By Aris Barkas/ barkas@eurohoops.net
With the EuroLeague format locked at 20 teams and JL Bourg winning the EuroCup, the landscape of the top European clubs’ competition is being finalized for next season, with a few question marks left.
LDLC ASVEL, AS Monaco, and Paris Basketball all competed this season in the EuroLeague; JL Bourg got the ticket for the next one.
With Fenerbahce, ASVEL, and Real Madrid not signing their new 10-year license yet, the possibility of having all four French teams competing in the 2026-27 EuroLeague season can’t be omitted.
Still, the question marks are many, focused mainly on Bourg, ASVEL, and also Monaco.
Starting from Bourg, the obvious problem for the club is its home arena, Ekinox, which has a capacity of 3,548 people. This is by far under the EuroLeague standards; however, there are exceptions in this area for Barcelona and Monaco.
The real question is whether Bourg has the financial capability and the business plan to take advantage of the EuroLeague opportunity. Per Eurohoops sources, at some point during the season, Bourg informed the league that if they get the chance, they would like to complete, but this has to be reaffirmed.
Bourg is taking over the EuroCup license, which was used so far by Monaco. So, Monaco, provided that they find a way to solve their financial problems, has to negotiate with the EuroLeague for a license, which can be a similar deal to the ones Partizan, Crvena Zvezda, Valencia, Virtus, or Dubai have signed.
To be exact, those five clubs, together with the shareholders (Real Madrid, Barcelona, Baskonia, Fenerbahce, Efes, Panathinaikos, Olympiacos, Milan, Zalgiris, Maccabi Tel Aviv, Bayern Munich, ASVEL), are ready to go for next season. Hapoel Tel Aviv and Bourg have the licenses given to the EuroCup winners, so this leaves only one spot open, with Monaco and Paris being without a license.
The future of the three unsigned shareholders
So here’s where things get interesting. If Bourg confirms their participation, then in theory, either Monaco or Paris is out for next season.
The Parisian market, for obvious reasons, is a priority for EuroLeague, but Monaco is also a club that has invested a lot of money, and despite their recent woes, if they are capable of playing next season, EuroLeague would like to help them.
Paris management, which is unwanted by the NBA, has been pushing for a long-term license for the last few years, and a possible scenario is Paris getting the ASVEL license, especially if they move towards the NBA Europe and play next season in the Basketball Champions League.
While Tony Parker and ASVEL recently expressed their desire to stay with the EuroLeague, it’s not a secret that they also have an open line with the NBA, so their future is still unknown.
Fenerbahce is also expected to sign the new license and has already expressed its intention to do so. Real Madrid, on the other hand, remains a mystery, but it’s hard to imagine the biggest club in Europe playing during the 2026-27 season in the Basketball Champions League.
So essentially, we are in a game of musical chairs, with the most possible scenario being having three French clubs next season to complete the 20-club EuroLeague lineup.
The Besiktas case
Where does that leave the EuroCup runner-up Besiktas? Right now, Besiktas entering the EuroLeague next season seems an almost impossible long shot.
Realistically, only if ASVEL moves to BCL and Bourg decides not to play in the EuroLeague, Besiktas has a chance to be included in the 2026-27 lineup.
However, it has also to be noted that this will be a negotiation from scratch, since the EuroLeague bylaws don’t include a provision according to which the runner-up gets the EuroCup-related license if the champion denies it.
The runner-up gets the EuroLeague license, only if there are two open spots for EuroCup teams, and for next season, Hapoel Tel Aviv still holds one of those spots after qualifying for the playoffs.
Photo credit: EuroCup