Majority of 13 clubs opposed: Euroleague reportedly rejects NBA partnership proposal, pushes ahead with franchise conversion

Reports say a majority of Euroleague's shareholder clubs rejected the NBA partnership proposal. Euroleague has decided to continue converting the licenses of 13 clubs into franchises.

Translated from Korean with AI assistance. Read the original. Sources and original publication dates are retained.

Three-line summary

Reports emerged that at the October 6 meeting in Cernobbio, a majority of shareholder clubs did not accept the NBA partnership proposal.
Euroleague decided to continue the process of converting the 10-year licenses of its 13 shareholder clubs into franchises.
The vote count by club and the original text of the NBA proposal have not been confirmed, and the negotiations themselves are not over.

More than 3.2 billion euros. That is the combined enterprise value of Euroleague and its license-holding clubs, as estimated by the valuation firm JB Capital in March of this year. Reports emerged that at the October 6 meeting in Cernobbio, Italy, a majority of shareholder clubs turned down the NBA's partnership proposal. The issue was whether the proposal properly reflected this value and the clubs' investments to date.

Euroleague rejects NBA proposal: 'majority opposed' among 13 shareholder clubs, vote count undisclosed

Front Office Sports reported on the day of the meeting that a majority of shareholder clubs opposed the proposal, so it was not accepted. EFE also reported the same account, citing people involved in the negotiations, and Cadena SER carried it. Neither report is based on an official vote tally.

The phrase 'virtually unanimous opposition' has also circulated, but the evidence for it is weak. Front Office Sports itself said it could not know every club's vote. Euroleague's official statement, which the Greek daily TA NEA published in full, also contains neither a rejection of the NBA proposal nor any count of votes for or against. What has been confirmed goes only as far as what multiple outlets reported: that 'a majority did not accept it.'

Issues in the NBA proposal's terms: demand to halt expansion and the 3.2 billion euro valuation

In a joint announcement on December 22, 2025, the NBA and FIBA laid out permanent participation rights, along with a path to move up each year on merit through the Basketball Champions League or an end-of-season qualifying tournament. The plan also included aligning the new league's schedule with domestic leagues and national team calendars, and committing financial and development resources to European basketball.

What the clubs objected to were the conditions. Front Office Sports and the Spanish outlet AS reported that the NBA proposal included a condition that Euroleague halt its expansion plans. However, the original proposal and detailed financial terms such as the purchase price, ownership stakes and allocation of operating control have not been made public.

Category	Amount (euros)	Nature
Euroleague + license-holding clubs combined	Over 3.2 billion	Valuation firm estimate
Euroleague operating business alone	1.41 billion	Estimate based on the 2025-26 season
Difference (clubs' share)	Over 1.79 billion	Simple subtraction of the two estimates above

The figures in the table are values estimated by JB Capital and officially announced by Euroleague on March 24, 2026. The difference is obtained by subtracting 1.41 billion euros from 3.2 billion euros and roughly indicates the clubs' share. It should not be read as an amount offered by the NBA or as an actual sale price.

Who said 'colonialist' and 'a joke'? Neither appears in the official statement

The two expressions in the reports need to be traced to their sources separately. 'Colonialist' is a word Front Office Sports relayed as the owners' reaction, drawing on an anonymous source. 'A joke' was reported by ARA, citing the Greek outlet SDNA, as the reaction from the FC Barcelona side. The actual speaker has not been confirmed.

The official position is different in tone. Euroleague's statement the same day read, "The clubs agreed to continue the process of increasing the number of franchises." The harsh expressions are the press relaying private discussions. They should not be read as on-the-record remarks by a named club owner or as Euroleague's official position.

Euroleague franchise conversion and expansion: board's final proposal within weeks

According to the full statement published in TA NEA, Euroleague decided to continue the process of converting the existing 10-year licenses held by the 13 shareholder clubs into franchises. The board will review expansion candidates and issue a final recommendation within weeks. The phrase 'from 13 to 24' in some reports mixes up the number of shareholder clubs with the size of the competition. The list of new clubs has not been finalized.

Item	NBA/FIBA concept (announced 2025.12.22)	Euroleague's own plan (2026.10.06 statement)
Participation format	Permanent participation rights + annual merit-based entry	13 shareholder clubs' 10-year licenses → franchises
Entry and expansion process	Annual qualification route via the Champions League and an end-of-season qualifying tournament	Board reviews candidates, then submits a recommendation
Current status	No official reaction to this rejection confirmed	New list and final size not finalized

What the clubs rejected was not the creation of a European league itself, but the terms of merging with the existing Euroleague. The anonymous sources Front Office Sports spoke to saw the possibility of follow-up negotiations. However, as of 09:00 KST on 2026.10.07, no revised proposal from the NBA or FIBA, no official follow-up statement, and no launch schedule for a new league had been confirmed.

Frequently asked questions

Q. Was the rejection of the NBA proposal by Euroleague unanimous?

That has not been confirmed. Front Office Sports and EFE reported opposition from 'a majority of shareholder clubs,' and the vote results by club and the exact number of votes against have not been made public.

Q. What changes with Euroleague's franchise conversion?

It is a process of converting the existing 10-year licenses held by the 13 shareholder clubs into franchises. The board will review expansion candidates and issue a final recommendation within weeks, and the list of new clubs has not yet been released.

Q. Is the NBA's European league dead?

There is no basis for asserting that. What was rejected this time is the current partnership proposal, and anonymous sources said follow-up negotiations could continue. However, no official follow-up announcement from the NBA or FIBA has been confirmed yet.

Related official sites

NBA official website — Check official NBA announcements and league news
Euroleague Basketball official media center — Check the original text of official Euroleague statements and press releases

Representative image · Archive photo · Not a scene from the current game in the article · Photo: Wikimedia Commons (Sakhalinio), CC BY-SA 4.0