How did the EuroLeague come about?

A quarter of a century ago, many of Europe's top basketball clubs were dissatisfied with how the then-EuroLeague was being operated and marketed. That version of the EuroLeague was operated by FIBA, basketball's global governing body and the clubs were seeking more control over revenue, schedules, and media rights.

In 2000, a group of clubs established the current EuroLeague under the umbrella of the Union of European Leagues of Basketball (ULEB). The goal was a professional, commercially successful club competition, similar to football's Champions League. The organizers were able to call it the "EuroLeague" as FIBA had failed to trademark the brand.

Who plays in the EuroLeague?

Now operated by the private company Euroleague Basketball, 13 of the 20 clubs are permanent members – remaining in the competition regardless of their success or lack thereof in their domestic leagues. Another spot is filled by the winner of the previous season's EuroCup, which is organized by the ULEB. Euroleague Basketball fills the remaining openings by issuing "wildcards," inviting clubs into the competition for a limited period of time.

The permanent members (A-license holders), including clubs like Real Madrid, Panathinaikos, Fenerbahce, CSKA Moscow, and Bayern Munich, all have a stake in the ownership of the league – giving them considerable influence over its economic and organizational direction.

However, CSKA Moscow has been suspended from play since Russia launched it's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Why is a team from the United Arab Emirates involved?

As part of its efforts to expand to new markets, the EuroLeague has given Dubai Basketball a wildcard entry for the next five years. Several factors made Dubai Basketball an attractive addition to the league; it has a modern, 17,000-capacity arena, strong financial backing, and provides the EuroLeague with access to the Arab market. Although the UAE club was only founded in 2023, it began playing in the Adriatic Basketball Association (ABA)  last season. The ABA is a strong competition in its own right, including the best teams from Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Slovenia.

How does the EuroLeague stack up against the NBA?

The EuroLeague is regarded as the world's second-best basketball league after the NBA. However, the basketball played in the EuroLeague is more tactical, team-oriented, and intense.

"Unlike the NBA, every game really counts here," Partizan coach Zeljko Obradovic has said of the EuroLeague.

"After a loss, you can't just say it didn't matter. You have to give your all in every moment until the end," the Serbian star coach added.

NBA star Luka Doncic expressed a similar sentiment after his move from Real Madrid to the Dallas Mavericks back in 2018.

"The game in Europe is much tougher than in the NBA," he said in a podcast in early 2023.

"The talent in the NBA is obviously much greater, but the space is simply different. You have a lot of open paths [in the NBA] to get to the basket and create something."

This is also because, unlike the NBA, the EuroLeague uses FIBA ​​rules. The court is smaller, the playing time is shorter, and there is no defensive three-second rule, meaning defenders don't have to move out of the key after three seconds.

Therefore, the game in Europe is more compact. There are more set plays with blocks and passing sequences to create space, and fewer individual plays than in the NBA.

Do players move between the EuroLeague and the NBA?

In the past, a lot of top European players have struggled after moving to the NBA. Three of the best-known examples are Juan Carlos Navarro of Spain, Vassilis Spanoulis of Greece, and Serbia's Milos Teodosic.

All three are true EuroLeague legends, but none of them were able to establish themselves in the NBA, and all three wound up returning to Europe after a short time.

Now, though, more Europeans are playing in the NBA than ever before. This can be partly attributed to the high standard of play in the EuroLeague, making the step to the world's top league less of a stretch than it once was.

Conversely, many former NBA players who have moved in the opposite direction have struggled in the EuroLeague. Still, the EuroLeague does now feature many former NBA players. The high wages EuroLeague teams are now able to pay is certainly appealing – plus the fact that performing well in Europe's best basketball competition can also pave the way for a return to the NBA.

This article was originally published in German.

Edited by: Jonathan Harding