TheEuroLeague is a European men's professionalbasketball club competition. The league is widely recognised as the top-tier and the most prestigious men's basketball league in Europe.[3][4] The league consists of 20 teams, of which 16 are given long-term licences and wild cards,[5] making the league asemi-closed league.[6][7] The league was first organized byFIBA in 1958, subsequently byULEB in 2000 and then solely byEuroleague Basketball.
The competition was introduced in 1958 as theFIBA European Champions Cup (renamed theFIBA EuroLeague in 1996), which operated under FIBA's umbrella until Euroleague Basketball was created for the 2000–01 season. The FIBA European Champions Cup and the EuroLeague are considered to be the same competition, with the change of name being simply a re-branding. From 2010 to 2025, it was sponsored byTurkish Airlines.
The EuroLeague is one of the most popular indoor sports leagues in the world, with anaverage attendance of 10,383 for league matches in the2023–24 season. This was the fifth-highest of any professional indoor sports league in the world (the highest outside the United States), and the second-highest of any professional basketball league in the world, only behind theNational Basketball Association (NBA).
The EuroLeague title has been won by 22 clubs, 15 of which have won it more than once. Themost successful club in the competition isReal Madrid, with 11 titles whileCSKA Moscow follow with 8 andPanathinaikos with 7. The latter is also the competition's most successful club during its modern era since 2000 with 6 trophies, whileVirtus Bologna was the first ever winner in 2000–01.
Maccabi Tel Aviv was the competition's last ever champion during the FIBA period which was ended in 2001. Until thenFIBA had organised 44 editions withReal Madrid also being the most decorated club during the FIBA era (1958–2001) with 8 titles.
The FIBA European Champions Cup was originally established byFIBA and it operated from 1958 until the summer of 2001. Since the1987–88 FIBA European Champions Cup and until 2001, the winner was decided by a final four.
The1999–00 season was the last before the split of 2000 betweenFIBA and various top clubs backed byULEB who launched its own top-tier competition. In the summer of 2000 theEuroleague Basketball was found.
FIBA had previously used theEuroLeague name for the competition since 1996, but it had never trademarked the name. As FIBA had nolegal recourse on the usage of the name,ULEB grasped the opportunity and started a new league under the name ofEuroleague', while FIBA renamed its top-tier competition theFIBA SuproLeague. Thus, the2000–2001 season started with two top European professional club basketball competitions: FIBA SuproLeague (renamed from FIBA EuroLeague) and EuroLeague byULEB.
In May 2001, Europe had two continental champions, Maccabi of the FIBA SuproLeague and Kinder Bologna of the ULEB Euroleague. Both organizations realized the need to come up with a unified competition and Euroleague Basketball negotiated terms and dictated proceedings which FIBA agreed to their terms. As a result, European club competition was fully integrated under Euroleague Basketball's umbrella and teams that competed in the FIBA SuproLeague during the 2000–01 season joined it as well.
The authority in European professional basketball was divided over club-country lines. FIBA stayed in charge of national team competitions (like theFIBA EuroBasket, theFIBA World Cup, and theSummer Olympics), whileULEB andEuroleague Basketball took over the major European club competition, establishing 3-year licences with top clubs - not based on sporting merit.
From that point on, FIBA'sKorać Cup andSaporta Cup competitions lasted one more season and then Euroleague Basketball launched the ULEB Cup, now known as theEuroCup, following another major disagreement withFIBA who launched its own two competitions as an answer.
In 2009, Euroleague Properties S.A. (EP) was created and the competition's companyEuroleague Basketball underJordi Bertomeu took full control, limitingULEB's role. During all this period many top European clubs had permanent presence in the competition via licences and regardless of their domestic performances.
In October 2015,FIBA tried to take control back, tempting 8 top European clubs (Panathinaikos, Olympiakos, Real Madrid, Barcelona, Maccabi Tel Aviv, CSKA Moscow, Fenerbahce and Efes Pilsen) to sign long-term licenses with the Federation in a 16-team brand new European league called theFIBA Basketball Champions League in a round-robin format (the other 8 spots would be decided on domestic performances). The clubs rejected the proposal, but they came up with an almost identical plan a few weeks later.
