The Final Four experience is about more than just what happens on the court. 

This is a 'dream come true' for young Efes supporter

For many, especially the younger ones, witnessing the events and going to the games is a lifetime experience.

"This is the first time I am at the Final Four," Omer Sinan Pehlivan said. "This is my dream come true."

The 14-year-old from Izmir, Turkey, is visiting the Serbian capital to support reigning champion Anadolu Efes Istanbul. At home in Turkey, he roots for local team Pinar Karsiyaka, but when it comes to the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague, Efes is without a doubt his team.

More than anything, however, Omer loves basketball. He not only practices basketball, but has Youtube and Instagram channels devoted to his passion.

"Basketball is my lifestyle, it is so exciting to be here", he said from the FanZone at Savski Square in Belgrade, accompanied by his parents and younger sister. "The FanZone is amazing, there are so many activities here."

Efes fans have been over the moon in recent years with the team making it to the last three championship games and Omer is certain Efes will be on the podium raising the trophy again.

"My heart is with Efes. And Efes will win", he confidently summed up.

Omer Sinan Pehlivan with parents and sister - Fans - Final Four Belgrade 2022 - EB21

Olympiacos Piraeus fans flocked to Belgrade, painting the city and especially Stark Arena in red. For many of them, this was not their first trip to the Final Four. 

Reds fans from Rhodes loving Final Four experience

Meos Kampourakis and Dimitris Ververis hail from the island of Rhodes. The Olympiacos season-ticket holders bought their Final Four tickets even before the Reds' playoff series against AS Monaco. This is Kampourakis's sixth time following his beloved Reds at the Final Four.

After 2009 in Berlin, he's been to Final Fours in Paris, London, Madrid and twice to Istanbul. Yes, including the one in 2012.

"I was in Istanbul for the shot. The floater," he said. "It is the best moment in Olympiacos history. It is the best moment in the Final Four history!"

This time Kampourakis is here with his friend Ververis, who is at the Final Four for the first time.

"It is amazing", he said. "I was thinking about this daily all of last week. It is not just basketball games, it is a whole event."

Meos Kampourakis and Dimitris Ververis - Fans - Final Four Belgrade 2022 - EB21

For the second time in four years, Real Madrid is fighting for the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague title at Stark Arena and there are many similarities between Los Blancos' 2018 and 2022 runs. 

Deja vu? Real seeks another triumph in Belgrade

In both seasons, Real suffered several frontcourt injuries early in the season. Ognjen Kuzmic went down in October 2017 with a knee injury. Gustavo Ayon had to undergo surgery due to a shoulder injury that kept him sidelined for four months. With both centers out and Anthony Randolph also sidelined for 14 EuroLeague games, Real signed Walter Tavares, who quickly became the team's starting center. 

"It just happened, I came at the right time and we won it, but every year is so tough to win. For us it is a pleasure to be here, just to be in a spot to fight for the title," Tavares said. "So for us, it is a pleasure to come here and to do it every year, to get a chance to win. It came in my first year and I don't know if it was a kind of luck to be here at the right time but I was super happy to win my first one here."

Four years later, Tavares has become one of Real's pillars. He has earned EuroLeague Best Defender honors twice and name to the All-EuroLeague First Team in back-to-back seasons. 

This season, Real has been through a lot, too. Both Randolph and Trey Thompkins were injured before the season started. Real's signing of Vincent Poirier late last season fortified the frontline and this time, its main centers have been healthy. Poirier has played 36 of a maximum of 38 games this season, and Tavares took part in 34. Just like in 2018, Real added another key piece midway through the season by bringing back Gabriel Deck.

Real had a 12-6 start to the 2017-18 season but slowed down after that to finish fifth overall with a 19-11 record. That sent Real into a playoff series against Panathinaikos OPAP Athens without the home-court advantage. Things looked horribly wrong for Real after the Greens romped in a 95-67 Game 1 victory. However, Real bounced back at the right moment, stealing a road win in Game 2 in Athens and taking back-to-back home wins with Sergio Llull - who had missed most of the season with a torn ACL - back in the lineup to advance to the Final Four. Once in Belgrade, Real eliminated CSKA 83-92 and edged defending champion Fenerbahce Istanbul in the 85-80 behind 17 points from Fabien Causeur. 

