The Caledonia Gladiators are a professional women's basketball team based in
East Kilbride
East Kilbride (; gd, Cille Bhrìghde an Ear ) is the largest town in South Lanarkshire in Scotland and the country's sixth-largest locality by population. It was also designated Scotland's first new town on 6 May 1947. The area lies on a rais ...
,
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
. Formerly known as Caledonia Pride, they are the first and currently only women's professional basketball team in Scotland, competing in the
Women's British Basketball League
The Women's British Basketball League (WBBL) is the top-level women's basketball league in Great Britain, founded on 5 June 2014 as the women's counterpart to the British Basketball League (BBL). The league's headquarters are in Leicester alongsi ...
(WBBL).
History
Caledonia Pride (2016-2022)
In May 2016, the
Women's British Basketball League
The Women's British Basketball League (WBBL) is the top-level women's basketball league in Great Britain, founded on 5 June 2014 as the women's counterpart to the British Basketball League (BBL). The league's headquarters are in Leicester alongsi ...
awarded a franchise to
basketballscotland
basketballscotland is the governing body of the sport of basketball in Scotland. The organisation manages national competitions and runs the Scotland national basketball team. They also have a cup final for all age groups of the course of a ...
, seeking to establish a franchise to help better prepare the Scottish national team for the
2018 Commonwealth Games in
Gold Coast, Australia
The Gold Coast is a coastal city in the state of Queensland, Australia, approximately south-southeast of the centre of the state capital Brisbane. With a population over 600,000, the Gold Coast is the sixth-largest city in Australia, the na ...
.
In August 2016, the name Caledonia Pride was chosen and the team's coach was announced to be Edinburgh University women's head coach Bart Sengers, who would coach Pride for the next six seasons. After a 6 year run as Caledonia Pride and a disappointing 31 wins from 104 league games it was time for Scotland’s only professional female basketball team to look at a new way forward in respect of playing personnel and proper funding.
Caledonia Gladiators (2022-present)
In June 2022, basketballscotland announced the transfer of the professional franchise to the Lady Rocks basketball club. The new team was named Caledonia Gladiators, referencing the original name of the Lady Rocks club formed in 2006, with plans for their own custom-built facility in Lanarkshire.
The 2022-23 season saw the newly formed club finish 2nd in the WBBL, a highest ever finish for any Scottish team. The 2023-24 season saw the Gladiators enter the FIBA
EuroCup Women
The EuroCup Women (officially ''FIBA EuroCup Women'') is the second-level basketball competition with teams from associate members of FIBA Europe.
It succeeds the Ronchetti Cup.
System of competition
As for the EuroLeague Women, the EuroCup had ...
in a first ever foray into European competition. This was a successful run to the knockout stages of the competition.
Home Venue
*Oriam National Performance Centre (2016-2019)
*University of Edinburgh Pleasance Sports Complex (2019–2021)
*The Crags Centre (2021-2022)
*Lagoon Centre (2022-2023)
*
Playsport Arena (2023-present)
[Caledonia Gladiators win on British Basketball League debut in new East Kilbride home](_blank)
BBC Sport, 6 October 2023
A purpose built 6000 seater arena is currently under construction in East Kilbride. Due for completion in 2024 this will be the home venue for the Caledonia Gladiators franchise.
Home games have also been played at the Grangemouth Sports Complex, Falkirk;
Emirates Arena
The Commonwealth Arena and Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome, known for sponsorship reasons as the Emirates Arena, is an indoor arena and velodrome in Dalmarnock, Glasgow, Scotland. Built for the 2014 Commonwealth Games, these venues hosted the badminto ...
, Glasgow and The Peak, Stirling.
Season-by-season records
Players
Current roster
Honours
WBBL Cup
*Runners-up:
2017-2018
References
{{Women's British Basketball League teamlist
Basketball teams in Scotland
Women's sports clubs and teams in Scotland
Women's British Basketball League teams
Basketball teams established in 2016
2016 establishments in Scotland
Sports clubs and teams in Edinburgh
Sport in South Lanarkshire
East Kilbride