By John ASkounis/ info@eurohoops.net
The first two took place in 1966 and 1967*. FIBA brought back the Final Four for the Champions Cup in 1988 and kept it in place until 2001, when they were in charge of Europe’s top club competition for the last time. Since then, the Final Four has been deciding the European champions every season under the umbrella of the EuroLeague.
Of course, all the top teams of all-time have taken part in the Final Four. Eurohoops presents tables through which you can see which countries and which teams have played in the Final Four from 1988 onwards.
1988-2018
The team with the most appearances in the Final Four is CSKA Moscow, who, this season in Serbia, will be taking part in the final phase of Europe’s top club competition for the 17th time. Real Madrid will reach nine appearances, Fenerbahce four and Zalgiris Kaunas two.
| Team | Appearances |
| CSKA Moscow | 17* |
| Barcelona | 14 |
| Maccabi Tel Aviv | 12 |
| Παναθηναϊκός | 11 |
| Ολυμπιακός | 10 |
| Real Madrid | 9* |
| Baskonia | 5 |
| Fenerbahce | 4 |
| Partizan Belgrade | 4 |
| Treviso | 4 |
| Siena | 4 |
| KK Split | 3 |
| Virtus Bologna | 3 |
| Limoges | 3 |
| Aris | 3 |
| Badalona | 2 |
| Fortitudo Bologna | 2 |
| Milano | 2* |
| Anadolu Efes | 2 |
| Zalgiris Kaunas | 2 |
| PAOK | 1 |
| Unicaja Malaga | 1 |
| Olimpia Ljubljana | 1* |
| Lokomotiv Kuban | 1 |
| Pesaro | 1 |
| Estudiantes | 1 |
| Villeurbanne | 1 |
| ΑΕΚ | 1* |
In 2018, the Final Four will take place without a Greek team. Greece, however, will remain in second place in the ranking of the countries with the most appearances in the Final Four. Topping the list is Spain, who will reach 32 appearances this season with Real.
| Countries | Participations |
| Spain | 32* |
| Greece | 26* |
| Russia | 18* |
| Italy | 16* |
| Israel | 12 |
| Turkey | 6 |
| France | 4 |
| Serbia | 4 |
| Croatia | 3 |
| Lithuania | 2 |
| Slovenia | 1* |
2002-2018
CSKA Moscow‘s lead in the Final Four of the modern era of the EuroLeague is even more impressive. Besides, they’ve only missed two since 2002. Barcelona and Maccabi Tel Aviv have seven appearances each, and Olympiacos and Panathinaikos have six each.
| Team | Συμμετοχές |
| CSKA Moscow | 15 |
| Barcelona | 7 |
| Maccabi | 7 |
| Panathinaikos | 6 |
| Olympiacos | 6 |
| Real Madrid | 6 |
| Μπασκόνια | 5 |
| Siena | 4 |
| Fenerbahce | 4 |
| Treviso | 2 |
| Fortitudo Bologna | 1 |
| Βίρτους Μπολόνια | 1 |
| Partizan | 1 |
| Lokomotiv Kuban | 1 |
| Zalgiris Kaunas | 1 |
| Unicaja Malaga | 1 |
With regard to the countries that have the most appearances in the Final Four in the modern era of the EuroLeague, the Spaniards are first and the Russians are second. Greece is in third place. We should also note that a Lithuanian team will play in a Final Four for the first time in the modern form of the competition this season with Zalgiris.
| Countries | Participations |
| Spain | 19 |
| Ρωσία | 17 |
| Greece | 12 |
| Italy | 8 |
| Israel | 7 |
| Turkey | 4 |
| Serbia | 1 |
| Lithuania | 1 |
*In 1966 and 1967 the Final Four was held by FIBA to decide the European champions. The Final Four was back in 1988 but was not established. The teams’ appearances in the Final Four of 1966 and 1967 (Milan-Italy 2, Slavia Prague-Czech Republic 2, Real Madrid-Spain 1, CSKA Moscow-Russia 1, Olimpija Ljubljana-Slovenia 1, AEK-Greece 1) were not counted.