"After being injured the whole season, I came back in the playoffs at home and helped the team qualify to the Final Four," Llull said. "Then we won and Felipe \[Reyes\] allowed me to lift the trophy with him. It was great." 

Like four years ago, Real started strong by winning 20 of its first 23 games, but struggled towards the end of the regular season and needed to regroup in the playoffs. There it swept its series against Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv to become the first team to advance to the Final Four. In the semifinal against FC Barcelona, Causeur had 18 points en route to an 83-86 victory. Causeur, Llull, Randolph, Rudy Fernandez, Tavares, Trey Thompkins, Jeffery Taylor and head coach Pablo Laso are still with the team, four years later. 

"The soul and character of the team are the same. There are similarities and we try to remember what we did well to win this trophy four years ago in order to repeat," Causeur said. "In a game like this, you have no choice but to play well. It is known that you come here to win. We are not the favorites, like in 2018, that's true, but here we are, in another final.

"These are special games and you have a lot of eyes watching you, so every time you play well, it kind of counts double. I will try to play well in the game that matters the most. In the end, playing well in the semifinal to lose the final would hurt even more. We are here to try to lift this trophy which we want so much."

Injuries? Check. Mid-season signings? Check. A slow regular-season finish? Check! Bouncing back at the right time? Check! Downing an Istanbul-based defending champion in the finale to lift the trophy? Well... we will find out soon!

Real Madrid Champ EuroLeague 2017-18 - Belgrade 2018 - EB17

Real Madrid v Anadolu Efes Istanbul (2022-05-21T17:00:00.000Z)

With Anadolu Efes Istanbul just one step from repeating as Turkish Airlines EuroLeague champions, the possibility of celebrating with its fans makes the challenge even more special.

Efes seeks a proper celebration... with fans

A title is a title. There are no doubts about that. But doing so in front of empty stands and being unable to share the joy with your fans takes away from the celebrations. That was Efes's situation last season when it lifted the trophy in Cologne during the pandemic. 

“Last year, obviously, it was still an amazing moment for us to win a championship. But fans are what makes this event so special”, All-EuroLeague guard Shane Larkin explained. “So, if we are lucky enough to go out there, play well and walk away as champions, and be able to lift up that trophy in front of fans with all the atmosphere that this weekend brings, it would be even more of a storybook for us”.

His teammate Rodrigue Beaubois imagined how it would be after Efes's semifinal victory over Olympiacos Piraeus that was decided in the closing second: “I’m sure it would be to be amazing. The other day was amazing”, he said. 

"The atmosphere was incredible, the gym was packed, the fans were very loud, especially the Olympiacos fans, so it was definitely a great feeling, and we love it. When you manage to win a game like this in front of a full crowd, that’s a great feeling.”

Even though he did not want to lose focus before such an important game, Beaubois could not stop himself from smiling when thinking of a potential celebration with fans. 

“I don’t want to think too much about it now, I want to stay focused on the game, but for sure, if somehow we win, it’s going to be like crazy over there”, he admitted.

Like many of his teammates, Chris Singleton felt something special at Stark Arena, something that provides him with additional passion. "You get more emotion out of everybody with fans in the stadium. The semifinal felt like a road game, especially with the majority of fans rooting against us”, he confessed.

“And then the way we won, you saw the emotion at the end of the game, with Micic and the team running on the court and stuff like that. You get a special feeling, you get a better feeling than we got last year, even though we did win it last year. I'll never take away from that. But it's just a different feeling."

Therefore, many Efes players are dreaming of capturing the trophy again to make the winning experience even more breathtaking, as well as turning it into extra motivation. 

"It would excite me a lot”, center Tibor Pleiss added. “We worked really hard this season for that moment. Last year, we had some family members, but celebrating with the fans who pushed us the whole season is definitely something that would be really special for us, so it will push us even more."

Fans - Anadolu Efes Istanbul - Final Four Belgrade 2022 - E21-FFS

Euroleague Basketball CEO met with many of the hundreds of media attending the 2022 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Final Four in Belgrade on Friday to discuss the state of affairs in the company.

Jordi Bertomeu meets the Final Four media

Euroleague Basketball has continued its support of initiatives to regenerate nature by donating €1,500 to plant several trees at Friendship Park in Belgrade.

