Basketball Africa League Enters Playoffs Riding Innovation in AR Graphics and Virtual Signage The BAL Playoffs begin on Friday in Pretoria with the Finals tipping on June 14 By Brandon Costa, Director of Digital
Friday, June 6, 2025 - 12:58 pm
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While the NBA Finals got off to a rip-roaring start in Oklahoma City on Thursday night, another championship run is tipping off on the other side of the globe. The Basketball Africa League (BAL), the premier men's professional basketball league in Africa, is set to begin its playoffs on Friday in Pretoria, South Africa.
Basketball Africa League has implemented augmented-reality graphics on its live game broadcasts this season. (Photos Courtesy of NBA)
The BAL has turned heads this season for what's happening behind the scenes from a broadcast perspective. The league has introduced a suite of advanced broadcast enhancements that are changing how international basketball is being presented on screen, leading with a deployment of virtual and augmented reality graphics.
BAL has partnered with American virtual signage provider Awecom to bring immersive graphics to the center of its live broadcasts. Leveraging Awecom's proprietary software platform, the league has deployed multi-surface virtual signage and 3D augmented reality graphics that are rendered across several cameras, rather than just a single angle - a first-of-its-kind in basketball.
AR graphics shown from the angle of Camera 1 on a BAL broadcast.
This kind of innovation isn't just eye candy, it's an efficiency play. Traditionally, combining virtual on-court signage with AR graphics like starting lineups or halftime stats requires at least two systems, separate teams, and multiple rounds of calibration. In the case of Awecom's unified solution, that all happens through a single device, streamlining operations while opening up more creative possibilities.
Since launching the BAL five years ago, we've continued to identify innovative solutions and opportunities to elevate the viewing experience for fans across the continent and around the world, said Youcef Ouldyassia, Head of Media and Content for NBA Africa and BAL. The new virtual and AR graphics we've introduced this season through Awecom have added a new dimension to our broadcasts and we're excited about how fans have responded.
One System, Two Feeds, Zero Redundancy The production operation spans three host cities - Rabat, Morocco; Dakar, Senegal; and Pretoria, South Africa - each presenting its own set of logistical challenges. To help streamline these efforts, Awecom's system enabled the generation of two distinct broadcast feeds from a single device: one with sponsorship graphics geared toward African markets, and another designed for global distribution.
BAL's virtual signage displayed from the angle of the slash cam.
Rather than calibrating the system before each game (as is often required with similar technologies) the BAL was able to operate on a single calibration per leg of the tournament. That single setup powered floor signage, virtual shot clocks, and AR graphics across multiple cameras for all ten games in each city.
In a tournament that covers thousands of miles and moves equipment and personnel across multiple countries, minimizing the need for repeated calibrations proved to be a valuable time- and resource-saver.
We're thrilled to partner with a forward-looking organization like the BAL and NBA to introduce exciting new capabilities to live sports video, said Awecom CEO Chris Priebe. Our goal is to deliver the most flexible, highest-quality, and efficient virtual graphics platform - empowering our partners to expand what's possible and bring their creative visions to life. Supporting the BAL in expressing their artistic intent marks a significant step toward fulfilling that goal.
From Halftime Stats to 3D Player Cards In addition to traditional signage, broadcasts now include animated, data-driven AR graphics such as starting lineups with team branding and player motion graphics, live shot clocks rendered virtually onto the court, 3D player comparison visuals that float above the floor, and halftime/final team statistics.
Full AR halftime and postgame team stat displays hover over the court.
In a marriage of design and utility, these enhancements not only bring a more modern polish to the look of the broadcast - they also serve the story of the game, helping to keep fans engaged and informed whether they're watching in Senegal or streaming from the United States.
A Showcase for African Basketball on the Global Stage Since its founding in 2019 as a joint initiative between NBA Africa and the International Basketball Federation (FIBA), the BAL has quickly grown into a cultural and athletic touchstone for basketball fans across the continent. With a league that's expanding in ambition and talent each season, the media production around it is evolving at the same pace.
What once might have been a modest linear TV presentation is now a cutting-edge, multiplatform broadcast with all the polish of a major league production - powered by scalable virtual tools and an operational philosophy designed for both quality and efficiency.
And for the BAL, this is just the beginning.
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Basketball Africa League Enters Playoffs Riding Innovation in AR Graphics and Virtual Signage The BAL Playoffs begin on Friday in Pretoria with the Finals tipping on June 14 By Brandon Costa, Director of Digital 
