Partners

Edmonton is the official home of the Canadian Women’s National Team. They were officially welcomed to their new home at Edmonton’s Saville Community Sports Centre in June 2013, confirming the city as a centre of excellence for sport development and elite athletes.

Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment Ltd. (MLSE) is Canada’s preeminent leader in delivering top quality sport and entertainment experiences to our fans. MLSE is one of North America’s leading providers of exceptional experiences. It is the parent company of the National Hockey League’s Toronto Maple Leafs, the National Basketball Association’s Toronto Raptors Major League Soccer’s Toronto FC, the Canadian Football League’s Toronto Argonauts and development teams with the Toronto Marlies (American Hockey League), Raptors 905 (NBA G League) and Toronto FC II (United Soccer League). MLSE owns or operates all of the venues its teams play and train in, including Scotiabank Arena, BMO Field, Coca-Cola Coliseum, Ford Performance Centre, BMO Training Ground, and the OVO Athletic Centre. MLSE also provides fans in Toronto incredible live music and entertainment events. MLSE strives to deliver championships to our city and our fans and bring the world to its feet.

The Nike brand has a long-standing association with Canada Basketball dating back to the mid -1990s. Nike’s loyalty and dedication have been a key ingredient to the development and growth of the sport in our country. Over the years, Canada Basketball and Nike have worked together on several grassroots initiatives such as the Nike sponsored Centre’s for Performance and the Nike All-Canada Camp. Nike continues to support the Canadian National teams and shares a commitment with Canada Basketball to grow the game of basketball.

Gatorade Canada is on a mission to fuel Canadian athletes across a multitude of sports, helping them achieve excellence in sports performance. Gatorade® sports drink was created for a single purpose, to fuel athletic performance. With electrolytes to help replenish what is lost in sweat and carbohydrates to fuel working muscles, every ingredient has been specifically chosen to help athletes perform at their best. Tested and proven over countless hours in the lab and on the court, Gatorade is trusted by Canadian athletes and trainers. For over 50 years, Gatorade has been powering athletes to new levels and continues to innovate with the latest advances in sports science to help reach athletes’ performance potential.

Sportsnet is Canada’s #1 sports network. Uniting Canadians through sport, Sportsnet’s multimedia offerings include Sportsnet (consisting of 4 regional channels: East, Ontario, West, and Pacific), Sportsnet ONE, Sportsnet 360, Sportsnet World, the Sportsnet Radio Network, Sportsnet.ca, Sportsnet NOW, SN NOW+, the Sportsnet app, and podcasts. Sportsnet is the official Canadian NHL national multiplatform rights holder, and is the regional broadcaster for the Vancouver Canucks, Calgary Flames, Edmonton Oilers, and Toronto Maple Leafs. Sportsnet also has extensive coverage of the Toronto Blue Jays and Toronto Raptors, as well as NBA, MLB, Grand Slam of Curling, National Bank Open presented by Rogers, CHL, IndyCar, WWE, Super League Rugby, Premiership Rugby, Bundesliga, FA Women’s Super League, and FA Cup. Sportsnet is part of Rogers Sports & Media, which is a subsidiary of Rogers Communications Inc. (TSX, NYSE: RCI). Visit Sportsnet.ca.

Toyota is the Official Mobility Partner and Official Vehicle of Canada Basketball. Toyota will sponsor all eight Canadian National Teams as well as various grassroots sports initiatives. This partnership is part of Toyota’s vision of an inclusive society, and represents their commitment to supporting athletes to be the best they can be, because it believes in the power of human movement at its fullest potential through vehicles, sports experiences and more.

Sun Life Financial is the Official Health and Wellness partner of Canada Basketball and the Senior Men’s and Women’s Front of Jersey sponsor. Sun Life’s sponsorship with Canada Basketball reflects its unified passion for helping people live healthier lives.

Together, Canada Basketball and Sun Life Financial have the unique opportunity to expand our platforms aimed at inspiring and empowering people across Canada to focus on healthy, active living through the power of sport.

