Bertomeu: FIBA doesn't govern basketball. NBA does. Conflict will end up in courts
The CEO said that the new Euroleague project will generate between 800 and 1.000 millions of euro in the next ten years
“The conflict will end up in the courts very soon. I tried to avoid it and this was the first thing I said during the meeting with FIBA. But that was not possible. Our loss would be a disaster” Bertomeu said. “FIBA is deconstructing. FIBA has various faces. Yesterday when we asked the secretary general if there will be sanctions for the Eurocup teams he said that he did not know anything about. It was a matter of national federations and FIBA Europe. We did not want this conflict. We sat with them but we understood that it is not possible to avoid it. FIBA wants to do something they are not legitimate at all. All started last July when they have approached eight Euroleague teams offering them money but the clubs rejected the proposal. Eleven days after they proposed another competition to second-tier clubs called Champions League and the clubs rejected that as well” the Euroleague CEO added. “The windows for the National Teams are wrong. It means play National Team games during the season and Spain, for example, will play without Pau Gasol or Ricky Rubio. France without his 10 NBAers, Serbia without 14 players. FIFA governs football but in basketball doesn’t happen the same. FIBA does not govern basketball. NBA does” Bertomeu added. “The new Euroleague? Its is a new project, innovative, fresh. There will be four pillars: quality, stability, centralization and need to give value to shareholders” Bertomeu said. “The business plan will generate between 800 and 1.000 millions of euro in the next ten years”.