Euroleague Basketball has announced the following disciplinary decisions pertaining to incidents that occurred in Round 15 of the 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Regular Season.

Latest disciplinary sanctions

**Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade** has been sanctioned with fines amounting to €17,000 for the lighting of flares, offensive chants and the throwing of objects by its fans, on occasion of its home game against Olympiacos Piraeus under 29.2.d), 29.2.f) and 29.2.g) of the Euroleague Basketball Disciplinary Code.

Latest disciplinary decisions

Euroleague Basketball has modified the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague awards structure to give more value to the regular season, as well as introducing a specific MVP for the Playoffs and Play-in Showdown.

Euroleague Basketball adjusts its EuroLeague awards structure

Euroleague Basketball has modified the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague awards structure to give more value to the regular season, as well as introducing a specific MVP for the Playoffs and Play-in Showdown.

Starting in the 2024-25 EuroLeague season, most of the awards will be handed out after the end of the Regular Season, which differs to previous seasons when the Playoffs and Play-in Showdown were also counted for most awards. As such, the trophies for the EuroLeague Best Defender, Alphonso Ford Top Scorer, Alexander Gomelsky EuroLeague Coach of the Year and EuroLeague Rising Star will be awarded at the end of the Regular Season. The Alphonso Ford Trophy is solely based on statistics, awarding the player with the best scoring average in the competition with a minimum of 60% games played (21 games). Head coaches choose the Coach of the Year, Rising Star and Best Defender awards.

The 2024-25 All-EuroLeague First Team, 2024-25 All-EuroLeague Second Team and 2024-25 EuroLeague MVP will also be chosen at the end of the Regular Season for the first time in 20 years. Just like before, fans, media, head coaches and team captains will choose these awards. The votes from the head coaches and team captains each amount to 35% of the total, while media votes count for 20% and the fans’ total is 10%.

A new award has been introduced: the EuroLeague Play-in Showdown and Playoffs MVP. The winner is named by Euroleague Basketball based on his and his team's performance during the play-in and playoffs.

From now on, only regular season games will be considered for the MVP of the Month award. In the 2024-25 season, since there will only be two games in April, a joint March and April MVP award will be awarded.

All the other awards remain unchanged. The MVP of the Round is awarded to the player with the highest PIR (performance index rating) among those players whose teams were victorious in that round. As always, the media covering the Final Four at the arena will choose the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Final Four MVP.

Euroleague Basketball joins the Latvian and global basketball family in mourning Janis Timma, who passed away on Wednesday.

Euroleague Basketball mourns Janis Timma

Euroleague Basketball joins the Latvian and global basketball family in mourning [Janis Timma](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/janis-timma/005718/).

Timma was found dead outside near a hotel in central Moscow. He was only 32 years old.

He started his basketball career in his native Latvia, playing for Daugavpils Kraslava, DU Hansabanka, BA Riga, BA Keizamezs Riga, Barons Riga, Liepajas Lauvas, Ventspils and VEF Riga, where he made his BKT EuroCup debut in the 2014-15 season. He spent two further seasons in the EuroCup with Russian squad Zenit St Petersburg.

Timma also played five EuroLeague campaigns with Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz, Olympiacos Piraeus, Khimki Moscow Region and UNICS Kazan. Last season, Timma played for Darussafaka Istanbul of Turkiye and Monbus Obradoiro of Spain. He was also a member of the Latvian national team.

Clubs and former teammates have reacted to his death. "We are all shocked and saddened to learn the tragic news that our former player, Janis Timma, has passed away at the age of 32. We will always remember him for his kind heart and his smile," Olympiacos said on social media. "All our support to the family and friends of Janis Timma. Rest in peace," Baskonia added. "We would like to express our sincere condolences to the family and friends of Janis Timma, who tragically passed away last night in Moscow," Zenit said.

May he rest in peace. A moment of silence will be observed in his memory before all EuroLeague Round 16 and EuroCup Round 12 games.

Euroleague Basketball has announced the following disciplinary decisions pertaining to incidents that occurred in Round 10 of the BKT EuroCup Regular Season.

**Buducnost VOLI Podgorica** has been sanctioned with a fine of €6,000 for the throwing of objects on to the playing court during its Round 10 home game against Besiktas Fibabanka Istanbul under 29.2.g) of the Euroleague Basketball Disciplinary Code.

Euroleague Basketball has announced the following disciplinary decisions pertaining to incidents that occurred in Round 14 of the 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Regular Season.

**Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade** has been sanctioned with fines amounting to €34,000 for failure to adopt the necessary preventive measures to avoid disturbances during a game and for incidents caused by its fans during its Round 14 home game against Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens under 29.1.h), 29.2.f) of the Euroleague Basketball Disciplinary Code.

