The competition features the club champions of the five FIBA continental confederations, as well as one representative from the NBA G League.

In place of the EuroLeague, which has long been considered Europe's most prestigious club competition, FIBA Europe sends the champions of their main club competition, the Basketball Champions League (BCL).

FIBA tried to rebirth the competition in 1996, by reorganizing the Intercontinental Cup into a best-of-three playoff tournament between the winners of the Euroleague and the winners of the FIBA South American League (the champions of South America).

Although this tournament is not a part of the actual Club World Cup, it is still listed in the event's history as a special version of the tournament and counts as one of the editions, while the actual club competition was on hiatus between the years of 1970 and 1973.

The event was changed from February to September so that it adapts more efficiently to the domestic and continental leagues' calendar and the schedule of international players, and to better accommodate participating clubs.

This makes it the first time in the Intercontinental Cup's history that the event will be held in Asia.

For the 2023 edition a team from the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) was chosen by FIBA to participate.

[18] The 2024 season will feature a team from Oceania for the first time, as the winners of Australia and New Zealand's National Basketball League (NBL) earn direct qualification.

[21] Real Madrid from Spain holds the record for most victories, with a total of five titles.

All four games are streamed through FIBA's YouTube channel for free in the USA and the unsold markets with highlights available in all territories.