Euroleague Basketball and City of Belgrade join forces to plant trees

A ceremonial event in support of the City of Belgrade's reforestation plan took place in the park on Friday, attended by Goran Vesic, Deputy Mayor of Belgrade, and Abigail Martin, Euroleague Basketball's Director of Sustainability and Development Projects. 

Vesic said: "Now we have more trees in our park, and these trees will be the monument of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Final Four in Belgrade."

Martin added: "Euroleague Basketball is happy to support the City of Belgrade's reforestation efforts with the act of donating these trees, which also serves to represent the friendship between Euroleague Basketball and the City of Belgrade."

The donation in Belgrade is part of Euroleague Basketball's wider strategy on sustainability, which has also seen the renewal of a partnership with global reforestation charity One Tree Planted and its reforestation project in the Amazon Rainforest in San Martin, Peru as part of its support of the #GenerationRestoration campaign.

Euroleague Basketball and title sponsor Turkish Airlines have established a goal of planting at least 3,000 more trees in the Amazon by the International Day of Environment on June 5, 2022. The campaign can be supported at [euroleague.raisely.com](http://euroleague.raisely.com)

Euroleague Basketball has continued its support of initiatives to regenerate nature by donating several trees to Friendship Park in Belgrade.

Anadolu Efes Istanbul and Real Madrid will face each other in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Championship Game for the first time, but they have played many meaningful games in the recent past.

Real and Efes's budding rivalry 

Real and Efes faced off in a EuroLeague Playoffs series in 2021 that could not have been more entertaining. Efes had the home-court advantage in the series and hosts Real for Games 1 and 2. Los Blancos were without injured big men Anthony Randolph and Felipe Reyes. Gabriel Deck had left the team at the end of the regular season and Real struggled in both games in Istanbul. Efes thrashed Los Blancos in the opener, 90-63, behind 19 points from Rodrigue Beaubois. Walter Tavares was injured late in that game and did not return until Game 5. In the meantime, Vasilije Micic scored 23 points to lead Efes to a 91-68 rout in Game 2. 

In Game 3, free throws by Micic gave Efes a 64-76 lead with 4 minutes left. It appeared that the series was over, but Los Blancos fought back. Alberto Abalde, Rudy Fernandez, Sergio Llull and Trey Thompkins each struck from downtown in a 16-0 run that Usman Garuba closed with a game-sealing put-back. Efes regrouped in Game 3 and led 61-72 with 7 minutes remaining. Real needed another double-digit, fourth-quarter comeback and delivered again. Garuba had 10 of his career-high 24 points in a final 21-8 run which allowed Real to win the game, 82-76, and tie the series. Against all odds, Real had forced Game 5 at Sinan Erdem Sports Hall. 

Lookback: Efes vs Real Madrid

Tavares was back in action for the decider, which went down to the wire. Tavares tied the game at 80-80 with a minute left and it could have gone either way. Krunoslav Simon made the difference with the biggest play of the entire series. He beat the shot clock with a long step-back three-pointer. After Llull missed a three-pointer at the other end, Chris Singleton and Micic sealed the outcome from the foul line. It was an outstanding finish to a truly special playoffs series. 

After that series, Real and Efes faced each other twice in the current campaign. In the teams’ season opener, Real defeated Efes 82-69 behind 18 points each from newcomers Thomas Heurtel and Guerschon Yabusele. In Round 31, almost six months later, Efes edged Real 93-90 behind 29 points from Micic. 

The 2022 championship game is the latest chapter in this budding rivalry. It is the moment of truth for both and only the winner will walk away satisfied.

Euroleague Basketball expands Web3 strategy with Clancy

Web3 is a new engagement space based on blockchain technology, giving fans the chance to redefine their relationship with their passions and truly own a piece of the content produced by the league, clubs and players.

Video cards, called EuroLeague euroreels, will be minted as non-fungible tokens (NFTs) to ensure the uniqueness of each item. The euroreels capture key moments of the 2021-22 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season and will be bundled with a set of information and statistics, making them a true collector’s item. Euroreels will come in various rarities and customized cases.

The Euroleague partnership department has been working in the last 12 months to define an appropriate Web3 strategy, maximizing engagement opportunities for fans and consumers. The deal with Clancy aims to not only create new virtual products but to keep the functionality of the products attuned to the engagement expectations of fans.

