BEIJING, Oct. 26 (Xinhua) -- The Asian University Basketball League (AUBL) announced on Monday that its 2026-27 season will introduce a home-and-away format.
Eighteen college teams from 11 countries and regions will compete starting in November, with the season culminating in Championship Week in August 2027.
The season will feature 54 games in total, the most in a single season since the league was founded. The regular season is divided into the Eastern Conference and Southern Conference, with the Eastern Conference using a home-and-away format and the Southern Conference using a single-site tournament format. Qualifiers from both conferences will meet at Championship Week in August 2027.
The Eastern Conference will run from November 2026 to March 2027. Its 12 teams are divided into four groups of three, with teams in each group playing one another twice, once at home and once away. Games will be held on university campuses in China, Japan, South Korea, Mongolia and the Philippines.
The top eight teams in the Eastern Conference regular-season standings will advance to Championship Week. Defending champion Shanghai Jiao Tong University has an automatic berth. If it finishes in the top eight, the spot will go to the ninth-placed team.
The Southern Conference will be held from April 7 to 11, 2027, in Hanoi, Vietnam. Its six teams will be split into two groups of three, with the top two from each group advancing to the Final Four. The top three finishers will qualify for Championship Week.
Championship Week will take place from Aug. 16 to 22, 2027. The 12 qualifiers will first compete in a group stage, followed by a single-elimination knockout stage to decide the champion.
"This is a landmark moment for university basketball in Asia," said Jay Li, CEO of AUBL. "For the first time, the continent's best college teams will be tested home and away, and that changes everything."
"This season will connect different cultures and styles of basketball, bring the game to more fans than ever and give student-athletes new opportunities to travel, compete and learn," Li said.
The new season will tip off at the Sangnoksu Kim Yeon-koung Gymnasium in Seoul, South Korea. Yonsei University will host Shanghai Jiao Tong University on Nov. 22 and face Tsinghua University at the same venue on Nov. 24. ■
