Basketball Court Lighting Requirements

Proper lighting is critical to the safety and satisfying experience of participants on the basketball court. Basketball players enjoy the game and the spectators want to watch the game clearly. For clubs with basketball courts, the important thing is a cost-effective and energy-efficient lighting system with adequate lighting.

Generally, the basketball court is 28 m long and 15 m wide. But not all basketball courts are the same size. For example, the field size ratios in the NBA, in the USA, are slightly wider. The minimum requirements for basketball court lighting are very important for both athletes and spectators. The needs of all participants should be met with a safer and more effective lighting system.

LED lighting is one of the preferred options in lighting systems due to its long lifetime, energy efficiency and low maintenance requirement.

Appropriate Lighting

With appropriate lighting, the spectators will watch the game played on the field much more carefully and beautifully, which will cause them to have a pleasant time. Players will more accurately observe the ball's height and landing point to improve their playing performance. Referees can make more accurate decisions and increase the fairness and impartiality of the game. Professional competitions often have higher requirements for lighting.

visual comfort

Visual comfort is all about glare and flicker. Installation method of glare luminaires, installation height, number of luminaires and lighting distribution etc. It is one of the most important factors in evaluating the lighting quality related to Tremors can cause hazy vision in athletes. In basketball courts, too much power of a single luminaire, incorrect mounting height and spacing will cause uneven light distribution.

Basketball is a fast-moving and dynamic sport. Broadcasters want to present viewers with a consistent, clear and colorful image. Televised basketball events require adequate vertical lighting for the camera. It is recommended that the vertical lighting levels maintained on average be 1.5 m above the field area surface. Brightness and uniformity should also be taken into account. When the camera captures a panoramic view of the playground for broadcast television, drastically varying lighting will cause the camera to be exposed. The lighting should remind the uniformity and limitation of the irritating light in the runway area on both sides of the pole, eliminating cross projection and shadows, to meet the requirement of HD camera shooting. Glare control is important for smooth broadcasting. Not all luminaires have glare control functionality, consult the lighting manufacturer and choose luminaires with high glare control performance.


outdoor basketball court
Luminaires for outdoor basketball courts face harsh environments such as rain, dust and wind. Luminaires must be dust and waterproof. Lighting pollution can occur outdoors without glare control. Reducing light pollution is also important for the protection of human health.
Light pollution
Most outdoor sports venues are located near residential areas, so extreme care must be taken with lighting angles and coverage to avoid disturbing people around, as excessive brightness will be harmful to the eyes. In addition, light pollution can cause people to experience anxiety, lack of concentration and poor sleep. It causes severe insomnia and headaches.
Waterproof and dustproof
IP (Ingress Protection) is created as a scale to indicate the degree of protection of electrical equipment enclosures against the ingress of foreign objects. The high IP rating means the LED light is not only dustproof but can withstand high pressure and steam cleaning. The higher the IP rating of the luminaires, the better the dust and waterproof effect.



indoor basketball court
Indoor basketball courts have higher CRI (Color Rendering Index) and gloss ratio requirements. Unlike the harsh environment of outdoor basketball courts, indoor basketball courts are unlikely to be exposed to rain and strong winds.
High CRI
CRI (Color Rendering Index) is the ability to reflect the true color of the item. The closer the color rendering index is to 100, the more natural the product's colors will appear. With high CRI, the lighting not only promotes accuracy for the player to judge the track of the ball in the air, their position and the surrounding environment, but also offers a clearer view for the spectators.
brightness ratio
The luminance ratio is the difference between the color of the object and the background. It will be great for brighter object and slightly darker background sight effect. Visibility will be significantly reduced if the background is brighter than the objects. In poor lighting conditions, especially the lack of brightness difference can cause false visual phenomena.