By Lefteris Moutis/ moutis@eurohoops.net
Leagues like Adriatic and Baltic paved the way for others who would like to create a regional championship in Europe with teams by many neighboring countries. Four years ago Balkan league wanted to unite countries like FYROM, Bosnia, Bulgaria, Serbia and Romania, something that it did without great success.
Big sponsors still haven’t paid attention to this league and as a result few teams have taken part in the competition until now. This situation could change only if the Israel’s and Greece’s market open to the Balkan league. Hapoel Tel Aviv and Galil Gilboa have participated last season in the competition, Galil won the title and will play again this season.
The big challenge for Balkan league is BC Kavala’s participation which accepted the invitation, in contrast with PAOK Salonika, the organizers’ primery target in the Greek market. However, it’s doubtful if a team like Kavala from a relative small city and a strickt budget can help the league to move forward.