British Basketball facing two-year blanket ban as funding cuts threaten withdrawal of 2019 World Cup qualifying

Exclusive: Any withdrawal from qualifying would be accompanied by a two-year ban for men's, women's and youth teams

GB Basketball already receives no lottery funding (Getty)

British Basketball faces two years in the international wilderness as crippling funding cuts threaten to spark a withdrawal from the 2019 World Cup qualifying competition.

That’s the warning from the CEO of British Basketball, Lisa Wainwright.

In an exclusive interview with The Independent, Wainwright says that one of the country’s largest participation sports is now facing the prospect of having its men’s, women’s and youth teams being banned for two years as a result of being able to fulfil its qualifying commitments.

GB’s next qualifiers are scheduled to take place in Glasgow against Estonia and Israel in late June and early July. The country currently lies bottom of their group having lost four from four in a table topped by Greece.

A decision on whether those two fixtures will be fulfilled is expected within the next two months. Without firm funding commitments, however, GB Basketball finds itself backed into a corner.

GB Basketball may not be able to complete their qualifying fixtures (GB Basketball)

“In real-terms, if we don’t get any funding we will have to withdraw our senior team from the next big competition, which is the qualifiers in June and July,” says Wainwright. “We will have to consider withdrawing them in the next month of two because of the financial requirements attached to that.

“The qualifiers are due to take place in Glasgow at the Emirates Arena but really, by April, the board will have a decision to make if we don’t have funding to fund that competition window.

“If we withdraw then the international federation will suspend us for up to two years and that means all of us – that’s the implication that people don’t seem to understand.

“It’s not just the men. It means the women, who are now top of their division will not be able to compete in November in Manchester in the next round, and all the age-group teams will be suspended as well. If we can’t get the guys on court then we can’t carry on. It really is that simple.”

If that eventuality comes to pass then a team sport that is currently only second to football in terms of teenage participation will effectively cease to have a national side.

All that despite the apparent enthusiasm of America’s NBA to help grow a sport which was one of the standout features of the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

“Not to have GB Basketball teams in a country that invests so much in sport would be absolutely ridiculous,” says Wainwright.