Cision PR Newswire

BIG3 RETURNS TO CBS FOR SIXTH CONSECUTIVE YEAR WITH AN EXPANDED 11 WEEK SEASON

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Nov 26, 2024, 11:30 AM ET

BIG3's Eighth Season Tips Off on June 14, 2025, Live on CBS, Capped off with Back-to-Back Weekends of Playoff Action

LOS ANGELES, Nov. 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, the BIG3 announced that the league will return to CBS for the sixth consecutive year of fast-paced and competitive 3-on-3 basketball with an expanded 11-week season. BIG3 action begins on Saturday, June 14, 2025, live on CBS and Paramount+ and will have 26 total hours of live games throughout the summer.

"This is the first piece of the puzzle in putting together an extraordinary eighth season," said BIG3 Co-CEO Ice Cube. "CBS has been an outstanding partner for us these past five years and we can't wait to bring our fans an additional week of BIG3 basketball on the network they know and love. Beyond the impressive number of consecutive years we've worked together, the re-signing of this deal cements the BIG3 on CBS's summer programming line-up and sets the stage to finally embrace our dedicated fans in each of our new home markets – Los Angeles, Miami, Houston and Detroit. We are incredibly proud of our longstanding shared commitment to promote and grow the game of 3-on-3 basketball and know that there is so much more to come this summer."

"BIG3 is an exciting brand of basketball that is growing in popularity every year," said Dan Weinberg, Executive Vice President, Programming, CBS Sports. "We are looking forward to them returning to our summer sports line up as we continue to showcase the best in 3-on-3 hoops and crown the next BIG3 champion on CBS."

Summer 2024 marked the most-attended season in the post-COVID-19 era, averaging 10,000 fans throughout a mix of college and professional arenas in ten top-40 DMA's. In 2025, the league will add an 11^th week and transition from a touring model to each team representing home markets, including Los Angeles, Miami, Houston, and Detroit, among others in the US and internationally. The full 2025 BIG3 schedule on CBS will be released at a later date.

"We are thrilled to have BIG3 officially back home on CBS for the sixth consecutive year," said BIG3 Co-CEO Jeff Kwatinetz. "Going into an incredibly exciting juncture with the transition to home markets, season eight may well be the biggest opportunity the league has seen in its post-COVID era. CBS truly is the best in the business and we couldn't be happier to have our trusted partners alongside us for another game-changing season."

To learn more about the BIG3 go to BIG3.com and follow @thebig3 on X and Instagram.

ABOUT BIG3:
On January 11, 2017, the BIG3 was born. The first-ever professional FIREBALL3 league is the brainchild of producer, actor, and music legend Ice Cube and entertainment executive Jeff Kwatinetz, who shared a vision of a player-centric league focused on entertainment and innovation. The BIG3 is a league with no garbage minutes, where trash talk is allowed, defense is emphasized, fast-paced action, and where every point –whether it's a 4-point or 3-point shot – counts. Any given BIG3 team has hall of famers, icons and trailblazers, and the next best 3-on-3 player.

The league has led the sports industry in diversity and opportunity, becoming the first professional sports league to implement a mental health policy, favor CBD as a pain management alternative to opioids, enlist female coaches of men, and appoint a black Commissioner in Hall of Famer Clyde Drexler, who is also professional sports first former player serving as Commissioner. The inaugural CEO was the legendary, incomparable Raider executive Amy Trask. This January 2024, BIG3 co-founder Ice Cube was honored at the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, where he received the inaugural Ice Cube Impact Award, acknowledging individuals making substantial contributions to their community, the first non-player to be recognized. Founders Ice Cube and Jeffrey Kwatinetz are missioned to better society as BIG3 pursues business success while also helping to break down stereotypes, promote diversity in sports, create opportunities for black, brown, and female athletes beyond the court, and support the black, youth and basketball communities overall.

CONTACT:
Hannah Palacios, BIG3 (hannah@big3.com)