Sun Life is sustainability-driven, focusing on areas where it can have the greatest impact. By actively supporting the communities in which Sun Life lives and works, the organization can help build a positive environment for Clients, employees, advisors, and shareholders. Physical health and mental health are at the centre of our philanthropic support, with a focus on supporting programs and organizations that strive to empower people in Canada to live their healthiest lives no matter where they are in their journey. Sun Life employees and advisors take great pride in volunteering and giving back to make life brighter for individuals and families across Canada.

A long time supporter of Canada Basketball, Flair Airlines is committed to growing the basketball community, for all levels across the nation.

As the Official Airline of Canada Basketball, Flair is the preferred airline for all Canada Basketball age-group players, coaches, officials and staff. Flair will also bring fans closer to the game with its #ShotFromTheDot halftime activation, where one lucky fan will have a chance to win free airfare at every Canada Basketball national team home game.

Flair Airlines also joins Canada Basketball as the presenting partner of the 2023 GLOBL JAM FESTIVAL, a celebration of basketball, local art, and culture at Yonge-Dundas Square with the 3x3 Canada Quest National Championships, celebrity charity game and community court, as well as vendor market, food trucks, music and more. Flair will support Canada’s 3x3 national teams with front of jersey visibility for both Canada Basketball’s men’s and women’s jerseys, and bring 3x3 national team fans behind the scenes with digital travel and competition content.

FIBA, the International Basketball Federation, is the world governing body for basketball. Founded in 1932, we bring together 213 National Basketball Federations from all over the world. We organize and oversee international competitions that include the FIBA Basketball World Cup, the Olympic Basketball Tournament and 3x3 basketball. We establish the official basketball rules as well as the regulations that govern the relationships between the different members of the basketball community. We have five Regional Offices in Africa, Americas, Asia, Europe and Oceania. Founded in 2008, the International Basketball Foundation (IBF) takes care of the social, humanitarian and educational activities of FIBA.

The NBA is a global sports and media business built around four professional sports leagues: the National Basketball Association, the Women’s National Basketball Association, the NBA G League and the NBA 2K League.  The NBA has established a major international presence with games and programming in 215 countries and territories in nearly 50 languages, and merchandise for sale in more than 100,000 stores in 100 countries on six continents.  NBA rosters at the start of the 2019-20 season featured 108 international players from 38 countries and territories.  NBA Digital’s assets include NBA TV, NBA.com, the NBA App and NBA League Pass.  The NBA has created one of the largest social media communities in the world, with 1.6 billion likes and followers globally across all league, team, and player platforms.  Through NBA Cares, the league addresses important social issues by working with internationally recognized youth-serving organizations that support education, youth and family development, and health-related causes.

U SPORTS is the national brand for university sports in Canada. Every year, over 20,000 student-athletes and 900 coaches from 56 universities vie for 21 national championships in 12 different sports. U SPORTS also provides higher performance international opportunities for Canadian student-athletes at Winter and Summer Universiades, as well as numerous World University Championships.

The Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association enriches the academic experiences of student-athletes by providing leadership, programs and services that foster development through high-level competitive opportunities in intercollegiate sport. Today, CCAA student-athletes compete in seven sports at 10 CCAA national championships, each hosted by a CCAA member institution. Our 94 member institutions include colleges, universities, technical institutes and cégeps located in eight provinces and regionally governed by five member conferences

The Canadian Olympic Committee leads the achievement of the Canadian Olympic Team’s podium success and advances Olympic values in Canada. Independent and predominantly privately funded, the Canadian Olympic Committee delivers resources that Canada’s elite athletes need to perform at their best and give their everything every day. The backbone of Canada’s Olympic movement, the Canadian Olympic Committee works with National Sport Organizations to prepare the Team for the Olympic, Youth Olympic and Pan American Games. By sharing our athletes’ stories, we inspire all Canadians through the power of sport: 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.

