Euroleague Season Opens With Besiktas Returning and Olympiacos Defending Its Title

The 2026–27 Euroleague regular season opened on Sept. 24. Twenty teams are participating, playing 38 rounds in a home-and-away round-robin format. Six games were scheduled on opening day, including Dubai Basketball hosting Real Madrid.

This season, Turkey's Besiktas has joined the league, replacing Monaco. Besiktas is a club based in Istanbul and is returning to the Euroleague. Its home opener is on Friday, Sept. 25, against Valencia Basket. FC Barcelona will face Anadolu Efes Istanbul, and defending champion Olympiacos will begin its title defense with an away game against Baskonia.

Last season's champion was Greece's Olympiacos. In the Final Four final in Athens in May 2026, it beat Real Madrid 92–85. The Final Four is a four-team tournament that decides the best team in Europe, and the title was Olympiacos' fourth European championship. Evan Fournier was named Final Four MVP. Last season's Final Four was held at the OAKA Arena in Athens.

The regular season runs through April 16. The play-in will then take place on April 20 and 23 to determine the final two playoff spots. The playoffs will be played in best-of-five series from April 27 to May 12. The Final Four is scheduled for May 28 and 30.

The top six teams advance directly to the playoffs, while teams finishing seventh through 10th go to the play-in. As a result, the race for playoff positions is expected to remain close until late in the season. For clubs that also compete in domestic leagues, a 38-round schedule is a heavy burden in terms of both physical strain and roster depth.

Several marquee matchups are built into the schedule this season. On Oct. 22 in Round 7, Anadolu Efes and Besiktas will meet in the first Turkish derby of the season, and Partizan and Red Star will play the first Serbian derby of the season. In Round 11 on Nov. 12, Hapoel and Maccabi will meet, starting the Israeli derby. In Round 13 on Nov. 20, Olympiacos will host Real Madrid in a rematch of the 2026 final. In Round 15 on Dec. 3, El Clasico will be played.

Background

Last season's champion was Greece's Olympiacos. In the Final Four final in Athens in May 2026, it beat Real Madrid 92–85 for its fourth European title. The MVP was Evan Fournier.

Basketball Press view

The 38-round schedule is a heavy burden for clubs that also compete in domestic leagues. With the top six teams advancing directly to the playoffs and seventh through 10th going to the play-in, final standings will not be settled until late in the season. Besiktas, a newcomer to the Euroleague, is a Turkish club returning to the European stage. The schedule is packed with highlights from the start, including a rematch of last season's final and several national derbies.

Translated from the Japanese article by the Basketball Press editors. AI is used to assist in translation.