Basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

is one of the most popular sports in

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

, and is played on both the

amateur An amateur () is generally considered a person who pursues an avocation independent from their source of income. Amateurs and their pursuits are also described as popular, informal, autodidacticism, self-taught, user-generated, do it yourself, DI ...

and

professional A professional is a member of a profession or any person who work (human activity), works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the partic ...

levels. Basketball has a long history in Germany, with its popularity having developed slowly.

Beginning

Basketball was first introduced to Germany in 1896, by August Hermann, a

physical education Physical education is an academic subject taught in schools worldwide, encompassing Primary education, primary, Secondary education, secondary, and sometimes tertiary education. It is often referred to as Phys. Ed. or PE, and in the United Stat ...

pioneer. Hermann's son Ernst had emigrated to

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

and introduced the game of basketball to his father. Originally, Hermann was searching for a

sport Sport is a physical activity or game, often Competition, competitive and organization, organized, that maintains or improves physical ability and skills. Sport may provide enjoyment to participants and entertainment to spectators. The numbe ...

for girls to play as an alternative to soccer. August held the first game in Germany in the city of

Braunschweig Braunschweig () or Brunswick ( ; from Low German , local dialect: ) is a List of cities and towns in Germany, city in Lower Saxony, Germany, north of the Harz Mountains at the farthest navigable point of the river Oker, which connects it to the ...

where he was a well-known advocate and instructor of physical education and sports. Thereafter, he invented a number of sports and wrote rule books. He wrote the rule book for "Korbball" (basketball) that same year. He adopted the name Korbball because at the time, American expressions and names were frowned upon. Hermann was a board member of the "Central Committee on Public and Youth Games in Germany" and in this capacity, he attempted to publicize the game of basketball for girls. Despite these efforts, basketball didn't take hold until several decades later. In 1921, basketball was included in the guidelines for physical education for girls, but only a few schools participated. Because of the lack of participation and lack of sport association affiliation, basketball had no significant following. Basketball developed very slowly. Germany was one of the last countries in

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

to adopt basketball as a major sport.

Increase in popularity

In 1933, Hermann Niebuhr—who had become involved with basketball at an American college in

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

—returned to Germany and re-introduced basketball to several universities and sports clubs. Niebuhr is considered the "Father of German Basketball." As a result of implementing basketball at universities in

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

, Breslau,

Gera Gera () is a city in the German state of Thuringia. With around 93,000 inhabitants, it is the third-largest city in Thuringia after Erfurt and Jena as well as the easternmost city of the ''Thüringer Städtekette'', an almost straight string of ...

, Wünsdorf and

Bad Kreuznach Bad Kreuznach () is a town in the Bad Kreuznach (district), Bad Kreuznach district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is a spa town, known for its medieval bridge dating from around 1300, the Alte Nahebrücke (Bad Kreuznach), Alte Nahebrücke, ...

, foreign students began to play. Foreign students and German physical instructors were either from the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

or had traveled to the United States and saw basketball games there. These were the first to request increasing basketball's presence. In 1935, basketball became an organized sport. In April 1935 there were four organized basketball teams in Germany and that increased to 153 by 1937. The first national basketball championships were organized in 1939.

Berlin Olympics

In 1936, the

International Olympic Committee The International Olympic Committee (IOC; , CIO) is the international, non-governmental, sports governing body of the modern Olympic Games. Founded in 1894 by Pierre de Coubertin and Demetrios Vikelas, it is based i ...

included basketball as an official medal event. The 1936 Summer Olympics were held in Berlin. Though the basketball games were played outdoors in poor conditions, there was significant media coverage of the sport in Germany. Germany placed 17th out of 21 teams.

1936 Germany Olympic basketball results

* Germany lost to Switzerland 25-18 * Germany beat Spain via a walkover as Spain withdrew from Olympics due to the Spanish Civil War * Germany lost to Italy 58 - 16 * Germany lost to Czechoslovakia 20-9

Members of the German Olympic Team

* Hermann Niebuhr - Coach * Hans Niclaus ''(Heeressportschule Wünsdorf)'' * Emil Göing ''(Heeressportschule Wünsdorf)'' * Kurt Oleska ''(Heeressportschule Wünsdorf)'' * Bernhard Cuiper ''(Heeressportschule Wünsdorf)'' * Karl Endres ''(Heeressportschule Wünsdorf)'' * Emil Lohbeck ''(Heeressportschule Wünsdorf)'' * Robert Duis ''(DSC Berlin)'' * Otto Kuchenbecker ''(Luftwaffen-Sportschule Spandau)'' * Siegfried Reischieß ''(VfB Breslau)'' * Heinz Steinschulte ''(Luftwaffen-Sportschule Spandau)'' Despite increased interest in the sport during the late 1930s,

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

stopped all development of basketball in Germany.

