In coordination with FIBA, the NBA on Tuesday touted “significant interest from a range of prospective teams and investors” for a new league to operate in Europe.
“The level of engagement and the scale of the bids reflect the marketplace’s belief in our proposed model and the enormous, untapped potential for European basketball,” NBA deputy commissioner Mark Tatum said in a statement. “We will now review the bids in more detail and shortlist the partners who share our vision and commitment to accelerating the growth of the game across the continent.”
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This comes days after Tatum presented an update on the NBA’s vision at the board of governors meeting. No votes were taken on the matter in New York, but owners continue to express “overwhelming support” for the plan, sources told Yahoo Sports.
As NBA commissioner Adam Silver outlined in a press conference last week, the NBA is working with investment banks JPMorgan and Raine, “soliciting interest” from “over a hundred organizations” to field teams in “12 separate markets” across Europe.
NBA commissioner Adam Silver speaks at press conference during the NBA All-Star Game at the Intuit Dome. (Kirby Lee-Imagn Images)
(IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect / REUTERS)
“There has been enormous enthusiasm,” said Silver.
London, Paris and Rome are expected to be among the 12 markets. Spain, Germany, Greece and Turkey have also been mentioned in league circles as potential locations.
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Prospective teams would come from some collection of: 1) existing basketball teams, 2) existing soccer organizations interested in establishing a basketball program, or 3) entirely new ownership groups. Multiple EuroLeague teams are among more than a dozen existing basketball organizations that have submitted their bids, sources said.
The NBA has received multiple bids for prospective franchises in a range between $500 million and $1 billion, including several offers north of $1 billion, sources said.
The NBA is tentatively targeting a start date of October 2027 for the new league.
Silver has also been encouraged by “ongoing discussions” with the EuroLeague’s new CEO, as of January, Chus Bueno, who spent 12 years in the NBA’s front office.
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“I think for the betterment of European basketball, the best outcome would be if we came together with the EuroLeague on a systematic approach to growing the game throughout Europe,” he said. “That means complementing country leagues, working together with the EuroLeague and working together with our federation, FIBA.”
The EuroLeague was organized by FIBA in 1958 and run by the federation until 2000.
The NBA’s most recent announcement of “significant interest” in a European-based league comes at the same time as it considers expanding itself to 32 teams. The NBA is seeking offers in a $7-10 billion range for franchises in Las Vegas and Seattle.
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