Liverpool named host city for 2027 Wheelchair Basketball European Championships
Liverpool has been confirmed as the host city for the IWBF Wheelchair Basketball European Championships 2027, bringing the continent's elite national teams to the M&S Bank Arena for nine days of competition from 11–19 September 2027.
The announcement marks the first time the Championships have returned to the UK since 2015, and organisers are describing it as the largest wheelchair basketball event to be staged on home soil in more than a decade. For a city already accustomed to hosting major sporting and cultural events, WBEURO27 — as the tournament is being branded — adds another significant fixture to an already crowded calendar, and gives British disability sport a rare home stage on the European circuit.
A sport built for spectacle
Liverpool has been confirmed as the host city for the IWBF Wheelchair Basketball European Championships 2027, bringing the continent's elite national teams to the M&S Bank Arena for nine days of competition from 11–19 September 2027.
The announcement marks the first time the Championships have returned to the UK since 2015, and organisers are describing it as the largest wheelchair basketball event to be staged on home soil in more than a decade. For a city already accustomed to hosting major sporting and cultural events, WBEURO27 — as the tournament is being branded — adds another significant fixture to an already crowded calendar, and gives British disability sport a rare home stage on the European circuit.
A sport built for spectacle
Wheelchair basketball has, in recent years, established itself as one of the standout events of the Paralympic programme. It combines the tactical structure of able-bodied basketball with a physicality and speed that has won over audiences well beyond the sport's traditional following. Fast transitions, hard collisions between chairs, and a pace that can flip a game's momentum in seconds have made it consistently one of the most-watched sports at recent Games — a reputation organisers will be hoping translates into strong ticket demand and broadcast interest for Liverpool 2027.
That appeal isn't lost on the athletes either. Speaking about the announcement, Great Britain wheelchair basketball player and Paris 2024 Paralympic silver medallist Terry Bywater captured what draws people to the sport, both as spectators and lifelong competitors.
"Wheelchair basketball is incredibly fast, it's physical, and there's so much happening on court that you can barely take your eyes off the game," Bywater said. "There's the noise of the wheels, the collisions, the crowd and the speed of the players — it's an incredible atmosphere. You can go from one end of the court to the other in seconds and the whole game can change in a heartbeat. I've played this sport for more than 25 years and it still gives me a buzz."
Bywater's 25 years in the sport, and his Paralympic silver medal from Paris just two years ago, make him one of the more prominent voices in British wheelchair basketball — and his enthusiasm for the Liverpool announcement reflects a wider sense within the GB set-up that a home tournament is a rare and valuable opportunity.
Paralympic qualification on the line
Beyond the spectacle, WBEURO27 carries serious competitive weight. The Championships will serve as a qualification event for the LA 2028 Paralympic Games, meaning results in Liverpool will have direct consequences for which nations make it to Los Angeles.
For Great Britain, that raises the stakes considerably. Both the men's and women's national teams will have the chance to fight for Paralympic qualification in front of a home crowd — a scenario that rarely aligns for British wheelchair basketball, given how few major tournaments are hosted domestically. A supportive, vocal crowd at the M&S Bank Arena could prove a genuine advantage across nine days of knockout-stakes competition, particularly in tight, momentum-driven contests where atmosphere can matter as much as tactics.
With qualification for Los Angeles hanging on the outcome, both GB squads will arrive at the tournament under real pressure, but also with the kind of home advantage that top-level wheelchair basketball rarely offers British players.
Tickets and what's next
Ticketing for the event has already begun. All-event passes went on sale from 10am on the day of the announcement, giving fans the option to secure access across the full nine-day tournament. Organisers have said tickets will be released in phases, with details of single-day passes to follow in due course — a structure likely aimed at maximising interest as the event draws closer and the qualification picture for LA 2028 becomes clearer across Europe.
Further details on the schedule, participating nations and the full ticketing timeline are expected to be released in the coming months as preparations for WBEURO27 continue.
For now, Liverpool's selection as host city gives British wheelchair basketball a landmark date on the calendar: a genuine European Championship, staged at home, with a place at the next Paralympic Games on the line. As Bywater put it, with the action, the noise and the stakes all set to collide at the M&S Bank Arena next September - it's all to play for.