By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
Nebojsa Covic was elected president of the Basketball Federation of Serbia on Tuesday.
Covic, 66, resigned from his position as president of Turkish Airlines EuroLeague outfit Crvena Zvezda to become the new president of the federation.
“An interesting period is ahead of us, the Olympic cycle,” mentioned the new KSS president, successor of Predrag Danilovic, “We need to have a united approach, regardless of differences. The first task is naming the new selector.”
With Svetislav Pesic recently confirming his departure from the position of head coach of Serbia, the next international cycle leading to the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles requires a new boss for the senior national team.
In the Qualifiers of the 2025 EuroBasket, Serbia leads Group H behind a perfect 2-0 tally. The FIBA window in November features two clashes with Denmark. In February, visiting Finland and hosting Georgia completes a six-game double-legged round-robin schedule. With Finland progressing with an automatic berth as one of the four EuroBasket hosts, two EuroBasket tickets are available between Serbia, Denmark, and Georgia.
Following next summer’s EuroBasket, Serbia will begin a similar quest to clinch a berth in the 2027 FIBA World Cup. From there, the bronze medalists of the 2024 Olympics will be seeking a spot in the 2028 Olympics.
The native of Belgrade, politician and businessman, Covic served as president of Zvezda since 2011. Earlier in his executive career, he worked as president of the Basketball Federation of FR Yugoslavia from 1995 to 1997.