Jordi Bertomeu on the future of Russian clubs in EuroLeague: 'It'll be difficult for them to return' / News - Basketnews.com

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Jordi Bertomeu, the current CEO of EuroLeague, gave an interview to Serbian radio 'Maxbet' and talked about the future of the Russian clubs in the competition.

Bertomeu, who'll step down from his position at the end of the season, confirmed that if the current situation will continue, it'll be hard for the Russian teams to be again a part of the EuroLeague next season.

"It's too early to talk about that", Bertomeu said. "We need to see what the situation will be like, I think it'll be more clear after the Final Four. If the situation stays as it is right now, it'll be very difficult for the Russian teams to return".

CSKA Moscow, Zenit, and UNICS Kazan were suspended from the competition this season after the beginning of the war in Ukraine and the results against them were voided.

While Zenit and UNICS Kazan don't hold a multi-year license, CSKA Moscow was among the founding clubs of the competition, so eliminating them from the competition would be more difficult.

One of the solutions to replace the Russian teams would be to have the three main teams of the EuroCup (Valencia, Partizan Belgrade, and Virtus Bologna) take their place.

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