# South American professional club basketball system

The South American professional club basketball system or South American professional club basketball pyramid is a series of interconnected competitions for professional basketball clubs in South America. The system has a hierarchical format with a promotion and relegation system between competitions at different levels. There are currently two different competitions on the pyramid – the 1st tier Basketball Champions League Americas, and the 2nd tier FIBA South American League. The 1st-tier level Basketball Champions League Americas is organized by FIBA Americas, and the 2nd-tier level FIBA South American League is organized by the South American Basketball Association (ABASU), which operates as a regional sub-zone of FIBA Americas.

## The tier pyramid
### Current South American basketball competitions

| Level | League | League | League | League | League |
| 1 | Basketball Champions League Americas (2019 – present) | Basketball Champions League Americas (2019 – present) | Basketball Champions League Americas (2019 – present) | Basketball Champions League Americas (2019 – present) | Basketball Champions League Americas (2019 – present) |
| 2 | FIBA South American League (2008 – present) | FIBA South American League (2008 – present) | FIBA South American League (2008 – present) | FIBA South American League (2008 – present) | FIBA South American League (2008 – present) |

### Evolution of the South American basketball competitions

The table below shows the tier structure of the pyramid for both the former eras and the current era. Current tier competitions are indicated in bold.
| Level | League | League | League | League | League |
| 1 | Basketball Champions League Americas (2019 – present) FIBA Americas League (2007 – 2019) (Defunct) FIBA South American League (2001 – 2007) (Current 2nd-tier) Pan American Club Championship (1993 – 2000) (Defunct) South American Championship of Champions Clubs (1946 – 1992) (Defunct) | Basketball Champions League Americas (2019 – present) FIBA Americas League (2007 – 2019) (Defunct) FIBA South American League (2001 – 2007) (Current 2nd-tier) Pan American Club Championship (1993 – 2000) (Defunct) South American Championship of Champions Clubs (1946 – 1992) (Defunct) | Basketball Champions League Americas (2019 – present) FIBA Americas League (2007 – 2019) (Defunct) FIBA South American League (2001 – 2007) (Current 2nd-tier) Pan American Club Championship (1993 – 2000) (Defunct) South American Championship of Champions Clubs (1946 – 1992) (Defunct) | Basketball Champions League Americas (2019 – present) FIBA Americas League (2007 – 2019) (Defunct) FIBA South American League (2001 – 2007) (Current 2nd-tier) Pan American Club Championship (1993 – 2000) (Defunct) South American Championship of Champions Clubs (1946 – 1992) (Defunct) | Basketball Champions League Americas (2019 – present) FIBA Americas League (2007 – 2019) (Defunct) FIBA South American League (2001 – 2007) (Current 2nd-tier) Pan American Club Championship (1993 – 2000) (Defunct) South American Championship of Champions Clubs (1946 – 1992) (Defunct) |
| 2 | FIBA South American League (1996 – 2000, 2008 – present) South American Championship of Champions Clubs (1993 – 1996, 2001 – 2007) (Defunct) | FIBA South American League (1996 – 2000, 2008 – present) South American Championship of Champions Clubs (1993 – 1996, 2001 – 2007) (Defunct) | FIBA South American League (1996 – 2000, 2008 – present) South American Championship of Champions Clubs (1993 – 1996, 2001 – 2007) (Defunct) | FIBA South American League (1996 – 2000, 2008 – present) South American Championship of Champions Clubs (1993 – 1996, 2001 – 2007) (Defunct) | FIBA South American League (1996 – 2000, 2008 – present) South American Championship of Champions Clubs (1993 – 1996, 2001 – 2007) (Defunct) |
| 3 | South American Championship of Champions Clubs (1996 – 2000, 2008) (Defunct) | South American Championship of Champions Clubs (1996 – 2000, 2008) (Defunct) | South American Championship of Champions Clubs (1996 – 2000, 2008) (Defunct) | South American Championship of Champions Clubs (1996 – 2000, 2008) (Defunct) | South American Championship of Champions Clubs (1996 – 2000, 2008) (Defunct) |

### History

The evolution of the top-tier international South American inter–continental and South American inter–regional professional club basketball competitions (1946—present):
* CONSUBASQUET era: (1946–2007)
** Campeonato Sudamericano de Clubes Campeones de Básquetbol (English: South American Basketball Championship of Champions Clubs): (1946–1993)
** Campeonato Panamericano de Clubes de Básquetbol (English: Pan American Basketball Club Championship): (1993–2000)
** Liga Sudamericana de Básquetbol (LSB) (English: South American Basketball League): (2000–2007)
* FIBA Americas era: (2007–present)
** FIBA Americas League: (2007 – 2019)
** Basketball Champions League Americas: (2019 – present)