 3–1 | [9] |
| 2012–13 | Espoir (2) | APR | 3–0 | |
| 2013–14 | Espoir (3) | APR | — | |
| 2014–15 | Espoir (4) | Patriots | 3–1 | [10] |
| 2015–16 | Patriots (1) | Espoir | — | |
| 2016–17 | Patriots (2) | REG | 3–1 | [11] |
| 2017–18 | Patriots (2) | REG | 3–2 | [12] |
| 2018–19 | Patriots (3) | REG | 4–3 | [13] |
| 2019–20 | Patriots (4) | REG | 76–61 | [14] |
| 2020–21 | REG (1) | Patriots | 2–0 | [15] |
| 2021–22 | REG (2) | Patriots | 3–2 | [16] |
| 2023 | APR (14) | REG | 4–0 | [17] |
Performance by club
| Club | Wins | Runners-up | Seasons won | Seasons runners-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| APR | 14 | 2 | 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2023 | 2013, 2014 |
| Patriots | 4 | 1 | 2016, 2018, 2019, 2020 | 2017, 2021, 2022 |
| Espoir | 5 | 1 | 2004, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 | 2016 |
| REG | 3 | 4 | 2017, 2021, 2022 | 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2023 |
| Kigali Basketball Club | 2 | 1 | 2010, 2011 | 2012 |
| Marines | 1 | 1 | 2007 | 2008 |
Individual awards
Most Valuable Player
After each RBL season, one player is named the Most valuable player of the competition. Olivier Shyaka is the only player to have won at least two MVP awards.
| Season | Player | Club | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Aristide Mugabe | Espoir | [18] |
| 2013 | Bienvenu Ngandu | Espoir (2) | [9] |
| 2014 | Mike Buzangu | Cercle Sportif de Kigali | [18] |
| 2015 | Olivier Shyaka | Espoir (3) | [10] |
| 2016 | Kubwimana Kazingufu Ali | Patriots | [19] |
| 2017 | Kami Kabange | REG | [11] |
| 2018 | Sedar Sagamba | Patriots (2) | |
| 2019 | Dieudonné Ndizeye | Patriots (3) | [20] |
| 2021 | Olivier Shyaka (2) | REG (2) | [15] |
| 2022 | Axel Mpoyo | REG (3) | [21] |
| 2023 | Olivier Turatsinze | Espoir (4) | [22] |
Playoffs MVP
Since 2023, the league also gives an award to the best performing player of the playoffs.
| Season | Player | Club | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Jean Jacques Wilson Nshobozwabyosenumukiza | APR BBC | [23] |
Team of the Year
Players in bold were named the season's Most Valuable Player.
| Season | Players | Coach | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PG | SG | SF | PF | C | ||
| 2014–15[10] | Aristide Mugabe (Espoir) | Mike Buzangu (KBC) | Lionnel Hakizimana (Espoir) | Olivier Shyaka (Espoir) | Bienvenue Ngandu (Espoir) | |
| 2016–17 | Aristide Mugabe (Patriots) | Benjamin Mukengerwa (REG) | Dieudonné Ndizeye (IPRC-Kigali) | Olivier Shyaka (Espoir) | Kami Kabange (REG) | |
| 2019–20[20] | Guibert Nijimbere (REG) | Wilson Nshobozwa (REG) | Dieudonné Ndizeye (Patriots) | Bienvenu Niyonsaba (APR) | Junior Kasongo (Patriots) | Henry Mwinuka (REG) |
| 2020–21[15] | Adonis Filer (REG) | Engelbert Beleck Bell (Patriots) | Dieudonné Ndizeye (Patriots) | Olivier Shyaka (REG) | Tom Wamukota (Patriots) | Henry Mwinuka (REG) |
| 2021–22[21] | Adonis Filer (REG) | Kenny Gasana (Patriots) | Steven Hagumintwari (Patriots) | Axel Mpoyo (REG) | Pitchou Kambuy Manga (REG) | Henry Mwinuka (REG) |
In African competitions
Each year, the champions of the NBL were placed for the qualifiers of the FIBA Africa Basketball League, the premiere pan-African competition. Since 2020, this league is replaced by the Basketball Africa League (BAL). The following list shows Rwandan teams which played in a main tournament:
| Club | Participations | Seasons | Best result |
|---|---|---|---|
| APR | 3 | 2007, 2008, 2009 |  3rd place (2009) |
| Patriots | 1 | 2021 | Fourth place (2021) |
| REG | 1 | 2022 | Quarterfinals (2022) |
In the Basketball Africa League
| Season | Representative | Road to BAL | Main competition | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | Result | Qualified | W | L | Result | |||
| 2021 | Patriots | 9 | 0 |  Gold |  | 3 | 3 | Fourth place | |
| 2022 | REG | Qualified directly | | 4 | 2 | Quarter-finals | |||
| 2023 | REG | Qualified directly | | ||||||
| Total | 9 | 0 | 7 | 5 | |||||