By Divine Sam
The National Basketball Association (NBA) has explained that US sanctions imposed on Rwanda’s military led to the withdrawal of the country’s army-backed basketball club, Armée Patriotique Rwandaise (APR), from the 2026 Basketball Africa League (BAL).
The NBA disclosed this following concerns raised by two United States senators over its continued relationship with Rwanda despite sanctions announced against the country’s military in March 2026.
According to the BBC on Wednesday, the sanctions were imposed over allegations that the Rwandan military was supporting the M23 rebel group in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo), where the insurgents have taken control of large parts of the eastern region.
Rwanda has consistently denied providing support to the rebel group.
In a response to a letter dated October 23 from Democratic Senator Jeffrey Merkley and Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn, NBA Deputy Commissioner Mark Tatum reportedly confirmed that APR was withdrawn from the competition following the sanctions.
The NBA also stated that the club would remain excluded from the tournament for as long as the US sanctions remain in force.
The two senators had earlier urged the basketball organisation to review its relationship with the Rwandan club, arguing that its continued partnership with the country could undermine its commitment to human rights and justice.
They warned that the NBA risked “becoming complicit in sportswashing by accepting money from a Rwandan government that systematically abuses human rights”.
APR is one of Rwanda’s prominent basketball clubs and represented the country in the Basketball Africa League in 2024 and 2025, finishing third in the 2025 edition.
The club was replaced by RSSB Tigers in the 2026 competition.
The Basketball Africa League, established through a partnership between the NBA and the International Basketball Federation (FIBA), is a professional continental competition featuring 12 clubs from different African countries.
Despite APR’s exclusion, Rwanda remains an official partner of the league and continues to pay to host its finals at the 10,000-capacity BK Arena in Kigali.
The NBA reportedly receives millions of dollars annually from Rwanda through marketing and partnership agreements.
The development comes amid criticism from DR Congo over Rwanda’s international sports partnerships, including its arrangements with the NBA, European football clubs and Formula 1.
DR Congo has argued that such partnerships help enhance Rwanda’s international image despite the continuing conflict in eastern DR Congo.
The NBA’s decision therefore separates Rwanda’s army-backed basketball club from the competition while preserving the country’s wider commercial and hosting relationship with the African league.
The association’s position, as communicated by Deputy Commissioner Tatum, is that APR will remain barred from participating in the BAL until the US sanctions against Rwanda’s military are lifted.
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