BNXT League
| Organising body | Dutch Basketball League Pro Basketball League |
|---|---|
| Founded | December 10, 2020 |
| First season | 2021–22 |
| Country | Belgium Netherlands |
| Confederation | FIBA Europe |
| Number of teams | 18 |
| Level on pyramid | 1 |
| Relegation to | Top Division Men One (Belgium) Promotiedivisie (Netherlands) |
| Domestic cup(s) | Basketball Cup (Belgium) Basketball Cup (Netherlands) |
| Supercup | BNXT Supercup Dutch Supercup |
| International cup(s) | Champions League FIBA Europe Cup |
| Current champions | Windrose Giants Antwerp (1st title) (2025–26 BNXT League) |
| Most championships | ZZ Leiden (2 titles) |
| CEO | Wim Van de Keere |
| President | Ramses Braakman |
| TV partners | bnxt |
| Website | bnxtleague |
| 2025–26 BNXT League | |
The BNXT League is a professional basketball league in Belgium and the Netherlands. The league is the first tier in both the Dutch and Belgian system, replacing the DBL and PBL. The inaugural season was the 2021–22 season, which started in September 2021.
History
On 10 December 2020, it was announced that the Belgian Pro Basketball League and Dutch Basketball League would merge to form a new multinational league.[1] All clubs from the Dutch DBL voted for, while 9 of 10 teams in Belgium voted in favor of the decision. Serious talks about the initiative had been ongoing since fall 2019.[2] On 20 May 2021, the new name "BNXT League" and logo of the league were announced.[3]
The league started its inaugural season amidst an ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and a great number of games had to be played behind locked doors as a result of national lockdowns.[4] On 11 June 2022, ZZ Leiden were crowned the inaugural BNXT champions.[5] The following year, on 13 June 2023, Leiden repeated as champions.
On 19th of March, Den Helder Suns announced they were unable to continue in the league and wouldn't apply for a license in the next season. They stated that it was increasingly difficult to sustain a competitive team while simultaneously investing in the required improvements the league demanded, like a general manager and a basketball floor.[6] This decision was followed by LWD Basket and BAL, who battled with the same problems. This small exodus of Dutch teams and the promotion of CB Liège into the league meant that in the 2026-27 season, the balance of teams became heavily skewed towards Belgium, with 11 Belgium teams and only 5 Dutch teams.[7]
Sponsorship
On 10 September 2021, the league announced its first name sponsorship when Belgian betting company betFirst signed to become naming sponsor for three seasons.[8]
Competition formula
From 2021–22 to 2023–24, the league consisted of different stages. In the first stage, teams played each other home and away in the national regular season. After this, the teams were divided in the Elite Gold and Elite Silver group for the cross-border season. Next, the teams from the Elite Gold and the 3 best teams from the Elite Silver played in the national playoffs to compete for the national championships. The two winners of the national playoffs then played in the BNXT League Final.[1]
Starting from the 2024–25 season, the league will have a new format in which all 19 teams play each other home and away in the regular season. The highest ranked teams from each country play national playoffs, and the two national winners play for the BNXT championship.[9]
Teams
The following 18 teams will play in the 2025-26 season. All teams from the Pro Basketball League and Dutch Basketball League transferred to the BNXT League in 2021. The newest club to have joined the BNXT League are the Kortrijk Spurs, who joined in 2023.
Stadiums and locations
- Note: Table lists in alphabetical order.
| Club | Location | Venue | Capacity | Founded | National titles |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Antwerp Giants | Antwerp | Lotto Arena | 5,218 | 1995 | 1 |
| BAL | Weert | Sporthal Boshoven | 1,000 | 2013 | – |
| Brussels Basketball | Brussels | Neder-Over-Heembeek complex | 1,500 | 1958 | – |
| Den Helder Suns | Den Helder | Sporthal Quelderduijn | 1,250 | 2016 | – |
| Donar | Groningen | MartiniPlaza | 4,350 | 1951 | 7 |
| Feyenoord | Rotterdam | Topsportcentrum Rotterdam | 2,500 | 1954 | – |
| Heroes Den Bosch | 's-Hertogenbosch | Maaspoort | 2,800 | 1952 | 18 |
| Kangoeroes Mechelen | Mechelen | Winketkaai | 1,500 | 2009 | – |
| Kortrijk Spurs | Kortrijk | Lange Munte | 2,400 | 2019 | – |
| Landstede Hammers | Zwolle | Landstede Sportcentrum | 1,200 | 1995 | 1 |
| Leuven Bears | Leuven | Sportoase | 3,400 | 1999 | – |
| Limburg United | Hasselt | Alverberg Sporthal | 1,730 | 2014 | – |
| LWD Basket | Leeuwarden | Kalverdijkje | 1,700 | 2004 | – |
| Mons-Hainaut | Mons | Mons Arena | 4,000 | 1959 | – |
| Okapi Aalst | Aalst | Okapi Forum | 2,800 | 1949 | – |
| Oostende | Ostend | Sleuyter Arena | 5,000 | 1970 | 25 |
| Spirou | Charleroi | Spiroudome | 6,200 | 1989 | 10 |
| ZZ Leiden | Leiden | Sportcomplex 1574 | 2,435 | 1958 | 5 |
Former teams
| Club | Location | Venue | Capacity | Founded | Seasons | Last season | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apollo Amsterdam | Amsterdam | Apollohal | 1,500 | 2011 | 2 | 2022–23 | Failed to meet the financial requirements [10] |
| BAL | Weert | Sporthal Boshoven | 1,000 | 2013 | 5 | 2025–26 | Voluntarily relegated due to financial reasons [11] |
| Den Helder Suns | Den Helder | Sporthal Quelderduijn | 1,250 | 2016 | 5 | 2025–26 | Voluntarily relegated due to financial reasons [12] |
| Liège Basket | Liège | Country Hall | 5,000 | 1967 | 3 | 2023–24 | Dissolution of the club due to financial reasons [13] |
| QSTA United | Bemmel | De Kooi | 650 | 2020 | 4 | 2024–25 | Relegation [14] |
| The Hague Royals | The Hague | Sportcampus Zuiderpark | 3,500 | 2020 | 1 | 2021–22 | Dissolution of the club due to financial reasons [15] |
BNXT champions
The finals were played in a two-legged format in 2022, after that season the format was changed to a best-of-three playoffs series. Since the 2024–25 season, the BNXT League championship has been awarded to the club that finishes first in the regular season.
