'World Basketball Day' on December 21
United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) adopted a resolution that designates December 21 - the day James Naismith introduced the game in Springfield, Massachusetts - as World Basketball Day.
On August 25, timed to the beginning of the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) adopted a resolution brought forward by the Philippines and co-sponsored by more than 70 nations that designates December 21 - the day James Naismith introduced the game in Springfield, Massachusetts - as World Basketball Day. The concept was sparked by NYU Professor David Hollander in his recent book ‘How Basketball Can Save the World.’
Basketball is the first team sport to have an international day observed by the United Nations, reflecting the global significance of the game and its unique ability to unite people around the world.
World Basketball Day
ANTONIO M. LAGDAMEO (Philippines), introducing the draft resolution on “World Basketball Day” (document A/77/L.95) said that basketball, as a globally recognized sport, serves as a unifying force through which people from different backgrounds can come together, creating connections and breaking down barriers, and thereby contribute to peace. He urged all Member States to support and co-sponsor the resolution, to honour a sport that people love and further enhance its contribution to global peace and development.
The resolution acknowledges “the global presence of basketball and its impact in and across global spheres of commerce, peace and diplomacy, and that basketball creates a unique space of cooperation, physical movement and an interdependence that allows participants to see each other as human beings first and foremost.”
By the text, the Assembly would decide to proclaim December 21 as World Basketball Day and invite all Member States, organizations of the United Nations system, other international and regional organizations, the private sector and civil society, individuals and other relevant stakeholders to observe the Day in an appropriate manner and in accordance with national priorities, and to disseminate the advantages of basketball for all, including through educational and public awareness-raising activities.