Seven other loaded squads, including a few exciting newcomers, will be out to dethrone 'Los Blancos'
Will Real Madrid's reign continue at loaded ANGT Finals?
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U18 Real Madrid has been the leading force of the Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament for nearly the last decade, but the Spanish powerhouse will face stiff competition at the 2024 ANGT Finals with a loaded field looking to dethrone the reigning champion. Real is one of four clubs to compete this week in Berlin that has hoisted the trophy at Europe‘s premier youth club competition - the others being U18 FC Barcelona, U18 PFBB INSEP Paris and U18 Mega MIS Belgrade. The remaining four teams competing in group play from May 23-25 at Uber Eats Music Hall are host U18 ALBA Berlin, U18 EA7 Emporio Armani Milan, ANGT Finals debutant U18 ratiopharm Ulm and a select team from the United States-based Overtime Elite program - the first time a US team is competing in the ANGT Finals.
The eight teams are broken down into two groups of four with the teams in each group facing each other in a round-robin format. The two group winners will square off in the ANGT Championship Game on Sunday at 12:30 CET to crown the 2023-24 continental champion.
Group A consists of Real, Mega, Milan and Ulm while Group B features Barcelona, PFBB, ALBA and OTE.
Real has claimed the title a record four times - in 2015, 2019, 2021 and 2023. The Spanish side also reached the final in 2014. Real has played in the ANGT Finals in each of the last nine seasons and booked its spot in Berlin by winning the ANGT Podgorica qualifying tournament. Mega has been the closest team to Real in recent years in terms of results - winning the crown in 2022 and reaching the championship game in 2017 and 2019. Mega received a wild card for Berlin after it took fifth place at ANGT Belgrade.
Milan finished second at ANGT Belgrade, losing to Barcelona in the first-place game. The Italian side‘s only previous ANGT Finals showing came as EuroLeague Final Four host in 2014. Ulm will be making its first ANGT Finals appearance after it won the ANGT Dubai, becoming the first German club to win a qualifying tournament.
In Group B, Barcelona will be playing in the ANGT Finals for the 11th time. The Catalan side won its lone championship in 2016 and has lost in the final game three times: 2008, 2013 and 2021. Barcelona, which beat Real Madrid in the final of the Spanish U18 domestic championship earlier this month, made it to Berlin by winning the ANGT Belgrade. PFBB is one of six teams to win two or more ANGT crowns along with Real (4 times), U18 CSKA Moscow (3), U18 FMP Belgrade (2), U18 Rytas Vilnius (2) and U18 Zalgiris Kaunas (2). PFBB took the crown in 2010 and 2017. The famed French institution lost to U18 Next Generation Team France in the ANGT Paris first-place game but was given a wild card for Berlin.
This will be the third time ALBA is playing in the ANGT Finals with the other instances coming when the German capital hosted the EuroLeague Final Four in 2009 and 2016. ALBA slumped to sixth place at the ANGT Podgorica but received a wild card for the season-ending event. The final team in Group B also received a wild card and will be making its much-anticipated ANGT debut. Overtime Elite will send a select team to Berlin, representing some of the best young talent in the eight-team U20 league based in Atlanta, Georgi