Euroleague Basketball and Visa, a global leader in digital payments, celebrated their landmark multi-year partnership, first announced on November 19, with a special presentation event held on Tuesday in Athens, Greece. The agreement makes VISA the official payment partner of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague and the BKT EuroCup, the two premier men’s basketball competitions in Europe, and solidifies a collaboration aimed at enhancing fan experiences and delivering exclusive benefits to basketball enthusiasts over the next three years.

Euroleague Basketball and Visa Celebrate Multi-Year Partnership with Special Event in Athens

Euroleague Basketball and Visa, a global leader in digital payments, celebrated [their landmark multi-year partnership](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/news/visa-and-euroleague-basketball-announce-multi-year-partnership/), first announced on November 19, with a special presentation event held on Tuesday in Athens, Greece. The agreement makes VISA the official payment partner of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague and the BKT EuroCup, the two premier men’s basketball competitions in Europe, and solidifies a collaboration aimed at enhancing fan experiences and delivering exclusive benefits to basketball enthusiasts over the next three years.

The event, hosted by Greek actor George Lentzas, featured a distinguished lineup of speakers, including [David Rivers](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/euroleague/players/david-rivers/ahc/), former [Olympiacos Piraeus](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/olympiacos-piraeus/oly/) player and Euroleague Basketball Ambassador; [Fragiskos Alvertis](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/players/fragiskos-alvertis/aph/), former [Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/euroleague/teams/panathinaikos-aktor-athens/pan/) player; [Guy Martin](https://www.linkedin.com/in/guy-martin-838a7a14/), Head of Sponsorships at Visa Europe; [Sevi Vassileva](https://www.linkedin.com/in/sevdalinavassileva/), General Manager of Visa for Greece, Malta, Cyprus, and Israel; and [Gawain Davies](https://www.linkedin.com/in/gawain-davies-8925447/), Chief Commercial Officer of Euroleague Basketball. Together, they shared insights into the partnership and its plans for the future.

"I think it’s appropriate we are here today launching this partnership in Athens, the home of the current EuroLeague champions," said Gawain Davies. "I’m especially delighted to be here today launching this groundbreaking partnership for the Euroleague. We look forward to working with you over the next three years. Visa is a fantastic company. In fact, it’s our first-ever payment partner at the Euroleague. In our 25-year history, we’ve never had a partner in this category, and we couldn’t be starting with a better partner. We’re very excited to really work and deliver great value to all the Visa team and customers over the next three years."

"I’m really, really proud to be joining the Euroleague family, and for Euroleague to be joining the Visa family," commented Guy Martin. "We have a very proud history of sponsorships across 35 years. We are really pleased to have Euroleague join the family and we know much it means to this market. We do this for a number of reasons: we do this because we love working with our clients and we understand the power of sponsorships. We also understand the power of what we need to do with our fans and customers. The Euroleague ticks all of those boxes. We’re really proud of working with our partner, the Euroleague, not just on the Euroleague itself but also on the legacy that we can leave with this sponsorship property. We look forward to getting started."

Attendees were also briefed on a variety of upcoming activations. Visa cardholders will enjoy exclusive benefits, such as priority access to pre-sale tickets for the Final Four and opportunities to participate in contests to win premium Final Four packages, among other incentives.

Sevi Vassileva, General Manager of Visa for Greece, Malta, Cyprus and Israel, said that basketball holds a special place in the hearts of Greeks and manages, in a unique way, to move and unite them, adding that sport is an extremely important component of European culture, while basketball athletes are a source of inspiration. "From women's football to the Olympic Games and Formula 1 and now the premier basketball tournaments, Visa connects fans worldwide and makes payments more seamless and secure. These partnerships are for us more than just a branding opportunity – they are an ideal field to promote something deeper and more meaningful: the value of sport."

This partnership reinforces Visa’s commitment to fostering connections through sports and aligns with Euroleague Basketball’s dedication to bringing fans closer to its growing global audience.

Euroleague Basketball has announced the following disciplinary decisions pertaining to incidents that occurred in Rounds 12 of the 2024-25 EuroLeague season and Round 9 of the 2024-25 EuroCup season.

 **EuroLeague, Round 12**

- Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade has been sanctioned with fines amounting to €50,000 for failure to adopt the necessary preventive measures to avoid disturbances during a game, and the incidents caused by its fans, on occasion of its home game against Olympiacos Piraeus under 29.1.h), 29.2.f) and 29.2.g) of the Euroleague Basketball Disciplinary Code.
- Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens have been sanctioned with a fine amounting of €8,000 for the offensive chants committed by its fans on occasion of its home game against AS Monaco under 29.2.f) of the Euroleague Basketball Disciplinary Code.

**EuroCup, Round 9**

- Erdem Can, head coach of Turk Telekom Ankara, has been sanctioned with a fine amounting of €6,000 for the failure to comply with the instructions of the officiating crew on occasion of its home game against Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem under 27.2.c) of the Euroleague Basketball Disciplinary Code.

Euroleague Basketball has announced the following disciplinary decisions pertaining to incidents that occurred in Round 12 of the 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season and Round 9 of the 2024-25 BKT EuroCup season.

