The EuroLeague supports the unification of the BCL and the Eurocup, but wants to have the competition under its control

Play-ins from the 2023/24 season, increasing teams to 20 from the 2024/25 season and suspending games for a FIBA ​​window were the key decisions the shareholder council reportedly made at its most recent meeting Sportish. TheHowever, other topics were also raised without these being given priority in the discussion and, of course, without a decision being made.

This has to do with the second regular competition, which the EuroLeague Board wants to keep under control, but also with the BCL teams being together. What exactly do they want and do they say they will put on the table in talks with FIBA? The creation of a second super organization in Europe that will be under the control of EuroLeague Basketball but will also work with FIBA. In other words, the Eurocup and the Basketball Champions League will be together and will have a direct connection to the national championships as well as the Euroleague.

It will be an open league in which the best teams from each country will participate (they will get the ticket to the championships) and they will be able to reach the top competition. For its part, the EuroLeague will essentially be a semi-open league, with many guaranteed contracts but also some promotions and relegations. This way, shareholders have a permanent place and the rest have to earn their place on the floor, with the second event serving as a stepping stone.

The EuroLeague wants to work with FIBA, so there will be a window break from the 2024/25 season. She wants to unify basketball, but she will also make her terms. And that is perhaps the most difficult part of the cooperation, because the international association will hardly part with the successful basketball champions league. And a solution for the 2024/25 season seems unlikely, although there are reports in Israel of a BCL-EuroCup merger starting in 2024/25.

Of course, both sides will sit around the table and discuss the matter, but this looks like the start of negotiations for EuroLeague Basketball. Can FIBA ​​accept something like this? It seems unlikely, but a solution can be found through discussion. After all, for the first time in years there is a communication channel and a willingness to cooperate.

There is no shortage of opposing opinions, but at the end of the day there will all be winners when a second major league is created, tying in with both the EuroLeague and domestic leagues. And especially basketball in Europe.