| Season | Champions | Score | Runners-up | Finals MVP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021–22 | ZZ Leiden | 146–142 (75–72, 71–70) |
Donar | Worthy de Jong |
| 2022–23 | ZZ Leiden (2) | 2–1
|
Filou Oostende | David Collins |
| 2023–24 | Filou Oostende | 164–124 (85–58, 79–66) |
ZZ Leiden | Damien Jefferson |
| 2024–25 | Kangoeroes Basket Mechelen | N/a | House of Talents Spurs | N/a |
| 2025–26 | Windrose Giants Antwerp | N/a | Filou Oostende | N/a |
National champions
Netherlands
| Season | Champions | Score | Runners-up | Finals MVP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021–22 | Heroes Den Bosch | 3–2 | ZZ Leiden | Thomas van der Mars |
| 2022–23 | ZZ Leiden | 3–2 | Donar | Thomas Rutherford |
| 2023–24 | ZZ Leiden | 3–1 | Heroes Den Bosch | Brock Gardner |
| 2024–25 | Heroes Den Bosch | 3–0 | ZZ Leiden | Le'Tre Darthard |
| 2025–26 | Landstede Hammers | 3–1 | ZZ Leiden | Jalen Thomas |
Belgium
| Season | Champions | Score | Runners-up | Finals MVP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021–22 | Oostende | 3–1 | Kangoeroes Mechelen | Keye van der Vuurst de Vries |
| 2022–23 | Oostende | 3–1 | Antwerp Giants | Vrenz Bleijenbergh |
| 2023–24 | Oostende | 3–1 | Antwerp Giants | Damien Jefferson |
| 2024–25 | Oostende | 3–1 | Kangoeroes Mechelen | Timmy Allen |
| 2025–26 | Antwerp Giants | 3–2 | Oostende | Rasheed Bello |
Awards
- Most Valuable Player (MVP)
- Finals MVP (BNXT)
- Finals MVP (Belgium)
- Finals MVP (Netherlands)
- Dream Team
- Player of the Year (Netherlands)
- Player of the Year (Belgium)
- Rising Star of the Year (Netherlands)
- Rising Star of the Year (Belgium)
- Sixth Man of the Year
- Defensive Player of the Year
- Coach of the Year (Netherlands)
- Coach of the Year (Belgium)
Broadcasting partners
- BNXT.tv (online)
- NPO 1
- Proximus
- Sporza
- Ziggo Sport
Notes
References
- ^ a b "The Pro Basketball League and Dutch Basketball League about to launch BeNeLeague as of the 2021–2022 season". Pro Basketball League. 10 December 2020. Retrieved 5 January 2021.
- ^ "Ook basketbalbonden onderzoeken mogelijkheden BeNeLeague". AD (in Dutch). 23 December 2019. Retrieved 5 January 2021.
- ^ "BeNeLiga in het basketbal wordt de BNXT League: toekomst, de 'Generation Z' en groei". HLN.be. Retrieved 20 May 2021.
- ^ "Basketbalclubs BNXT League beslissen drie weken lang zelf of thuisduels doorgaan". nos.nl (in Dutch). 15 November 2021. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
- ^ "ZZ Leiden first BNXT League champion". BNXT League. 2022-06-11. Retrieved 2022-06-12.
- ^ "Den Helder suns will not apply for a license for the next BNXT League season". heren.denheldersuns.nl. Retrieved 18 May 2026.
- ^ "BNXT League licenses awarded for the 2026-2027 season". bnxtleague.com. Retrieved 19 May 2026.
- ^ "BETFIRST NEW TITLE SPONSOR BNXT LEAGUE". BNXT League. 10 September 2021. Retrieved 11 September 2021.
- ^ "BNXT League krijgt volgend seizoen nieuw format: vanaf de start heen- en terugwedstrijden". Het Nieuwsblad (in Flemish). 2024-03-11. Retrieved 2024-03-27.
- ^ "Apollo Amsterdam will not participate in 23-24 BNXT League". bnxtleague.com. Retrieved 20 March 2026.
- ^ "If all these people bought a ticket each week, we would still be in the BNXT League". limburger.nl. Retrieved 12 May 2026.
- ^ "Den Helder suns will not apply for a license for the next BNXT League season". heren.denheldersuns.nl. Retrieved 18 May 2026.
- ^ "The curtain falls for Basket Luik". nieuwsblad.be. Retrieved 20 March 2026.
- ^ "Relegation as the starting point of a new chapter". bnxtleague.com. Retrieved 20 March 2026.
- ^ "The Hague Royals quit". haagsetopsport.nl. Retrieved 20 March 2026.