Burundian basketball team Dynamo BBC were not able to follow up their historic win in the 2024 Basketball Africa League (BAL) opener in the Kalahari Conference on Saturday, as they forfeited their next group phase game.
The Burundi champions, who are playing in the BAL for the first time, stunned hometown favorites the Cape Town Tigers 86-73 at the SunBet Arena in Pretoria on March 9.
They were expected to face another BAL debutant, Morocco’s FUS de Rabat, on Sunday, March 10. However, Dynamo forfeited the game after refusing to comply with the BAL’s rules governing jersey and uniform requirements.
The following has been announced by Basketball Africa League President Amadou Gallo Fall: pic.twitter.com/wlC0tMIh0s
— Basketball Africa League (@theBAL) March 10, 2024
During their first game in the Kalahari Conference against the Cape Town Tigers, Dynamo covered the “Visit Rwanda” logo—the official jersey sponsors of the BAL—imprinted on their jerseys with black tape.
Apparently, this action was due to political unrest between the sponsor’s country, Rwanda, and Burundi, the home country of the Dynamo BBC. Burundi’s President Evariste Ndayishimiye earlier in the year accused Rwanda of supporting a rebel group, the Red Tabara, acting against the country, with Burundi going as far as closing its borders against Rwanda.
The forfeiture, which was announced early on Sunday by Amadou Gallo Fall, the President of the BAL, hours before Dynamo’s second game in the group, meant that FUS de Rabat added a 20-0 win over their Burundian counterpart.
With this new development from Dynamo BBC, it is left to be seen whether they will suit up for their third game in the group against the Angolan champions and 2022 BAL runners-up Petro de Luanda, slated for Tuesday, March 12.
