EuroLeague analyses possibility of completing season in one city

Still hoping to successfully complete the 2019/2020 season, the EuroLeague organisation could stage the remaining games of the campaign in one city.

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As a result of the coronavirus pandemic, the EuroLeague was suspended in early March, with 28 games having been played. Taking into account the severity of the health situation, it is highly unlikely that the campaign can be completed using the existing format consisting of the regular season, playoffs, and Final Four. The organisation is now analysing the possibility of staging a two-group tournament in one city.

“If due to health reasons or deadlines it is not possible to play in the arenas of the 18 teams, we would choose to concentrate all the matches in one or two stadiums in a single city. The last option would be for the clubs to establish the corresponding modification of the competition format for a more direct resolution,” said EuroLeague Chief Operating Officer, Edward Scott, when speaking to Spanish publication El Pais.

“Players, coaches and club employees will have about three days to return from their places of confinement and get to work. Then a mandatory 14-day quarantine period will be enabled. And, once all the teams are ready, a brief pre-season of another two weeks would start before resuming the competition. In total, it would take practically a month before being able to resume the season, which is how the NBA worked after the 2011/2012 lockout. That period guarantees the health of athletes.”

There is a chance that the EuroLeague will pick Athens and Piraeus to host the two-group competition, with both the OAKA Indoor Hall (Panathinaikos) and Peace and Friendship Stadium (Olympiacos) available. Istanbul (Anadolu Efes, Fenerbahce) and Moscow (CSKA, Khimki) are the only remaining cities which have two arenas being used by EuroLeague teams in the 2019/2020 season. 

The EuroLeague hopes to find out by May if it will be possible to play games before the autumn.

Last week, the Basketball Champions League, a tournament organised by FIBA, scheduled a Final Eight tournament for September. 

It’s expected that matches during the summer would be played without fans inside the arenas. The Final Four was originally supposed to be held in Cologne, Germany in May.

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