In November 2015,Euroleague Basketball andIMG agreed on a 10-year joint venture. Both Euroleague Basketball and IMG will manage the commercial operation, and the management of all global rights covering both media and marketing.[10] The deal was worth €630 million guaranteed over 10 years, with projected revenues reaching €900 million.[11] Along with the deal the league changed into a true league format, with 16 teams playing each other team in the regular season followed by the playoffs. The A-licensed clubs were assured of participation for the following ten years in the new format.
After the new format of the EuroLeague and FIBA implementing national team windows, aconflict between the two organizations emerged. EuroLeague has been criticised by FIBA as well as several national federations for creating a 'closed league' and ignoring the principle ofmeritocracy. In July 2019, EuroLeague announced that from the 2019–20 season there will be no direct access to the league through domestic leagues anymore, effectively making it aclosed league.[12]
The EuroLeague saw increasing influence from the Middle East during the 2020s. The league had another milestone event in 2025, when it hosted theFinal Four inAbu Dhabi, as the first final tournament to be held outside of Europe.[13] The league further expanded to 20 teams in the 2025–26 season.[14] As part of the expansion,Dubai Basketball was given a 5-year license, thus becoming the first team from outside of Europe (excluding Israeli teams) to play in the competition.[15]
This section needs to beupdated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(May 2025)
In years 2010–2025, EuroLeague was sponsored byTurkish Airlines. In a five-year €15 million deal, starting in the 2010–11 season, the competition wasnamed 'Turkish Airlines Euroleague Basketball'. The agreement included an option to extend it for another five years.[16][17] The option was activated in October 2013, extending the sponsorship deal until 2020.[18] On July 1, 2025, it has ended sponsor naming rights of Turkish Airlines. In September 2025, EuroLeague announced a four-year partnership with theAbu Dhabi Department of Culture and Tourism andEtihad Airways, designating them as Main Partners of the EuroLeague and EuroCup competitions and Final Four Presenting Partner. The agreement includes brand visibility for Experience Abu Dhabi andEtihad Airways across arenas, live broadcasts and team jerseys in all ErouLeague and EuroCup games.[19]
The main difference between the competition run byFIBA Europe and the modern one since 2000 has been the licenses that guaranteed a club's participation in the Euroleague regardless of their performance in their national championship. The 3-year guaranteed participation was granted by an A-license. In 2009 the A-Licenses granted were 13, while in 2012 they became 14.
Until 2015, many major clubs would compete with a 3-year licence, while others would get awild card or a B-License for one year. In 2015, 11 clubs signed long-term licenses with theEuroleague Basketball (until 2026) and they also became the company's shareholders leaving only 5 spots to other teams to participate. In 2021–22 season, ASVEL and Bayern Munich were added to the shareholders' group taking the number to 13. As of the 2025–26 season, theEuroleague Basketball offers 3-year licenses to clubs other than the 13 shareholders with the fee being 5 million euros in total (about 1.7 million euros per year).[21] The EuroLeague Board of Directors, composed of the 13 shareholders, is responsible to evaluate each individual request of a club for a 3-year license. In 2025,Euroleague Basketball granted 3-year licenses (until 2028) to the following clubs:
EA7 Milano :EA7 Milano had a two-year A license, awarded in June 2012.[22] Then the A-licence ofEA7 Milano expired in June 2014, but Euroleague confirmed it as an A-licensed team.[23]
Asseco Prokom :Asseco Prokom lost its A license in 2013, as it was the last qualified in the A licensed team tanking. The license was converted into a wildcard.
FIBA European Champions Cup (1987–88 to1990–91): The champions of European national domestic leagues, competing against each other, played in a tournament system. The league culminated with aFinal Four.
FIBA European League (1991–92 to1995–96): The champions of the European national domestic leagues, the then current European League title holders, along with some of the other biggest teams from the most important national domestic leagues, played in a tournament system. The league culminated with a Final Four.