"Our fans deserve our best efforts to go all-out and create engagement spaces in which they feel comfortable and entertained, and we are very satisfied to have accomplished that with Clancy," Roser Queralto, Chief Business Officer at Euroleague Basketball, said. "The Web3 space is still in its infancy, but partnering with robust companies ensures not only a greater business opportunity, but also a faster learning curve."

Rem Langan, CEO of Clancy, said: “We are very happy to be working with such a progressive and globally renowned sports league. EuroLeague has passionate fans and we are excited to bring them a high-quality digital experience. It is an honor to work alongside a sports and entertainment organization driven by such creativity, innovation and fan-excellence.”

To avoid any speculation, and to give all EuroLeague fans the opportunity to own a piece of competition history, the launch of EuroLeague euroreels will be phased out and from this moment all interested fans can join the euroreels Beta Pass (RBP) list, to get notified when the Beta Platform will go live. This will be the place to create an account in anticipation for the private collection Beta release, before the general public release later on.

Clancy is a fan-based blockchain technology company, whose proprietary platform provides fan-driven businesses with blockchain solutions and custom NFT Markets that are an extension of each partner’s brand. Clancy provides maximum interoperability, enabling partners to secure and control their operations in Web3.0. 

Clancy secures collaborative content engagement, trading and gamification through a digital, amped-up interactive NFT experience. Clancy is delivering a new age of NFT fan-based collectibles through sports and entertainment solutions that increase fan bases and maximize engagement. For more information go to [www.clancyworld.com](http://www.clancyworld.com)

One Team program took the center stage at the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague FanZone once again with the One Team Session & Ambassadors Unified Tournament at Savski Square in the Serbian capital.

One Team Session & Ambassadors Unified Tournament

Friday afternoon in Belgrade with a One Team event that brought to the same basketball court young participants from local One Team programs together with a host of famous names serving as Final Four Ambassadors.

Joe Arlauckas, Ramunas Siskauskas, Matjaz Smodis, Ibrahim Kutluay, Dusko Savanovic, David Rivers, Dejan Tomasevic, Igor Rakocevic and Patrick Femerling met two dozen participants of the Partizan NIS and Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade One Team programs at the FanZone's main court.

Together they celebrated the great positive impact that One Team is having in local Euroleague communities by participating in a typical One Team activity that encourages teamwork, commitment and decision-making, before running a Unified Tournament with inclusive rules, all in celebration of One Team's 10th anniversary.    

"I'm really happy to be here again after a three-year break. Those activities are very important for all the community, all the kids, and everybody," Siskauskas said. "I hope this will continue another 10, then 20 years. A long time."

Filled with laughter, smiles and the occasional scream of joy, it was one of those special events that leaves a lasting impact on the lives of young people.

An exciting weekend of festivities in the Serbian capital continued on 

"I think it shows unity, especially in situations and times like this, when it's very important to include anybody and everybody in activities like this to show togetherness," Femerling said. "I think that's the most important part. It's just fun. The kids had fun. We had fun. Nobody got a sunburn, so everything is perfect. If it wouldn't have been so hot, we would have played for another hour."

It was also a chance for youngsters from Special Olympics Serbia and care center Jovan Jovanovic ZMAJ along with the Final Four Ambassadors to showcase hundreds of fans in attendance what a typical One Team session looks like.

"The name says it all: One Team. Everybody is united here," Savanovic said. "You're joining a lot of ex-basketball players, the legends, with the kids, with the people who love the sport, with the volunteers, who really help, they make 50% of the success of every tournament, especially this Final Four in Belgrade. So, the message is positive, sharing good thoughts. The city lives and breathes basketball."

This season One Team, celebrates its 10th anniversary, a celebration supported by all the clubs and players from both the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague and 7DAYS EuroCup.

One Team, supported by Turkish Airlines as the One Team Founding Patron and with the collaboration of Special Olympics as Proud Partner, uses basketball to achieve real social impact in our communities. 

With an innovative model of interconnectedness across an entire continent, Euroleague Basketball and its clubs have developed a complete CSR program that brings together activities from each team in an integrated, impactful way, working under the theme of ‘community integration’ that actively addresses targets of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 10 on Reduced Inequalities.

Each participating club develops a specific One Team project tailored to its own community needs to benefit groups in danger of exclusion due to problems such as substance abuse and gender, physical or intellectual disability. Since its founding in 2012, the One Team program has reached already, directly and indirectly, more than 23,000 participants through its various team projects.