Overview

• The new Euroleague season opens with 20 clubs for the first time, including Dubai Basketball on a reported five‑year wildcard as the competition’s first non‑European team.
• Euroleague chief Paulius Motiejunas defends expansion, saying the league is delivering stronger TV revenue, sponsorship and attendance than rival projects.
• Dubai previously paid sizable fees in the ABA League and covered opponents’ travel and officials’ costs, a reported model of roughly €2.5 million in total that has not been specified for the Euroleague.
• Dubai will stage home games at the 17,000‑capacity Coca‑Cola Arena in a push for global visibility.
• Alba Berlin sits out the Euroleague for the first time in 12 years to compete in the Basketball Champions League, cutting player payroll by about 40% and trimming the roster to 12 as executives cite unsustainable debts at Euroleague clubs and target potential inclusion in a mooted NBA Europe by 2027–2028.