ThinkSport is proud to launch the 6th edition of GEN-NEXT, part of the annual Sport Innovation Challenges (SIC) programme. Designed specifically for business universities, GEN-NEXT 2025 invites student teams to take on real-world challenges and compete with peers from across Europe—this year, in partnership with the International Basketball Federation (FIBA).
This hands-on, team-based competition offers students a unique opportunity to apply their academic knowledge in a high-stakes, professional environment, while contributing fresh ideas to some of the most relevant topics in sport today.
A Real Challenge. A Real Federation. A Real Opportunity.
For this edition, FIBA has identified two forward-looking challenge topics:
- Topic 1: How can FIBA enhance its value proposition to drive the growth of its Direct-to-Consumer business?
- Topic 2: How can FIBA tap into the opportunities of health data in the sport of basketball?
Each participating team will choose one topic and spend three months researching, designing, and proposing innovative solutions with the support of mentors, access to tools, and real data provided by FIBA.
Why Join?
As an academic partner, you will be an active stakeholder in the challenge and will represent them throughout the competition. This is a unique opportunity to enter an award-winning competition against other universities via your student groups. It also gives you access to real cases and data from a sports federation. This project can be included in your student’s curriculum. Find more info here.
Key Information
- Challenge Period: September to December 2025
- Organisers: ThinkSport
- Challenge Partner: International Basketball Federation (FIBA)
- Sponsor: Swiss University Sports
- Contact for Onboarding: gen-next.challenge@thinksport.org
- More info at: https://thinksport.org/product/gen-next-challenge/