EuroLeague Basketball introduced on Monday, February 2, that the normal Ultimate 4 third-place sport shall be eliminated, changed by the adidas NextGen EuroLeague Championship Sport. The 2026 Ultimate 4 shall be held in Athens, with semifinals on Could 22 and the championship tipping off on Could 24.
The choice comes after years of criticism from coaches and gamers who questioned the relevance and depth of the comfort match.
Tickets for the Athens Ultimate 4 shall be launched in 4 public phases to fulfill exceptionally excessive demand. Followers who bought tickets for earlier Ultimate Fours will get unique early entry on February 10, with the primary public part opening on February 11. Every part will embrace a restricted allocation throughout a number of worth classes, starting from €399 ($470) to €952 ($1,122).
The EuroLeague emphasised that every fan might buy a most of 4 tickets per part, and unsold tickets could be resold solely by the official fan-to-fan market on the unique buy worth. VIP hospitality packages will even be out there throughout early gross sales phases.
From a basketball perspective, eradicating the third-place sport aligns with tendencies in elite competitions. Coaches have argued {that a} comfort sport usually lacks aggressive depth, as groups that fall quick within the semifinals wrestle to inspire themselves for a non-championship matchup.
The 2025–26 EuroLeague season has been extremely aggressive, with Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul main the standings at 17–7, adopted carefully by Olympiacos Piraeus and Hapoel IBI Tel Aviv at 16–8. Valencia Basket, Actual Madrid, and FC Barcelona all maintain 16–9 information.
EuroLeague’s phased ticketing method will enable followers to safe seats after the common season, throughout last roster confirmations, and even near the Play-In Showdown, when the highest ten groups stay in competition.
