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- PIF, QSI and RedBird have previously been linked with bids
- NBA set to meet with EuroLeague later this month
Bids for teams in the National Basketball Association’s (NBA) planned European league have been submitted, with several proposals reportedly exceeding US$1 billion.
The deadline for initial, non-binding proposals passed at midnight Eastern Time on 31st March, with the NBA confirming it has begun reviewing markets and bids from potential investors.
The proposed competition, which is also backed by the International Basketball Federation (Fiba), plans to launch in October 2027 with an initial 12 teams.
“We have received significant interest from a range of prospective teams and investors for permanent franchise spots in a new league in Europe backed by the NBA and Fiba,” said Mark Tatum, deputy commissioner and chief operating officer.
“The level of engagement and the scale of the bids reflect the marketplace’s belief in our proposed model and the enormous, untapped potential for European basketball. We will now review the bids in more detail and shortlist the partners who share our vision and commitment to accelerating the growth of the game across the continent.”
According to The Athletic, multiple bidders proposed investments of at least US$1 billion, while several others met or exceeded the NBA’s expected US$500 million entry range. The report also noted “serious” interest from more than 120 prospective investors.
The Athletic added that European bidders have raised questions around the league’s proposed business model, with weeks of potentially contentious negotiations expected.
It had already been reported that Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) would submit a bid for a new London-based team, Qatar Sports Investments (QSI) is targeting a new franchise in Paris, and RedBird Capital Partners is exploring a team in Milan.
German club Alba Berlin and France’s ASVEL have also been linked with potential bids.
The group of bidders is also said to include teams currently competing in the EuroLeague, a development that could have significant implications for the future of Europe’s existing elite competition.
Despite the looming threat of ‘NBA Europe’, Paulius Motiejunas, Euroleague Basketball’s chief executive played down concerns in January.
“We’ve only heard the plan or the fireworks of how amazing it will be, how much potential there is,” Motiejunas said at the time. “But having a theory is one – and making it work is two.
“We’ve been here for 26 years. We know how Europe functions.”
Jesus ‘Chus’ Bueno, who spent 12 years working at the NBA, succeed Motiejunas later that month and is reportedly more open to collaboration with the NBA than his predecessor.
Indeed, The Athletic reports that the NBA is expected to meet with Bueno later this month – something commissioner Adam Silver has been pushing for.
“I think for the betterment of European basketball, the best outcome would be if we came together with the EuroLeague here and that we came up with a systematic approach to growing the game throughout Europe,” Silver said last week.
While Silver has expressed a preference for collaboration, the NBA reportedly wants to retain control over access to the new league. Existing EuroLeague clubs would still need to pay a licence fee to secure entry, placing them on equal footing with expansion-style bidders rather than granting preferential access.
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