Nigeria’s Under-18 boys and girls basketball teams are scheduled to depart for South Africa tomorrow to participate in the FIBA U18 AfroBasket 2024 tournament.

The boys will be traveling through Abuja, while the girls will depart from Lagos.

Despite the teams’ determination to secure tickets to the world championship, the trip is marred by financial difficulties. The Nigeria Basketball Federation (NBBF) officials reportedly struggled to raise funds for the trip from private sources after failing to receive support from the Federal Ministry of Sports Development.

The U18 teams earned their spots at the AfroBasket after winning the FIBA Africa Zone 3 competition in Abidjan earlier this month.

Nigeria is placed in Group B alongside Angola, Egypt, and Uganda for the 2024 FIBA Africa Men’s U-18 Basketball Championship, which begins on September 2 in Pretoria, South Africa. The top two teams will qualify to represent Africa at the FIBA U-19 Basketball World Cup in Switzerland next year.