Today's Edition
Dubai (Aletihad)
As Official Global Airline Partner of the NBA and the inaugural title partner of the Emirates NBA Cup, Emirates is celebrating the start of the new NBA season with a head-turning, nose-to-tail livery dedicated to the league. The livery will begin making its way across the airline’s global network with flights starting next week.
The new livery features a striking blue gradient across the fuselage, punctuated by the NBA logo. The distinct Emirates lettering has transformed from its unique gold font to red, appearing alongside an illustration of a basketball bouncing between the NBA and Emirates logos. The fuselage’s new look is complemented by vibrant red engine cowls emblazoned with the distinct white calligraphy that makes up the Emirates logo.
The Emirates-NBA A380 livery was a full repaint, as part of an elaborate project encompassing design, painting, production and installation to bring the customised aircraft to life. The process, fully executed in-house by the Emirates Engineering Aircraft Appearance Centre teams, took 24 days to execute, inclusive of stripping, painting and graphics application processes.
From November 1 to December 17, to coincide with the Emirates NBA Cup, customers will experience on-board NBA inspired products and services on flights when travelling to-and-from 14 points in the US and Canada. Emirates’ NBA-themed livery is one of only four aircrafts in the airline’s fleet with full nose-to-tail bespoke designs.
Passengers in every cabin will board to see the aircraft dressed in co-branded headrests, receive drinks served on specially designed coasters and can order from courtside-themed menus.
The airline will serve sports-inspired dishes and drinks across all cabin classes and to passengers socialising at the Onboard Lounge on flights operated by the iconic A380 aircraft. Basketball fans will also be able to watch select Emirates NBA Cup games live on Sport24 on ice, Emirates’ inflight entertainment system.
Before flights, customers can also enjoy a limited-time NBA-themed menu at Emirates’ lounges in Dubai, New York JFK, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Boston.
The Emirates NBA Cup tips off on November 12 with a doubleheader on TNT with the New York Knicks, who will be sporting the Experience Abu Dhabi patch on their jerseys, visiting the Philadelphia 76ers at 7:30pm ET, followed by the Golden State Warriors hosting the Dallas Mavericks at 10pm ET.
Group play continues through December 3, with each team playing four designated Group Play games on “Cup Nights” on Tuesdays and Fridays. Eight teams will advance to the knockouts, which will consist of single-elimination games in the quarter-finals. The single-elimination semi-finals will be held on December 14 and the Championship will be decided on Tuesday, the 17th, at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Basketball lovers can own a special piece of the NBA with limited edition replica aircraft models in the newly rolled out livery in addition to other merchandise available at the Emirates Official Store.