A league created by Canadians for Canadians, the CEBL has the highest percentage of Canadian players of any professional league in the country, with 80% of its current rosters being Canadians. Players come from the NBA G-League, top international leagues, the Canadian National Team program, and top NCAA programs as well as from U SPORTS. The only First Division Professional League partner of Canada Basketball, the CEBL season typically runs from May through August.

BlackNorth Initiative (BNI) is on a mission to end anti-Black systemic racism throughout all aspects of our lives by utilizing a business-first mindset. BNI is committed to the removal of anti-Black systemic barriers negatively affecting the lives of Black Canadians.

This funding will support BNI’s Athletes on Track Program, which provides financial support and mentorship opportunities for Black student-athletes. It will also enhance the BlackNorth Connect Program, a platform designed to provide access to internships and job postings for career recruitment as well as mentorships, scholarships and bursaries for post-secondary education. Through the platform, Canada Basketball and BNI will deliver Masterclasses led by Black coaches, sports officials and business leaders to provide accessible education and mentorship to members.

Buckets & Borders was established in 2015 as a project to document basketball culture around the world. Today, Buckets & Borders is a non-profit organization that uses basketball as a means to improve communities and bring people together through basketball.

Buckets & Borders refurbishes and builds outdoor basketball courts, provides youth resources, tells impactful stories, and strategically grows basketball across Canada and the globe.

Over the next two years, Canada Basketball and Buckets & Borders are teaming up to improve underserved, underrepresented and underfunded communities while uncovering and sharing unique community basketball stories to celebrate basketball's power to unite us all coast-to-coast. The program will involve youth basketball groups in the Buckets & Borders outdoor community court design process and provide basketballs to communities through the ‘Ball for All’ program. It will also host community basketball events on newly restored courts in several regions across Canada to celebrate the growth of the game.

Lay-Up Youth Basketball is a charitable organization that delivers cost-free programs designed to develop the skills kids need on and off the court. Lay-Up provides evidence-based basketball, coach development programs, culture of basketball workshops and employment opportunities in Neighbourhood Improvement Areas across Toronto.

The partnership will work to increase access to the game through Lay-Up delivered programs focused on skill development, coaching, officiating education and sport leadership programming for youth in underrepresented groups and neighbourhood improvement areas. The partnership will specifically support the enhancement of the Lay-Up Crossover program, a paid program designed for youth ages 15-29 who want to develop new skills, receive training and work in the basketball industry. The partnership will also support the development of Lay-Up’s Sky High program and the establishment of their Youth 3x3 House League program.

Kickback is a non-profit that provides sneakers to facilitate experiences and opportunities in sports, art and education.

In collaboration with Canada Basketball, Kickback will launch an 8-week summer creative mentorship program where diverse youth can learn how to evolve in the world of sport through photography and storytelling experiences. The program will offer youth unmatched experiences, professional sports photography skills, and an opportunity to create a full basketball-focused editorial built around experiences of capturing content at Canada Basketball’s GLOBL JAM event this summer. Graduates of the program will have the opportunity to capture content at Canada Basketball’s girls' and boys' Junior Academy sessions over the next year.

YUTE Inc. is a youth-focused, full-service creative and experiential studio (“agency”) created for the youth, by the youth. YUTE houses multi-hyphenate creative youth by ‘alley-ooping’ opportunities, support and mentorship; while creating meaningful and impactful content through play (creativity). Give them the tools and watch them do magic. With every project, YUTE hires and mentors Black, Indigenous, POC, and/or 2SLGBTQQIA+ creative youth from marginalized communities (but not limited to), with proceeds invested back into youth-focused programs, initiatives, and/or organizations.

The partnership will focus on encouraging youth from diverse backgrounds to use basketball and creative design as a positive outlet to develop their skills, knowledge and character to develop their careers through a year-long creative mentorship experience. The program will offer paid work and mentorship experience to youth through content capture at Canada Basketball events, including men’s and women’s age-group national team high-performance camps and media days.