Rwanda's army team removed from Africa league after US sanctions, NBA says

The National Basketball Association (NBA) says it removed Rwanda's army-funded team from its African league because of sanctions the United States imposed on the country in March. The Armée Patriotique Rwandaise (APR) club had already been excluded from the 2026 Basketball Africa League (BAL), but this is the first time the NBA has explained the reasons behind the decision. The confirmation came in response to a letter from two US senators, Democratic Senator Jeffrey Merkley and Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn, who on 23 October asked the NBA to reconsider its partnership with Rwanda and gave the association until 2 November to reply in writing. "What is the NBA red line for accepting money from foreign governments that commit human rights abuses?" the senators asked, also questioning how the association could reconcile its partnership with Rwanda with what they described as its purported commitment to justice. They warned that the NBA risked "becoming complicit in sportswashing by accepting money from a Rwandan government that systematically abuses human rights". In its response, NBA deputy commissioner Mark Tatum said the Rwandan team had been withdrawn from the BAL following the sanctions imposed earlier in the year, according to the American sports website ESPN. The NBA said APR would remain barred while the US sanctions are in place. The United States imposed sanctions on Rwanda's army in March, accusing it of fuelling the conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Last week, Washington also sanctioned Rwanda's defence ministry over its support for the M23 rebel group, which has seized control of large parts of eastern DR Congo. Rwanda denies backing the rebels. Rwanda is an official partner of the BAL, a pan-African league established and co-organised by the NBA and world basketball governing body Fiba. The country pays the league to host its finals at the 10,000-seat BK Arena in the capital, Kigali, and has hosted all but one of the league's finals and playoff matches since the inaugural season in 2021. The NBA reportedly receives millions of dollars annually from Rwanda for marketing and partnership rights. APR is one of Rwanda's top basketball teams and represented the country in the BAL in 2024 and 2025, finishing third in the latter year. It has been replaced in this year's competition by the RSSB Tigers. DR Congo has repeatedly condemned Rwanda's high-profile international sports deals, including with the NBA, European football clubs and Formula 1, urging those organisations to end their campaigns. Kinshasa argues the partnerships help Rwanda polish its global image while conflict continues in eastern DR Congo.