New beginning following World War II

Following World War II, the United States government sent the

Harlem Globetrotters The Harlem Globetrotters is an American Exhibition game, exhibition basketball team. They combine athleticism, theater, entertainment, and comedy in their style of play. Over the years, they have played more than 26,000 exhibition games in 124 ...

to Germany in 1951 to help counter communism. The game drew 75,000 spectators which set a world record for the largest crowd to watch a basketball game. Although The International Basketball Federation (French: Fédération Internationale de Basketball or FIBA) was created in 1932, Germany was not one of the first eight European teams. Germany's first appears in the European Championships was in 1951 in Paris. They placed 15th out of 18 teams. In 1956, the

International Basketball Federation The International Basketball Federation (FIBA ; French: ) is an association of national organizations which governs the sport of basketball worldwide. FIBA defines the rules of basketball, specifies the equipment and facilities required, ...

(French: Fédération Internationale de Basketball or FIBA) was relocated to Munich from

Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...

Deutscher Basketball Bund

The German Basketball Federation, or Deutscher Basketball Bund, was founded in 1949.

The Bundesliga

The German Basketball League (the Basketball-Bundesliga, or BBL) was created in 1964. On 1 October 1966, the first season began. This is the highest level tier of

club basketball competition in Germany. It currently has 18 teams, competing for the national champion title.

Connection with basketball in America

There is a strong American connection and many of the German teams recruit players from American universities. There are also many Germans who are recruited to play at the college level and in the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

, or NBA.

Notable people associated with basketball in germany

Dirk Bauermann Dirk Bauermann (born 10 December 1957) is a German professional basketball coach. Playing career Bauermann played sports club, club basketball in the German senior club of BBC Krefeld, from 1975 to 1981. Club coaching career Bauermann was an ass ...

* August Hermann * Hermann Niebuhr

Notable German basketball players

Uwe Blab Uwe Konstantin Blab (born March 26, 1962) is a German former professional basketball player who had a five-year career in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Due to his red hair, Blab was nicknamed “Burning Skyscraper”, especially afte ...

Shawn Bradley Shawn Paul Bradley (born March 22, 1972) is a German-American former professional basketball player. A center, he was drafted with the second pick in the 1993 NBA draft and played for the Philadelphia 76ers, New Jersey Nets, and Dallas Maverick ...

Frido Frey Frido Frey (October 26, 1921 – May 16, 2000) was a German professional basketball player. A 6'2" forward, he was the first German player in the National Basketball Association (then the Basketball Association of America). Frey attended New Utr ...

* Richard Fröhlich *

Elias Harris Elias Harris (born 6 July 1989) is a German professional basketball player for Bayern Munich of the Bundesliga (BBL) and the EuroLeague. He played college basketball for the Gonzaga Bulldogs and plays for the German national team. Junior caree ...

* Jens Kujawa * Tim Ohlbrecht *

Dirk Nowitzki Dirk Werner Nowitzki (; born June 19, 1978) is a German former professional basketball player who is a special advisor for the Dallas Mavericks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Listed at , he is widely regarded as one of the great ...

* Henrik Rödl *

Detlef Schrempf Detlef Schrempf (born January 21, 1963) is a German-American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the Washington Huskies from 1981 to 1985, and was drafted into the National Basketball Association (NBA) by the ...

Dennis Schröder Dennis Schröder ( ; ; born 15 September 1993) is a German professional basketball player for the Detroit Pistons of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He previously played for SG Braunschweig and Phantoms Braunschweig in Germany, bef ...

Daniel Theis Daniel Theis (; born 4 April 1992) is a German professional basketball player for AS Monaco of the LNB Élite and the EuroLeague. After seven seasons in the Basketball Bundesliga where he was a four-time All Star and three-time champion, Theis si ...

Franz Wagner Franz Jacob Wagner (born 27 August 2001) is a German professional basketball player for the Orlando Magic of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Michigan Wolverines. Wagner, a native of Berlin, starte ...

* Moritz Wagner *

Chris Welp Christian Ansgar Welp (January 2, 1964 – March 1, 2015) was a German professional basketball player. During his playing career, he was a , center. He played three seasons in the NBA. He was the MVP of the 1993 EuroBasket. College career Wel ...

Paul Zipser Paul Victor Louis Zipser (born 18 February 1994) is a German professional basketball player for MLP Academics Heidelberg of the Basketball Bundesliga (BBL). Standing at , he mainly plays at the small forward position. He was selected by the Chica ...

References

External links

German League official website
{{Basketball Bundesliga