MIES (Switzerland) - As of October 1, 2026, a new edition of the FIBA Official Basketball Rules will come into effect worldwide and these are now available to download.
The main changes incorporated in the updated FIBA Official Basketball Rules 2026 include the following:
Art. 15 – Player in the Act of Shooting:
Clarifying the definition of continuous movement and location of the player in the act of shooting.
Art. 36 – Technical Foul:
Distinguishing two (2) categories of technical fouls, those counting towards game disqualification and those not counting towards game disqualification.
Art. 37 & 38 – Disruptive and Flagrant Fouls:
Replacing the unsportsmanlike foul with two new types of fouls (disruptive foul and flagrant foul), with flagrant fouls counting towards game disqualification, and disruption fouls not counting towards game disqualification.
Appendix F – Instant Replay System & Head Coach’s Challenge:
Allowing the use of the Instant Replay System (IRS) to review a goaltending or basket interference violation, after a foul committed, at any time of the game.
Allowing the use of the Instant Replay System (IRS) to review whether the ball was still in the hands of the thrower-in at the moment a foul was committed by the defensive team during a throw-in situation in the last 2 minutes of the fourth quarter and in each overtime.
In order to facilitate the preparation for the application of the new rule changes worldwide, FIBA has published the following documents:
Official Basketball Rules 2026 - v1.1
Official Basketball Rules Interpretations 2026 - v1.0
Official Basketball Rules 2026 Changes - v1.1
Official Basketball Rules 2026 Changes - v1.1 - French
Official Basketball Rules 2026 Changes - v1.1 - Spanish
Official Basketball Rules 2026 - Basketball Equipment - v1.0
These documents, along with the full list of FIBA regulations, are available in the FIBA Document Library here.
FIBA's Rules Advisory Group is made up of basketball and refereeing experts. FIBA's Rules Advisory Group studies all proposals for rule changes before submitting them to the FIBA Technical Commission for a final review. After the final review, it is the FIBA Central Board who approves any changes to the FIBA Official Basketball Rules.
A webinar regarding the current rule updates is available here.
FIBA