By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
The EuroLeague’s announcement that it is expanding to 24 teams with up to 21 long term franchises is the most significant structural change the competition has seen in a generation.
If this wasn’t big enough, the implications stretch well beyond which clubs get a seat at the table.
What’s Been Announced So Far
The headline is straightforward, the EuroLeague is moving from 20 to 24 teams for the 2027-28 season, with 21 of those spots becoming permanent franchises.
The 13 existing shareholder clubs will have their current long term licences converted into franchises at no additional cost, recognising their historical contribution to the competition.
Up to eight new franchises will then be awarded, with 11 candidates currently in the formal application process.
The final decisions are expected between September and November 2026. For the full official detail, the EuroLeague Basketball board statement sets out the confirmed timeline and format changes clearly.
Why the EuroLeague Is Doing This Now
The 11 candidates currently in the process have submitted binding offers representing a combined value of almost €700 million in franchise fees, and total investor interest across all proposals has exceeded €1.2 billion.
That level of financial appetite tells you something important, investors see European basketball as a growth asset, not a niche product.
The expansion is also a statement of intent in the ongoing negotiation with the NBA over the global calendar and player movement.
A 24 team EuroLeague with permanent franchise structures is a completely different entity to negotiate with than the current model.
Who the Candidates Are and What They Bring
Among the 11 candidates are clubs and projects from markets the EuroLeague currently doesn’t reach, Rome, Berlin, and London have all been confirmed as submitting proposals.
London in particular represents one of the most significant expansion opportunities.
However, EuroLeague CEO Chus Bueno has acknowledged the challenge of establishing basketball in a market where the sport doesn’t yet have the spectator foundation of traditional European basketball nations.
Getting into a new market early is also where futures betting gets interesting. For those using betting offers to follow European basketball markets, franchise selection odds and the early season performance of newly admitted clubs will generate genuinely new betting angles that don’t currently exist.
What It Means for the Clubs Already Inside
The 13 existing shareholders face a landscape that will look quite different from the 2027-28 season.
On one hand, they benefit from the league’s commercial growth, more teams means more markets, more broadcast deals, and a larger revenue pool to draw from.
On the other, competitive balance is a real concern. Eight new clubs entering simultaneously will widen the quality gap between the top and bottom of the table, at least in the early seasons.
Eurohoops’ coverage of both the expansion announcement and the 11 franchise candidates gives the clearest picture of how the field is shaping up and which markets are most likely to get the green light.
The EuroLeague Long Game
What the expansion really represents is a generational bet on European basketball’s ability to grow its own audience and commercial footprint rather than remain in the orbit of the NBA.
A league of 24 permanent franchises, with structural stability and long-term investor commitment, looks very different on a broadcast negotiation table than the current setup.
Whether the basketball quality keeps pace with the commercial ambition will be the defining question of the next five years.
But right now, with almost €1.2 billion of investor interest on the table, the direction of travel is pretty clear, and exciting to say the least.
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