Those of you who are new to Lambda Basketball have learned that we offer Weekly Open Gyms (Women's+ on Thursday nights and All Gender on Friday nights) and League Play twice a year (Spring/Fall). However, there is a third basketball experience that we offer and that is sending teams to participate in national tournaments organized by the National Gay Basketball Association and international tournaments organized by the Federation of Gay Games.
The National Gay Basketball Association (NGBA)
The NGBA was founded by Lambda Basketball co-founder Mark Chambers in 2008 and currently organizes three to four tournaments a year across the United States. Each tournament has multiple All Gender divisions based upon skill level. This fall, the NGBA is organizing a tournament in Washington DC which offer multiple skill divisions for both All Gender and Women's+ players.
Our current Board of Director Jason J. also serves as a Regional Director for the National Gay Basketball Association and is a good person to contact (jason.jaramillo@ngba.org) with questions about upcoming NGBA tournaments, getting and the creation of a team to participate in NGBA tournaments.
Lambda Basketball would ideally like to send two Women's+ division teams to the upcoming fall NGBA tournament in Washington DC. Players pay their own expenses for NGBA tournaments. Please click the link below if you are interested in participating in the Washington DC tournament. on a Women's+ Division team:
More information about the NGBA can be found on the following website:
Federation of Gay Games
The upcoming Gay Games Hong Kong will be the 11th Olympic-style sports event for the LGBTQ+ community and its allies. Basketball is one of the main sports for the Gay Games with both All Gender and Women's+ teams from across the world coming together to compete for gold, silver and bronze medals for the multiple divisions based on skill level/age.
The Gay Games is around a ten day event kicked off with an Opening Ceremony where players walk out with their respective countries, six days of tournament style basketball play, and a closing ceremony/party. The Gay Games is not only a sporting experience, but a cultural experience as well with multiple art, advocacy and culture events also organized. There are also a high number of nightly events organized at various restaurants, bars and clubs. Overall, it is an amazing basketball experience
Gay Games Host Cities:
Gay Games I - San Francisco (1982)
Gay Games II - San Francisco (1986)
Gay Games III - Vancouver (1990)
Gay Games IV - New York City (1994)
Gay Games V - Amsterdam (1998)
Gay Games VI - Sydney (2002)
Gay Games VII - Chicago (2006)
Gay Games VIII - Cologne (2010)
Gay Games IX - Cleveland (2014)
Gay Games X - Paris (2018)
Gay Games XI - Hong Kong/Guadalajara (2023) - https://gghk2022.com/en/
Gay Games XII - Valencia (2026)
You can find more information about the Gay Games by clicking on the following link:
League of Champions
Teams from Lambda Basketball have competed in all of the tournaments organized by the NGBA and a good majority of the Gay Games; and have won tournament championships and Gold Medals in all skill level divisions.. We are a league of champions on and off the court!
You can learn about the Long Beach Rebels, one of Lambda Basketball's most storied teams, on the following link:
We can be reached at admin@lambdabasketball.com with any questions about the National Gay Basketball Association or Gay Games.