Euroleague Basketball has announced the following disciplinary decisions pertaining to incidents that occurred in Rounds 9 and 10 of the 2024-25 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season.

**Round 9**

- Kendrick Nunn, Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens player, has been sanctioned with a fine of €5,000 for comments regarding the officiating performance, in accordance with Article 24.2.c) of the Euroleague Basketball Disciplinary Code.

 **Round 10**

- Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade have been sanctioned with a fine amounting of €5,000 for the offensive chants committed by its fans on occasion home game against EA7 Emporio Armani Milan under 29.2.f) of the Euroleague Basketball Disciplinary Code.

The Adidas NextGen EuroLeague’s 2024-25 season tips off earlier than ever before, with the first stop taking the continent’s top young talents to Istanbul. Check out this preview ahead of the NextGen Istanbul tournament.

NextGen EuroLeague qualifying begins this weekend in Istanbul

The Adidas NextGen EuroLeague’s 2024-25 season tips off earlier than ever before, with the first stop taking the continent’s top young talents to Istanbul.

The eight-team field is highlighted by 2022 champion [U18 Mega MIS Belgrade](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/ngt/teams/u18-mega-mis-belgrade/roster/jmv/), 2012 finalist [U18 Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/ngt/teams/u18-fenerbahce-beko-istanbul/roster/jul/) and first-timer – and host club – [U18 Bahcesehir College Istanbul](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/ngt/teams/u18-bahcesehir-college-istanbul/roster/jbc/).

Across three days, between November 29 and December 1, the action will take at the newly renovated Basketball Development Center, where Abdi Ipekci Sports Hall used to stand.

The other five teams participating are [U18 Anadolu Efes Istanbul](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/ngt/teams/u18-anadolu-efes-istanbul/roster/jef/), [U18 Gran Canaria](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/ngt/teams/u18-gran-canaria/roster/jgc/), [U18 Panathinaikos Athens](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/ngt/teams/u18-panathinaikos-athens/roster/upa/), [U18 Umana Reyer Venice](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/ngt/teams/u18-umana-reyer-venice/roster/jur/) and the [U18 NextGen Team Istanbul](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/ngt/teams/u18-next-gen-team-istanbul/roster/ngi/).

This is the earliest the competition has ever started, with the former NextGen Rome tournaments being played between Christmas and New Year’s Eve.

The NextGen Istanbul is the first of four qualifying tournaments for the NextGen Finals, which will be held alongside the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Final Four. The other qualifiers are: the NextGen Munich on January 17-19; the NextGen Ulm on the weekend of February 7-9; and the NextGen Belgrade on March 7-9.

The eight teams are broken down into two groups of four, where they will play each of the sides in their groups. The top team in the groups will face off in the first place game to determine which club gets a direct ticket to the NextGen Finals.

Group A is made up of Bahcesehir, Mega, Panathinaikos and Reyer while Efes, Fenerbahce, Gran Canaria and NGT will be playing in Group B.

Group A will see history as made as Bahcesehir will play its first-ever game in the NextGen competition. And that contest will be against 2022 continental champion Mega, which is playing in the NextGen for the 14th straight season since debuting in 2011-12.

Mega, which also reached NextGen Championship Games in 2017 and 2019, has won its qualifying tournament four times (2016 Rome, 2019 Belgrade, 2021 Valencia, 2023 Belgrade) and played at the NextGen Finals the last eight editions. Mega slumped to fifth place at the NextGen Belgrade last season with a 2-2 record.

Panathinaikos is appearing in the NextGen for the seventh time and the fourth straight season. The Greek side finished sixth at 2024 Paris with a 1-3 record, after having placed a club-best fifth at 2023 Munich with two victories.

Italian club Reyer is playing for a third straight year and eighth in total. Last season the team finished with a 2-2 record in fifth place – the club’s best-ever placing in the competition.

Group B has the other two Istanbul clubs. This is appearance number six for Efes, which did not play last season. Efes registered fourth place finishes in qualifiers in 2018 and 2021.

Fenerbahce lost to U18 Rytas Vilnius in the 2012 NextGen Championship Game and is making its 13th showing – but first since 2020-21, which ended an 11-year run of appearances. Fenerbahce’s best result since 2017 is sixth place.

Gran Canaria is on board for a ninth time and would love to match its best-ever result from 2019-20, when the Spanish side won the NextGen Valencia. Gran Canaria was unable to fight for the crown, though, as the NextGen Finals were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The team finished third at 2024 Paris with a 3-1 record.

The fourth team is NGT Istanbul, with this being the fourth season with the selection side participating. Former Efes captain [Dogus Balbay is the NGT's coach](https://www.euroleaguebasketball.net/en/ngt/news/adidas-next-gen-team-announces-new-coach-ahead-of-nextgen-euroleague-qualifiers/) this season.

The Turkish metropolis will see eight teams compete in the first of four qualifying events