Euroleague clubs reject NBA's offer for European expansion

The NBA is looking to expand its presence in Europe in the coming seasons and has been holding talks with both FIBA and Euroleague's governing body, ULEB. However, most clubs holding long-term Euroleague licences have rejected the American league's current proposal.

Split reactions

Clubs that are in principle open to cooperating with the NBA say the offer needs substantial improvement before talks can continue. Teams that want Euroleague to remain independent have been far more blunt, calling the proposal unacceptable or even describing it as colonizing.

The rejection does not mean negotiations are over entirely. Euroleague has already decided to accommodate one of the NBA's requests by keeping the number of participating teams at 20 rather than expanding to 24, and by not increasing the number of long-term licences, currently held by 13 clubs.

Those clubs include Milan's Olimpia, Madrid's Real and Barcelona, Istanbul's Fenerbahce and Anadolu Efes, Athens' Panathinaikos, Piraeus's Olympiacos, Tel Aviv's Maccabi, Munich's Bayern, Villeurbanne's ASVEL, Vitoria's Baskonia, Kaunas's Zalgiris, and Moscow's CSKA, which has watched the competition from the outside since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Differing positions

Reports indicate Milan and Vitoria were willing to accept the NBA's current offer, while Barcelona dismissed it as a joke. Real Madrid gave the NBA a 30-day deadline to come back with a new proposal, whereas Olympiacos has opposed the idea from the outset.

The NBA intends to launch its European project in the 2027/28 season, with 12 permanent participants and four slots open for qualification. The league says the project will move forward even if no agreement is reached with Euroleague.