UAE sponsors a genocidal militia in Sudan◆ Rwanda commands the deadly M23 militia in DR Congo◆ More than 12 million people displaced by Sudan’s war◆ More than 5 million people displaced in DR Congo◆ The UAE sponsors the NBA and WNBA◆ Rwanda sponsors the NBA◆ 10,000 child soldiers in Sudan◆ 13,000 child soldiers in DR Congo◆ The UAE and Rwanda spend close to $5 billion in sportswashing brand deals◆ $30 billion+ in illicit gold flows globally every year, much of it through the UAE◆ War Crimes Shouldn’t Pay◆ UAE sponsors a genocidal militia in Sudan◆ Rwanda commands the deadly M23 militia in DR Congo◆ More than 12 million people displaced by Sudan’s war◆ More than 5 million people displaced in DR Congo◆ The UAE sponsors the NBA and WNBA◆ Rwanda sponsors the NBA◆ 10,000 child soldiers in Sudan◆ 13,000 child soldiers in DR Congo◆ The UAE and Rwanda spend close to $5 billion in sportswashing brand deals◆ $30 billion+ in illicit gold flows globally every year, much of it through the UAE◆ War Crimes Shouldn’t Pay◆

Blood on the Ball

A project of The Sentry

The cover-up.

The United Arab Emirates and Rwanda are fueling two of the world’s deadliest conflicts — in Sudan and the DR Congo (Democratic Republic of the Congo). Together they have spent close to $5 billion sponsoring sports teams and leagues to cover up their roles. This is “sportswashing.”

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Tell the NBA: end the United Arab Emirates partnership. Sponsors care about their reputation.

Civilians displaced by the war in Sudan.
Emirates branding visible inside an NBA arena.
Scene from a Sudanese displacement camp.
NBA arena interior on Emirates NBA Cup night.

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Sudan is burning as the UAE provides killer drones and other weapons to a genocidal Sudanese militia, the RSF. The UAE sportswashes its connection to Sudan’s devastation through a $300 million NBA and WNBA deal.

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The NBA Campaign

The UAE sponsors the NBA and WNBA. The UAE also sponsors a genocidal militia in Sudan.

Same sponsor. Two realities.

Each composition pairs NBA images with images from Sudan, confronting the United Arab Emirates’ sponsorship of both professional basketball and the violence of the war in Sudan.

NBA championship trophy lifted in celebration, beside Sudanese refugees gathered with cooking pots at a displacement camp.Left: Justin Ford/Getty Images. Right: AFP via Getty Images.
Jalen Brunson on the Emirates NBA Cup court, beside a Sudan internally displaced persons camp.Left: Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images. Right: AFP via Getty Images.
NBA action on the Emirates Cup court, beside Sudanese civilians at a displacement camp.NBA image: David Becker/NBAE via Getty Images.
NBA referees wearing Emirates patches on the Cup court, beside Sudanese women and girls waiting in line at a displacement camp in eastern Chad.Left: Juan Ocampo/NBAE via Getty Images. Right: Dan Kitwood/Getty Images.
NBA arena scene on Emirates Cup night, beside the aftermath of attacks by the RSF in Sudan.NBA image: Steve Marcus/Getty Images.

The content on this site is directed at policies and commercial partnerships between the NBA and UAE. Player images are used for illustrative purposes only and do not imply their involvement in or endorsement of the activities discussed.

The NBA and WNBA are renowned for their support of civil and human rights, going back to the 1960s during the Bill Russell era.

Same playbook. Two of the deadliest conflicts in the world.

Knicks vs Spurs at the Emirates NBA Cup arena beside Sudan rubble from a recent attack. Same logo, both realities.Left: David L. Nemec/NBAE via Getty Images. Right: Carolyn Van Houten/The Washington Post via Getty Images.

The Emirates NBA Cup. The Sudan crisis. Same logo, both realities. The UAE pays $300 million to put its name on the trophy. It also pays for the militia that attacked and emptied this camp.

SourceNBA Cup Final, December 2025

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) sponsors a deadly militia in Sudan by providing killer drones and other weapons to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which the United Nations says is committing genocide. As Sudan has descended into devastating conflict, the UAE’s support for the brutal RSF militia has enabled widespread atrocities, while international attention is diverted by the UAE’s polished global sports branding.

The UAE has spent over $4.5 billion sponsoring sports leagues and teams as well as purchasing teams around the world to sportswash its image. These are profitable ventures for the UAE.

UAE total committed

$4.5billion+

Approximate totals across global sports investments and sponsorship commitments.

