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By Lefteris Moutis/ moutis@eurohoops.net
Real Madrid are in danger of becoming the first European champions to be disqualified from as early as the regular season of the Turkish Airlines Euroleague. What have the teams that have won the trophy done in the very next season? Eurohoops.net looks back.
How long does the… aura of the European champion last? Does winning the Euroleague trophy give an extra boost to those teams in the very next season so they can have a good start and also an ideal finish to the year?
Prompted by Real Madrid, who have made by far the worst start of a European champion in the last 15 years, Eurohoops.net searched to find what has taken place in the past, revealing that, until recently, the gold dust from winning the Euroleague had been enough for most teams.
From 2000-01 champions Kinder Bologna, to the Real team of the 2014-15 period, only two have won back to back Euroleague titles (Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv in 2005 and Olympiacos Piraeus in 2013), and another five have qualified to the Final Four but didn’t win. Furthermore, three European champions have been disqualified during the playoffs and four during the Top16!
Read on for more details!
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