The NBA and FIBA are poised to launch a new European basketball league, and will commence the process of engaging teams and owners next month.
This ambitious joint venture aims to reshape the continent’s basketball landscape, offering both stability and a clear path for emerging talent.
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The proposed league structure will incorporate permanent team placements and a “merit-based pathway” for annual qualification.
This system allows teams to earn their spot through FIBA’s Basketball Champions League or a dedicated end-of-season tournament, ensuring any club within a FIBA-affiliated European league has an opportunity to compete.
Andreas Zagklis, FIBA secretary general, affirmed this approach: “The format of the league respects European sport model principles by offering any ambitious club in the continent a fair pathway to the top.”
Europe has produced some of the NBA’s biggest stars, including Nikola Jokic (AP)
While a formal start date is unconfirmed, October 2027 remains the working target for the inaugural season.
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Discussions have explored a 16-team model, featuring 12 permanent franchises alongside four qualification spots.
This initiative follows years of deliberation, intensified recently around the 2024 Paris Olympics.
The continent is a hotbed of talent, producing many of the NBA’s current superstars, including Nikola Jokic, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Victor Wembanyama, Luka Doncic, and Lauri Markkanen; approximately one in six NBA players hail from Europe.
Momentum for the new league has accelerated since a New York news conference earlier this year, where Zagklis and NBA Commissioner Adam Silver publicly committed to the project.
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Financial advisory firms JPMorgan and the Raine Group have since been enlisted to assist with the venture’s economic framework.
Silver expressed confidence, remarking: “Our conversations with various stakeholders in Europe have reinforced our belief that an enormous opportunity exists around the creation of a new league on the continent.”
Key target countries for the NBA-FIBA collaboration include Britain (London, Manchester), France (Paris, Lyon), Spain (Madrid, Barcelona), Italy (Rome, Milan), Germany (Munich, Berlin), Greece (Athens), and Turkey (Istanbul).
This development comes as the NBA continues to foster its European presence, with regular-season games scheduled for mid-January in Berlin and London, featuring the Memphis Grizzlies and Orlando Magic.