SportsMaze

Can a 3x3 team challenge a referee's call?

I · Intermediate · Officials, results and differences · 6 of 7
Checked 14 October 2026

Yes,

at the top events. At the Olympic Games, the World Cup and the World Tour, a player may call "Challenge" to have one of a fixed list of decisions reviewed on video. Other competitions may allow it in their own rules. A team that loses its challenge has no more in that game.

How it works

  • The officials: two referees, helped by a scorer, a scoreboard operator, a shot clock operator and, where there is one, a sports supervisor at the table.
  • Advantage: the referees are told not to stop the game for incidental contact that gives the offender no advantage and puts the opponent at no disadvantage.
  • Who may challenge: any player of either team.
  • How: by saying "Challenge" loudly and making a C with the thumb and forefinger.
  • When: at the team's next possession or the first dead ball after the incident, whichever comes first. Later than that, the request is refused.
  • What: only a score or a decision that was called. A no-call that did not lead to a score cannot be challenged.
  • The list: whether a made shot left the hand before the shot clock signal; whether the ball was cleared; whether possession changed before a shot; whether a goal counts and for 1 or 2 points; whether a foul on a shooter brings 1 or 2 free throws; and, in the last 2 minutes, in overtime or once a team has 19 points, out of bounds decisions.
  • Lost: the call stands and the team loses the right to challenge for the rest of the game.
  • Won: the call is changed and the team keeps its challenge.
  • Unclear video: the call stands and the team keeps its challenge.
  • Always open: whether a shot at the end of the game was released in time, and its value.

The glossary has the challenge and the shot clock.

Tricky cases

Can a team challenge a foul that was not called?

No. Only scores and decisions that were called can be challenged.

Can a team challenge an out of bounds call in the first minute?

No. Out of bounds reviews are open only in the last two minutes of regular time, in overtime or once a team has 19 points or more.

The video does not settle what happened. Has the team lost its challenge?

No. The call stands and the team keeps the right.

Can the referees look at a replay without a challenge?

Yes, where the system is in use and the supervisor approves. Their list includes scoring and clock errors, a last shot, goaltending, the grade of a foul and acts of violence.

Why the rule exists

Games are short and often settled by one basket, and several 3x3 decisions turn on a toe: on the arc or behind it, cleared or not. The challenge lets the players, who have no coach to do it, ask for the calls that video can settle. Losing the right after one failed attempt keeps it for the moments that matter.

Where it differs

WhereWhat changesSource
Olympic Games, World Cup (open category), World TourChallenges allowedArt. 47.5.1
Other competitionsOnly if the competition's rules say so and a replay system is in useArt. 47.5.1
Games with one referee leftIf a referee is injured and cannot be replaced, the other finishes aloneArt. 47.8
Five-a-side basketballThe head coach makes the challenge../5x5/ set

From the rule book

FIBA, Official 3x3 Basketball Rules 2026 (valid as of 1 January 2026), Articles 45.1 to 45.3, 47.4, 47.5 to 47.5.4 and 47.8. Official document:FIBA Official 3x3 Basketball Rules (PDF).

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