By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
EuroLeague CEO Jordi Bertomeu talked about Panathinaikos Athens officially expressing its intention to leave the competition and the criticism he received by Greens’ owner Dimitris Giannakopoulos.
Giannakopoulos said that EuroLeague has reached “point zero” and named Bertomeu the “sole responsible” for this, in the press conference during which he announced that Panathinaikos is up for sale.
Here’s what Bertomeu said to EuroLeague Greece on:
Giannakopoulos’ comments:
“We must respect Dimitris’ opinions. Whatever he decides must be respected since he’s the owner of the club and the Giannakopoulos family has given a lot to the club and basketball in general. This deserves all my respect and the respect of all the basketball community. Also, we know Manos [Papadopoulos, Panathinaikos president] very well and I’m sure that he will manage the club in the best possible way. The league and the rest of the clubs are there to help him in any possible way, if needed.”
Panathinaikos in the 2020-2021 EuroLeague:
“Panathinaikos, like the rest 10 licensed clubs, are automatically registered for the next season since they have a permanent license. Every summer they just have to inform about the changes that are related to the next season. Given the global situation, we must understand that there may be delays in this procedure since there are a lot of uncertainties on the table and many teams haven’t completed their planning. But, to clearly answer your question, Panathinaikos has already registered to participate in next season’s EuroLeague.”
His thoughts on the letter of Panathinaikos and the reasons the club said they want to exit EuroLeague:
“I don’t know what the reasons are. Financial data and all methods that are being used by competitions to measure the growth, fan attendance, TV audience, or digital growth, among other things, are in complete contrast with Dimitris’ statements. I know that there are many speculations around all the above, however, I’ll never enter a course of commenting on them. When it comes to the letter, Panathinaikos and its management know very well what they must do if they want to leave EuroLeague. The demands are crystal clear and are the same for every club.”
The procedure for a club possibly replacing Panathinaikos if the latter leaves EuroLeague:
“Thankfully, there are many teams with the ambition to play in EuroLeague. However, right now this working assumption isn’t a possible scenario that we study. Panathinaikos is a club that belongs in EuroLeague and is with us. For its tradition, its history and the dynamic of its fans.”