FIBA EuroLeague (1996–97 to1999–00): The champions of the best European national domestic leagues, along with some of the other biggest teams from the most important national domestic leagues, played in a tournament system. The league culminated with a Final Four.
*Euroleague (2000–01): Some of the European national domestic league champions, and some of the runners-up from various national domestic leagues, played in a tournament system. The league culminated witha best of 5 playoff finals.
*FIBA SuproLeague (2000–01): Some of the European national domestic league champions, and some of the runners-up from various national domestic leagues, played in a tournament system. The league culminated with aFinal Four.
Euroleague (2001–02 to2015–16): The champions of the best European national domestic leagues, along with some of the other biggest teams from the most important national domestic leagues, played in a tournament system. The league culminated with a Final Four.
EuroLeague (2016–17 to present): The champions of the best European national domestic leagues, along with some of the other biggest teams from the most important national domestic leagues, playing in a true European-wide league system format. The league culminates with aFinal Four.
Starting with the2016–17 season, the EuroLeague is made up of 20 teams, with each playing every other team twice (once at home and once away) in adouble round robin leagueregular season, for a total of 34 games played by each team.[25]
The top eight placed teams at the end of the regular season advance toplayoffs, each playing a five-gameplayoff series against a single opponent. The regular season standings are used to determine which teams play each other, and in each pairing the higher placed team has home-court advantage in the series, playing three of the five games at home. The winners of each of the four playoff series advance to theFinal Four, held at a predetermined site. The Final Four features two semi-finals, a third place game, and thechampionship game, all on the same weekend.[citation needed]
Each team plays a maximum 41 games per season: 34 in the regular season, a maximum of 5 during the playoffs, and 2 in the Final Four.[citation needed]
Currently (and since the suspension of Russian teams because of theRussian invasion of Ukraine[26]), 12 out of the 18 EuroLeague places are held by licensed clubs that have long-term licenses withEuroleague Basketball, and are members of the Shareholders Executive Board. These twelve licensed clubs are:
The remaining six EuroLeague places are held by associated clubs that have annual licences, of which one has a two-yearwild card, three have one-year wild-cards and two are the finalists of the previous season's2nd-tier European competition, theEuroCup. From the 2020–21 season, however, if the better of the two teams from the EuroCup makes it to the playoffs, it keeps the place for the following year.[27]
The most points ever scored in a single game by an individual in the league's overall history (since 1958), is 99 points, byRadivoj Korać ofOKK Beograd, on 14 January 1965, during the1964–65 season, in a game againstAlvik.[60][61]
In a small area of less than 40 km2 (25 mi2), north ofMilan, there are 3 clubs that have won a total of 10 FIBA European Champions' Cups, and played in a total of 16 finals:Pallacanestro Varese (5),Olimpia Milano (3) andCantù (2)
Fenerbahçe are the only team which stayed undefeated at home after a 30-game regular season and secured the best record after a regular season (25–5) under the new format (2016–17 season to present). They are also the earliest EuroLeague Playoffs qualifiers ever in the modern EuroLeague era.[64]
^Season was curtailed due to theCOVID-19 pandemic. Four games, for different reasons, were played under closed doors and are not included in this table.
Note: Match betweenPanathinaikos andBarcelona on 18 April 2013, atOAKA Sports Center, was supposedly watched by about 30,000 spectators.[66] However, it is not included in the table as the official data is 18,300.[67]
As of 4/4/2023 Partizan holds 10 games in top 10 most attended games.[citation needed]
The EuroLeague season is broadcast on television, and can be seen in up to 201 countries and territories.[68] It can be seen by up to 245 million (800 million via satellite) households weekly inChina.[69]
EuroLeague basketball has been televised in the United States through theESPN family of networks since 2023, starting with the playoffs of the 2022–2023 season.[70] It was also televised in the United States and Canada onNBA TV and available online throughESPN3 (in English) andESPN Deportes (in Spanish) until the 2017–2018 season. Starting with the 2017-2018 Final Four playoffs, and continuing into the 2018-2019 and 2019–2020 seasons, the coverage moved toFloSports,[71] before returning later to the ESPN networks.
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