By Stefan Acevski/ info@eurohoops.net
Abu Dhabi will host the next stop of the 2025–26 adidas NextGen EuroLeague season, bringing eight of Europe’s leading U18 basketball teams to the UAE capital from February 27 to March 1 at the state-of-the-art Space42 Arena.
Defending continental champion U18 Zalgiris Kaunas and record winner U18 Real Madrid headline the qualifying tournament, with the winner securing a place at the adidas NextGen Finals during the EuroLeague Final Four in Athens, Greece, this May.
The remaining teams competing in Abu Dhabi are U18 Aris Thessaloniki, U18 AS Monaco, U18 Dubai Basketball, U18 Next Gen Team Abu Dhabi, U18 London Lions and U18 Valencia Basket.
U18 Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana has already qualified for the Finals after winning the Ulm event, while the winners of the Bologna (March 13–15) and Belgrade (March 20–22) qualifiers will also advance to Athens.
The eight teams will be divided into two groups of four, playing a round-robin format within their groups. The top teams from each group will meet in the first-place game on Sunday, March 1, while placement games will determine the final standings.
Group A: Real Madrid joined with Aris, Dubai and Monaco
Aris is competing in the competition for the third season with the Greek side taking seventh place at NextGen Munich last season with a 2-2 record. Aris was sixth at 1-3 in Dhabi the year before. Dubai is also playing in the NextGen for the third campaign.
Last season the UAE side went 0-4 and finished eighth at the Ulm qualifier. Abu Dhabi beat U18 Mega Super Belgrade at the NextGen Finals and nearly knocked off U18 EA7 Emporio Armani Milan for a 1-2 mark. Dubai had a 1-3 record as host of a 2024 qualifier and took eighth place.
Monaco arrives in Abu Dhabi for its second appearance after going winless for eighth place in Paris 2024. Real meanwhile will be looking to bounce back from a disappointing last season, finishing only third at the Munich qualifier – ending Real’s streak of winning consecutive qualifying tournaments at 11.
Real also had won its last 19 NextGen games dating back to the NextGen Finals in 2022 in Belgrade. Real then lost to Zalgiris in the group stage at the NextGen Finals to miss a chance to make it a three-peat in championships. The Spanish powerhouse is the all-time winner in continental championships with five (2015, 2019, 2021, 2023 and 2024) while also reaching the 2014 Championship Game. This is Real’s 19th consecutive season since 2007-08.
Group B: Zalgiris to face London, Next Gen Abu Dhabi and Valencia
London Lions makes its debut in the competition as the club was playing in the BKT EuroCup for the third time this season.
The Next Gen Team will be competing in its fifth season in the event and its second with two-time EuroLeague champion Dogus Balbay as head coach. Long-time Italian international and veteran of 126 EuroLeague games Massimo Bulleri and Kheeryoung Rhee are his assistants.
Valencia Basket is making its 10th NextGen appearance and eighth in a row. The Spanish team twice reached the Finals: Vitoria-Gasteiz in 2019 and as host in 2021. Valencia took second place at the Munich tournament last season after three straight fifth-place finishes the previous three qualifiers.
Zalgiris for its part has played in every NextGen season with this its 24th appearance. The Lithuanian power won the first-ever event in 2003 and matched that in 2007 before finally taking the crown again last summer in Abu Dhabi. Zalgiris also reached the Championship Game in 2005, 2006 and 2011. The Kaunas team won the Ulm qualifier last season which came after it took second place in its previous three qualifying events.