By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
With the shareholders’ consensus favorable to Dubai’s inclusion in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague, a move that can be considered a concrete step to this direction was taken by Dubai being selected as the host of one of the four junior qualifying tournaments of the league.
Per EuroLeague: The Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament is pleased to announce its schedule of qualifiers for 2024, which brings the world-class showcase for elite young basketball talents to three exciting new host cities: Paris, France; Dubai, United Arab Emirates; and Podgorica, Montenegro. The fourth qualifier will be in Belgrade, marking the 16th consecutive season that the Serbian capital welcomes the tournament.
The format stays the same, with the winner of each ANGT Qualifying Tournament advancing to compete for the continental junior club crown at the 2024 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Final Four in Berlin, Germany.
At each qualifying stop, a new Next Generation Team made up of young stars from clubs not affiliated with other ANGT clubs will be among the eight participants, ensuring that a full range of the continent’s best talent will be represented in the tournament. Former EuroLeague star Petteri Koponen will resume his role from last season as head coach for all four of the Next Generation Teams, sharing his wealth of experience with the players. This season, the Next Generation Select Team will not participate in the eight-team ANGT Finals. Its spot will be filled by a different team through a wild card.
The first qualifying event this season will take place from January 26 to 28 in Podgorica, with SC Derby serving as the host club. This marks the debut of the ANGT qualifiers to the Montenegrin capital. Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade will host the second tournament in its home city from March 1 to 3. Having hosted a qualifying round since the introduction of that phase in the 2008-09 season, Belgrade continues its legacy as a showcase city for rising stars.
A first-time ANGT qualifier outside continental Europe will come to Dubai from March 22 to 24, with local squad Dubai Basketball Academy as the event host. The tournament will be played at Coca Cola Arena in Dubai, with a capacity for 17,000 spectators. The fourth and final qualifier will run from March 29 to 31 in Paris, to be hosted by SKWEEK with coordinated support from adidas and Paris Basketball. The ANGT returns to the French capital for the first time since hosting the 2010 Finals. The qualifier will be played at the new adidas Arena in Paris.
This season marks the 22nd edition of the ANGT. The competition has seen a who’s who of basketball stars come through its ranks, including future EuroLeague and NBA stars such as Goga Bitadze, Omri Casspi, Luigi Datome, Luca Doncic, Vasilije Micic, Nikola Mirotic, Donatas Motiejunas, Dario Saric, Milos Teodosic, Domantas Sabonis, Kristaps Porzingis, Jonas Valanciunas and Victor Wembanyama, among others.