Better believe it.
The Philippines is indeed hosting the 2023 edition of the prestigious FIBA World Cup. This means that Filipinos do not have to break the bank in securing flight tickets and boarding and lodging. We can witness all 32 of the world’s best basketball nations play hoops right on our home soil.
Fans have already marked their calendars for FIBA’s flagship event, and maybe you are among those who even took time off work. So, you want to make sure everything goes smoothly.
Where will the games be played? What time to best arrive? What can you bring and not bring to the arenas? Read on to know all the answers to those questions!
A quick disclaimer: This article will focus on matches that will be played in Metro Manila or Bulacan. If you wish to catch the preliminaries of the teams playing in Japan or Indonesia, tuning in to One Sports, One Sports+, and downloading Pilipinas Live will provide your fix.
Let’s begin!
GAME SCHEDULE
If you want to watch Gilas Pilipinas, below are their games (so far):
Gilas vs Dominican Republic – August 25, Friday, 8 p.m. at Philippine Arena
Gilas vs Angola – August 27, Sunday, 8 p.m. at Smart Araneta Coliseum
Gilas vs Italy – August 29, Tuesday, 8 p.m. at Smart Araneta Coliseum
If you want to watch other countries:
Should you need more ideas on which could be the fire games, check out this list of players to watch to help you in your decision.
August 25, Friday at Philippine Arena
4 p.m. – Angola vs Italy (Group A)
August 25, Friday at Mall of Asia Arena
4:45 p.m. – Mexico vs Montenegro (Group D)
8:30 p.m. – Egypt vs Lithuania (Group D)
August 26, Saturday at Smart Araneta Coliseum
4 p.m. – South Sudan vs Puerto Rico (Group B)
8 p.m. – Serbia vs China (Group B)
August 26, Saturday at Mall of Asia Arena
4:45 p.m. – Jordan vs Greece (Group C)
8:40 p.m. – USA vs New Zealand (Group C)
August 27, Sunday at Smart Araneta Coliseum
4 p.m. – Italy vs Dominican Republic (Group A)
August 27, Sunday at Mall of Asia Arena
4:45 p.m. – Montenegro vs Egypt (Group D)
8:30 p.m. – Lithuania vs Mexico (Group D)
August 28, Monday at Smart Araneta Coliseum
4 p.m. – China vs South Sudan (Group B)
8 p.m. – Puerto Rico vs Serbia (Group B)
August 28, Monday at Mall of Asia Arena
4:45 p.m. – New Zealand vs Jordan (Group C)
8:40 p.m. – Greece vs USA (Group C)
August 29, Tuesday at Smart Araneta Coliseum
4 p.m. – Angola vs Dominican Republic (Group A)
August 29, Tuesday at Mall of Asia Arena
4:45 p.m. – Egypt vs Mexico (Group D)
8:30 p.m. – Montenegro vs Lithuania (Group D)
August 30, Wednesday at Smart Araneta Coliseum
4 p.m. – South Sudan vs Serbia (Group B)
8 p.m. – China vs Puerto Rico (Group B)
August 30, Wednesday at Mall of Asia Arena
4:40 p.m. – USA vs Jordan (Group C)
8:40 p.m. – Greece vs New Zealand (Group C)
August 31 to September 3 – Group Phase 2nd Round and Classification Round
All games will be played in either Araneta or MOA Arena.
Game times TBD.
September 5 to September 10 – Final Phase
All games will be played in MOA Arena.
Game times TBD.
VENUE 101: Getting to Mall of Asia Arena, Smart Araneta Coliseum, and Philippine Arena
If you can’t make it to the live venue, you can always tune in to One Sports and One Sports+. For in-demand streaming service, the Pilipinas Live app on your smartphone or tablet will get you up-to-date.
If you do make it to the venues, great for you. We’ve got what you need to know.
What time to arrive? Gate opening times
Philippine Arena – Gates open at 12 p.m. Portals open at 2 p.m.
Mall of Asia Arena and Smart Araneta Coliseum – Gates open 90 minutes before the first game, and 60 minutes before the second game.
What not to bring? Prohibited items
Below are just some of the items commonly brought by Filipinos, but prohibited inside all of the FIBA World Cup arenas. See the graphic below for the full list of banned items.
- Cans, containers, flasks, glass bottles
- Laptops, tablets, two-way radios, drones
- Umbrellas, larges bags, baby carriage like strollers
- Motorcycle helmets
- Pets, excluding service animals
- Weapons of any kind
How to get there? Free rides to Bulacan
Of all three venues, it’s no secret that the Philippine Arena in Bulacan is farthest from the metro. The good news? Free P2P bus rides are available! Visit the P2P bus registration site to get a slot.
Check out below for more information on the free ride.
For more information on the Philippine Arena, check out this series of infographics:
For Araneta:
For Mall of Asia Arena:
TICKETS 101: How to be part of history
Maybe you already have your tickets, and now you’re ready to catch FIBA’s flagship event, that’s great! But if you’re on the other side of the fence and don’t have tickets just yet, here’s where you can score them.
If you seek to go to MOA Arena, hop on to SM Tickets site or select SM Tickets outlets in the country.
If you wish to watch the games in Philippine Arena or Araneta, visit Ticketnet’s website or all of their outlets nationwide.
TOURNAMENT 101: Format of the games
You might be asking, how will the FIBA World Cup go? All 32 teams, separated into eight groups, will play in the first round of group phase to determine who advances to the next round.
Groups A and B will play at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City. Groups C and D will fight it out at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City. Groups E and F will play in Okinawa, Japan, while Groups G and H will be situated in Jakarta Indonesia.
Top two from each group will advance to the second round of group phase, where they will be re-clustered into four groups. Every team plays against the two teams in their group that they did not face in the first round.
The top two teams from each group, or a total of eight teams, will form the quarterfinals. The teams battle it out in a knockout playoff format for the title.
Laban, Pilipinas! Let's make history.