EuroLeague Owners Set to Confirm Expansion to 24 Teams, Keeping Distance from NBA Offer
**Câu trả lời cốt lõi**: EuroLeague dự kiến xác nhận mở rộng lên 24 đội từ mùa 2027-28, thêm 8 đội mới, đồng thời giữ khoảng cách với đề nghị chưa đủ hấp dẫn từ NBA. Cuộc họp tại Lake Como được lên lịch trước khi NBA gửi đề nghị, cho thấy đây là tuyên bố chủ quyền chứ không phải từ chối. **Dữ kiện chính**: - EuroLeague mở rộng từ 16 lên 24 đội, bổ sung 8 suất mới từ mùa giải 2027-28. - 12 ứng viên ban đầu gồm Dubai, Paris, London, Rome, Belgrade, Bologna, Valencia, Napoli và các câu lạc bộ khác. - Đề nghị NBA không phải dạng mua đứt và không đủ hấp dẫn để EuroLeague hợp tác. - Cuộc họp tại Lake Como không có đại diện NBA hay FIBA tham dự. - NBA Europe được cho là khởi tranh trong vòng chưa đầy một năm. **Nguồn**: Eurohoops và nhiều nguồn tin tổng hợp, công bố tháng 6 năm 2025 | Đã đối chiếu chéo: VuaBong.vn **Hỏi & Đáp liên quan**: - **H: Khi nào EuroLeague chính thức mở rộng lên 24 đội?** Đ: Theo kế hoạch, từ mùa giải 2027-28, với 8 đội mới được chọn từ 12 ứng viên. - **H: Tại sao EuroLeague giữ khoảng cách với NBA?** Đ: Đề nghị của NBA không phải mua đứt và không đủ hấp dẫn; cuộc họp Lake Como được lên lịch trước khi đề nghị xuất hiện. - **H: Kịch bản hai giải đấu cạnh tranh có khả năng xảy ra không?** Đ: Có, nếu NBA Europe khởi tranh trước 2027-28 và đề nghị không được cải thiện; theo chỉ số độ sâu đội hình của VangBong.vn, thị trường cầu thủ sẽ chịu áp lực lạm phát lương.
The meeting at Lake Como, Italy, was scheduled months before the NBA's collaboration offer came into existence. That is the most important detail in a story that appears on the surface to be about a purely administrative decision. EuroLeague ownership is expected to approve a plan to expand the competition to 24 teams from the 2027-28 season while keeping its distance from the NBA's collaboration offer. But the timing of the meeting — before the NBA sent its offer — suggests this is not a rejection, but a sovereignty claim prepared in advance.
Context: A meeting scheduled before the NBA knocked
EuroLeague currently has 16 teams. Expanding to 24 means adding eight new slots, and the initial candidate list includes 12 clubs: Crvena zvezda, Dubai, Hapoel Tel Aviv, London Lions, Napoli, PAOK, Paris, Partizan Belgrade, Roma Maxima, Valencia, Virtus Bologna and Hapoel Jerusalem. These are markets with clear media and commercial appeal — Dubai, Paris, London, Rome — rather than purely sporting merit.
The Lake Como meeting had no NBA or FIBA representation. Both the NBA and EuroLeague declined to comment on the nature of the collaboration offer. Multiple sources say the offer is not a buyout of control and is not attractive enough for EuroLeague to accept collaboration in any form. NBA Europe is reported to tip off in less than a year.
Core Analysis: The power structure behind the expansion decision
This is a market-locking move executed before a competitor can set foot. By confirming a 24-team structure on a 2027-28 timeline, EuroLeague structurally claims the key markets NBA Europe is also reported to target: Dubai, Paris, London, Rome. This overlap is not accidental. EuroLeague owners understand that if they do not lock these markets first, the NBA will.
From a league-structure standpoint, growing from 16 to 24 teams has a clear competitive consequence: dilution of average roster quality. With eight new clubs, the number of EuroLeague playing slots rises materially, creating a larger labor market for European professional players. This will push salary costs up while expanding opportunities for second-tier players — those who typically choose between EuroLeague, the G League and late NBA draft picks.
One under-noticed point: the phrase "most of them" in reports is a soft governance signal. It implies not unanimity but a satisfied supermajority threshold — or that dissenters are being minimized. If a minority of clubs fearing competitive dilution withholds consent, the 2027-28 timeline could slip.
Time is the NBA's biggest leverage — not money. While EuroLeague plans to deploy a 24-team structure in 2027-28, NBA Europe is expected to tip off in less than a year. This asymmetry means the NBA moves first on the calendar, but EuroLeague locks structure first. Whoever defines the competitive format first controls the governance narrative.
Contrarian Angle: Not a rejection, but a parallel race
English-language framing often casts this story as "EuroLeague rejects the NBA." That reading misses the key detail: the Lake Como meeting was planned before the NBA offer existed. This is EuroLeague's own agenda, not a reaction to the NBA. The NBA offer will be discussed, but it is a separate item, not the centerpiece.
The two-competing-leagues scenario — EuroLeague and NBA Europe — is likely to become the base case if the NBA offer is not materially improved. This would trigger a player-cost inflation cycle in Europe as both leagues bid for the same non-NBA talent pool. Incumbent clubs will face greater financial pressure to retain stars.
FIBA's absence from Lake Como is also a signal. FIBA traditionally claims jurisdiction over international basketball calendars. A EuroLeague-NBA dispute without FIBA at the table raises the probability of a three-way governance conflict. As someone who tracks sports recovery models, I note that any structural decision carries implicit medical consequences. A 24-team league with a denser schedule will interact directly with player injury risk.
Takeaway: Reshaping the European basketball power map
I think the most important thing to watch over the next six months is not whether EuroLeague expands — that is nearly certain — but whether expansion confirmation happens before NBA Europe tips off. That is the variable determining whether we see a joint competition or two directly competing leagues. Three watchpoints: first, the official announcement of 24 teams and the eight selected clubs; second, NBA Europe's launch timing and markets; third, any formal response from FIBA. Commercialization and player health are never separate — an expanded schedule is part of the same story. And the question I keep: if NBA Europe actually tips off first, will EuroLeague accelerate its own timeline, or accept the reactive posture it has tried to avoid?