By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Jordi Bertomeu was a guest of Serbian radio “Maxbet” and he admitted what’s already been whispered between EuroLeague shareholders. With the political climate between Russia and the West entering a new cold war era after the invasion of Ukraine, the EuroLeague is expected to be forced to move on without Russian clubs.
As the EuroLeague CEO admitted: “It is too early to talk about that, we need to see what the situation will be like. It will be clearer after the Final Four. We see what the circumstances will be like. If it stays as it is now, it will be very difficult for Russian clubs to return. We will suggest some things to the clubs…”
It’s a common secret that Valencia, Virtus Bologna, and Partizan are prime candidates to “replace” the three Russian clubs that were recently suspended for the 2021-22 season.
However, while Zenit St. Petersburg and UNICS Kazan have one season EuroLeague licenses, things are going to be much more complicated in the case of CSKA Moscow, which holds a multi-year A license.
Meanwhile, it has to be noted that Bertomeu is stepping down from his role as CEO at the end of the season and EuroLeague clubs are still in search of an heir, while on paper there’s no formula for the license of CSKA to be revoked since the multiyear license makes the Russian club also a shareholder of the joint venture between EuroLeague and IMG. which expires in 2026.