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EuroLeague

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Article Genealogy
Parent: CSKA Moscow Hop 4
Expansion Funnel Raw 65 → Dedup 0 → NER 0 → Enqueued 0
1. Extracted65
2. After dedup0 (None)
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EuroLeague
Current season2023–24 EuroLeague
SportBasketball
Founded2000 (current format), 1958 (original competition)
CeoMarshall Glickman
PresidentDejan Bodiroga
Teams18
ChampionPanathinaikos (7th title)
Most champsReal Madrid (11 titles)
Related compsEuroCup, EuroLeague Final Four
Websiteeuroleaguebasketball.net

EuroLeague. The premier professional basketball club competition in Europe, organized by Euroleague Basketball. It features the continent's most storied clubs, such as Real Madrid, FC Barcelona, and Maccabi Tel Aviv, competing for the prestigious title. The league operates on a license-based system, with games broadcast globally, culminating in the annual EuroLeague Final Four to crown the champion.

History

The competition's roots trace back to the FIBA European Champions Cup, first won by ASK Rīga in 1958, which evolved under the governance of the International Basketball Federation. A pivotal schism occurred in 2000 when leading clubs, including Virtus Bologna and Olympiacos, formed the Euroleague Basketball company, creating a breakaway league. This era saw the rise of dynasties like the Panathinaikos team led by Željko Obradović and the CSKA Moscow squad of Ettore Messina. Key milestones include the 2016 format change to a permanent league and the 2022 suspension of Russian teams following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Format

The league follows a round-robin regular season where each of the 18 teams plays 34 games, facing every opponent once at home and once away. The top eight teams then advance to a best-of-five playoffs series, structured as 1st vs. 8th, 2nd vs. 7th, and so on. The four playoff winners qualify for the EuroLeague Final Four, a single-elimination tournament held at a predetermined venue like the Ülker Sports Arena or Mercedes-Benz Arena. This format replaced the previous multi-stage Top 16 phase to increase competitive consistency and commercial appeal.

Teams

The league comprises 18 licensed clubs, a mix of long-term A Licenses holders and annual qualifiers from domestic leagues. Founding clubs of the modern era include Real Madrid, FC Barcelona, and Maccabi Tel Aviv. Other perennial contenders are Olympiacos, Anadolu Efes, and Fenerbahçe Beko. The lineup is occasionally supplemented by wild card entries or winners of the second-tier EuroCup, such as Virtus Segafredo Bologna. Teams represent major cities across Europe and the Middle East, from Kaunas to Athens.

Competition system

The competition system is governed by the Euroleague Basketball company, which oversees all sporting and commercial operations, distinct from FIBA's club competitions. The league uses the FIBA rules with minor modifications, including a 24-second shot clock. The official game ball is supplied by Molten Corporation. Critical to the season's narrative is the intense rivalry between clubs like Panathinaikos and Olympiacos, known as the Derby of the eternal enemies, which often influences playoff seeding and championship outcomes.

Records and statistics

Real Madrid holds the record for most titles with 11, including the inaugural FIBA European Champions Cup in 1965. The all-time leading scorer is Vassilis Spanoulis, while Felipe Reyes tops the rebounds list. Iconic individual performances include Shane Larkin's 49-point game for Anadolu Efes and Nicolás Laprovíttola's 20-assist outing for FC Barcelona. The highest attendance was set at the 1991 FIBA European Championship Final between Pop 84 and FC Barcelona in Paris.

Awards

The top individual honor is the EuroLeague MVP award, with multiple winners like Dejan Bodiroga and Nando de Colo. Seasonal awards include the EuroLeague Best Defender, EuroLeague Rising Star, and the All-EuroLeague Team, selected by coaches and media. The Alphonso Ford EuroLeague Top Scorer Trophy is awarded for the highest seasonal scoring average. The Alexander Gomelsky Award honors the best coach, with recipients such as Pablo Laso of Real Madrid and Dimitris Itoudis of CSKA Moscow.

Media coverage

Broadcast rights are managed by Euroleague Basketball and distributed internationally through partners like DAZN in key markets and ESPN in Latin America. The league has a strong presence on YouTube and social media, producing content in multiple languages. In the United States, select games are aired on the NBA TV network. The EuroLeague Final Four is a major televised event, with coverage extending to regions across Asia and Africa, significantly expanding the competition's global footprint.

Category:Basketball leagues in Europe Category:EuroLeague Category:International basketball competitions