The ASEAN Basketball League (ABL) was founded in 2009 by Dato’ Tony Fernandes, founder of Air Asia, along with founding member Erick Thohir and with the instrumental help of former FIBA Regional Office - Asia Secretary General and former Malaysia Basketball Association (MABA) vice president Datuk Yeoh Choo Hock. As the first ever regional professional basketball league in Asia, ABL took the scene by storm and changed the face of professional sports in the region.