EuroLeague Leaders Gather for Crucial Lake Como Summit

The EuroLeague’s most powerful figures are heading to one of Italy’s most exclusive addresses for talks that could reshape the future of European basketball.

According to La Gazzetta dello Sport, a select group of EuroLeague club owners will convene on October 5 at Villa d'Este in Cernobbio, the historic luxury retreat on the shores of Lake Como. This is not a routine board gathering. Owner-level meetings are rare, reserved for moments when the sport’s direction is genuinely up for debate.

This is one of those moments.

NBA Offer and Franchise Future on the Table

At the heart of the agenda sits a potential offer from the NBA to acquire the EuroLeague. The prospect of the world’s most powerful basketball brand taking control of Europe’s elite competition would mark a seismic shift in the sport’s hierarchy on the continent.

The owners are expected to weigh that possibility alongside two other major issues: expansion plans and a move toward a full franchise model.

A franchise system would formalize a closed or semi-closed league structure, locking in clubs and limiting the traditional promotion-access model that has long defined European sport. For some owners, that means stability, guaranteed revenue, and long-term planning. For others, it raises questions about identity, access, and the role of domestic leagues.

The setting is idyllic, but the stakes are anything but gentle. Decisions made on Lake Como could determine how European basketball aligns itself with American structures, how much control clubs keep, and how much influence the NBA ultimately gains on this side of the Atlantic.

Milan Targets a Showpiece Return

While the boardroom conversations circle around ownership and structure, another battle is unfolding off the court: who gets to host the EuroLeague’s biggest weekend at the end of the decade.

Milan has formally entered the race to host the 2030 EuroLeague Final Four, with plans to stage the event in the new Unipol Dome in the Santa Giulia district. It would mark a return of the showpiece to a city that still remembers 2014, when underdogs Maccabi Tel Aviv stunned the heavily favored Real Madrid to lift the title in one of the competition’s most memorable upsets.

Milan, though, is not alone.

Valencia are also in contention, with their candidacy backed by the recently opened Roig Arena. The Spanish club is widely viewed as the frontrunner for the 2028 Final Four, positioning their new home as a natural stage for one of the sport’s marquee events.

The calendar is already partially locked in. The 2027 and 2029 Final Fours are tied to an existing agreement with Abu Dhabi, meaning those editions will take place in the United Arab Emirates. That leaves 2028 and 2030 as prime targets for Europe’s leading basketball cities.

So while executives talk ownership models and NBA proposals by the calm waters of Lake Como, another question hangs over the EuroLeague: when the dust settles, will the road to the title run back through Milan, or will Valencia and Abu Dhabi redefine the map of European basketball’s biggest nights?