  • Soccer / Football $3.4B+
  • Formula 1 $640M+
  • Basketball $380M
  • Cycling, Tennis, Rugby, & more $100M+

Soccer / Football

Over $3.4 billion

  1. Manchester City Football Club purchase from UAE Vice President Sheikh Mansour, plus UAE brand sponsorship.

    SourceThe Sentry archive, Manchester City ownership filings.$1.9B+SourceEtihad and UAE state-linked sponsorship deals.$540M=$2.44B

    71% of soccer total

  2. Real Madrid sponsorship.

    SourceEmirates / Real Madrid disclosures.$590M

    15% of soccer total

  3. Arsenal sponsorship.

    SourceWashington Post Op-Ed, February 2026.$330M

    10% of soccer total

Formula 1

Over $640 million

  1. Hosts the Formula 1 season finale in Abu Dhabi. UAE also sponsors the Alpine Formula 1 team.

    SourceFormula 1 hosting fees, Abu Dhabi GP.$640M+

Basketball

$380 million

  1. NBA, including Emirates NBA Cup, WNBA, broadcast graphics, referee jersey patches, and more.

    SourceNBA-Emirates partnership announcement, October 2025.$300M+

    79% of basketball total

  2. Euroleague Basketball.

    SourceEuroleague-Emirates disclosures.$50M / year

    13% of basketball total

  3. New York Knicks.

    SourceKnicks-Experience Abu Dhabi partnership, public reporting. The Sentry archive.$30M / year

    8% of basketball total

Cycling, Tennis, Rugby, and more

Over $100 million

  1. International cycling teams, ATP Tour, Rugby World Cup, and more.

    SourceAggregated sponsorship disclosures.$100M+

Rwanda invaded eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo) with up to 12,000 troops, and it commands and controls the M23 militia, which has committed mass killings and alleged war crimes.

Rwanda has spent over $200 million on sponsoring sports teams and leagues to sportswash its image.

Rwanda total committed

$200million+

Approximate totals across global sports sponsorship and hosting commitments.

  • Soccer / Football $185M+
  • Basketball $6–7M / yr
  • Cycling (hosting) UCI Road Worlds

Soccer / Football

Over $185 million

  1. Arsenal. In response to public pressure, Arsenal will end this partnership at the end of the current season.

    SourceVisit Rwanda / Arsenal sponsorship. WaPo op-ed, Feb 23 2026.$100M+

    54% of soccer total

  2. Paris Saint-Germain.

    SourceVisit Rwanda / PSG disclosures.$30M+

    16% of soccer total

  3. Atletico Madrid.

    SourceVisit Rwanda / Atletico sponsorship.$30M+

    16% of soccer total

  4. Bayern Munich. Bayern Munich ended this commercial sponsorship in August 2025.

    SourceDW: Bayern Munich end Rwanda sponsorship after pressure (August 2025).$25M+

    14% of soccer total

Basketball

$6 to $7 million / year

  1. NBA partnership on the Basketball Africa League.

    SourceNBA Africa / Visit Rwanda partnership terms.$6 to 7M / year

  2. LA Clippers (NBA) and LA Rams (NFL). Several million dollars.

    SourcePublic sponsorship filings.Several million+

Cycling

Hosting

  1. Hosts the UCI Road World Championships.

    SourceUCI hosting agreement, Kigali 2025.Hosting

Saudi Arabia provides support to the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF), which is fighting the RSF and is also responsible for mass atrocities. Saudi Arabia also uses commercial branding partnerships with sports teams and leagues to try to enhance its reputation.

Saudi Arabia owns English Premier League team Newcastle United, four teams in the Saudi League, including Al-Nassr where Cristiano Ronaldo plays, and has partnerships with the ATP Tour in tennis and Formula 1.

Saudi Arabia has invested over $5 billion in LIV Golf, according to Golfweek, though that investment is coming to an end at the conclusion of the 2026 season.

The government of the DR Congo sends arms to other militias in eastern Congo while it too invests in brand partnerships with sports teams. The DRC government is now sponsoring AS Monaco, FC Barcelona, and AC Milan, worth an estimated $60 million+ in total.

These figures are based on what we could verify through open-source investigation. The actual figures are likely higher given the lack of transparency on some of these deals.

Watch.

The UAE sponsors the NBA while it sponsors a genocidal militia in Sudan.

Learn more at Bloodontheball.org

The NBA must end the United Arab Emirates sponsorship deal.

Earlier in the campaign

A short explainer on the UAE’s role in Sudan, narrated by Don Cheadle.

Sponsoring something far darker

NBA Op-Eds, pair

Two op-eds. The UAE-NBA deal. The Rwanda-NBA deal. Read both.

Prendergast and Ismail. Prendergast and Lezhnev.

01

Prendergast and Ismail

The Horror Lurking Beneath the NBA-UAE Branding Deal

Newsweek, May 2026.

Read →

02

Prendergast and Lezhnev

The Rwanda-NBA Deal

Forthcoming. Common Dreams.

Coming soon →

Op-Ed · The Washington Post

Arsenal sportswashing and the UAE. Read the op-ed.

Washington Post, February 2026

Read →

Sudan. DR Congo. The faces behind the figures.

A Sudanese civilian displaced by the war.
A woman in eastern DR Congo sits among the ruins of her thatched home, destroyed in violence driven by armed groups.