NEW YORK – The National Basketball Association (NBA) is set to embark on a comprehensive international preseason tour that includes six NBA teams traveling to seven cities in six countries as part of the league’s 2012 international preseason schedule.

The schedule includes three different international tours: NBA Europe Live presented by BBVA™, 2012 NBA Mexico Game presented by BBVA Bancomer, and NBA China Games 2012. Following the games, NBA teams will have played 114 games outside the U.S. and Canada in 32 cities and 17 countries since 1988.

All seven games will air live on NBA TV in the U.S. and will be televised to fans in 215 countries and territories. The NBA will also engage more than 320 million fans and followers across social media on a global basis in real time and provide unprecedented behind-the-scenes access for fans.

In Greater China, fans can watch NBA China Games on television networks and websites including: CCTV5, BesTV, Guangdong TV, Ningxia Satellite TV, Now Sport, cntv.cn, Sina.com, QQ.com, and Funshion.com.  Local partners televising NBA Europe Live in each of the countries hosting games include D-Smart in Turkey, Sport1+ in Germany, Sky Sport 2 in Italy, and Canal+ Deportes in Spain.   In addition, the games in Europe will be carried for the first time by the following television and radio stations: OTE Sport 3 (Greece), Dolce Sport 2 (Romania), SABC 1 (South Africa), and KTXA (United States).  ESPN Dos and TV Azteca will broadcast NBA Mexico Game.

Multinational and local marketing partners will support all seven international games to help expand the excitement surrounding the games among fans locally with retail promotions, sweepstakes, and grassroots events. At the Oriental Sports Center in Shanghai on Oct. 13, NBA China will host the first-ever NBA Fan Appreciation Day, a free open practice featuring the Miami Heat and Los Angeles Clippers that will thank fans for their support of NBA China Games 2012. In Europe, the league will host the partner-supported NBA Fan Zone, a free, outdoor fan festival taking place in each of the four NBA Europe Live cities.

The NBA will conduct a series of community events with local partners throughout the games as part of its global commitment to social responsibilities through NBA Cares. NBA players and coaches on participating NBA teams, NBA legends, and executives from the league and the teams will lead the efforts, which will include dedicating a refurbished basketball court in Berlin and a refurbished Reading & Learning Center in Beijing, along with basketball clinics in Barcelona, Beijing, Istanbul, Mexico City, Milan, and Shanghai.

NBA Europe Live presented by BBVA™ features the 17-time NBA champion Boston Celtics and 2011 NBA Champion Dallas Mavericks taking on top Euroleague basketball teams in a four-city European tour. The games tip off on Oct. 5 when the Celtics play Fenerbahce Ulker at the newly opened Ulker Sports Arena in Istanbul, Turkey. The Celtics will then travel to Milan, Italy, where they will take on EA7 Emporio Armani at the Mediolanum Forum on Oct.7.

The tour continues when the Mavericks featuring German native Dirk Nowitzki travel to Berlin and take on Alba Berlin on Oct. 6 at the The O2 World. The Mavericks will travel to Barcelona, Spain for the final game in a showdown against FC Barcelona Regal at the Palau Sant Jordi on Oct. 9. Since 1988, the NBA has staged 56 games in 18 cities throughout Europe.

NBA Mexico Game 2012 presented by BBVA Bancomer will feature the Orlando Magic – including Mexico native Gustavo Ayon – and New Orleans Hornets on Oct. 7 at the newly opened Mexico City Arena in Mexico City. The NBA has played more matchups in Mexico than in any other country outside the U.S. and Canada, staging 20 games there, 18 of them in Mexico City.

NBA China Games 2012 will feature two games between the reigning NBA champion Miami Heat and the Los Angeles Clippers: on Oct. 11 at the MasterCard Center in Beijing and on Oct. 14 at the Mercedes-Benz Arena in Shanghai. This marks the sixth edition of NBA China Games and the first time the defending NBA champions will compete in the event. In 2004, the NBA became the first American professional sports league to play games in China, with two games between the Rockets and the Sacramento Kings in Shanghai and Beijing.