Eurocup Clubs Commission meeting in Barcelona

The Eurocup Clubs Commission met Wednesday in Barcelona prior to the 2011-12 Eurocup Qualifying Round draw to continue discussions on how to improve the competition and establish a framework designed to meet all the needs of the clubs. The commission consists of representatives from nine clubs in as many countries: Alba Berlin of Germany, CEZ Nymburk of the Czech Republic, Galatasaray of Turkey, KK Cibona of Croatia, Pallacanestro Treviso of Italy, PAOK BC of Greece, Spirou Basket of Belgium, Valencia Basket Club of Spain and VEF Riga of Latvia. At Wednesday's meeting, the clubs listened and shared proposals on rule changes, commercial initiatives and television agreements. The commission discussed the current television agreement with Eurosport, through which 50.7 million households in 47 countries are able to enjoy the Eurocup. Members discussed possible improvements in the availability and commercialization of the television rights, including the possibility of negotiating a better package for local television broadcasters. Commission members were presented, too, with proposed changes in the competition bylaws, including registration of clubs and players in the competition, changes in the instant replay system application and use, general marketing rules regarding branding and advertising space, and updates on administrative procedures. Included in the regulatory changes was the evaluation of the competition’s disciplinary procedures with regards to repetitive infractions of the bylaws. Finally, the commission discussed the importance of ensuring the application of unified statistical criteria for all European basketball competitions. Euroleague Basketball is working with FIBA and FIBA Europe to ensure that all statistical criteria are unified in all competitions, including a uniform display of boxscores. All proposals are subject to Euroleague Commercial Assets Shareholders Meeting approval.