NBA may crown true 'world champion' in 2028

• 2025-26 NBL Team Lists and Roster Tracker
• How to watch every NBL game in the 2025-26 season
• Interactive and live NBL Scores and Schedule here

NBA managing director for Europe and the Middle East George Aivazoglou has revealed NBA Europe could be playing games in a new league starting October 2027.

Aivazoglou revealed there are 12 European cities identified for permanent franchises and four "merit-based" teams in a 16-team competition, foreshadowing a relegation and promotion system much like football on the continent.

"We're thinking of London and Manchester for the United Kingdom, Paris and Lyon for France, Madrid and Barcelona for Spain, Milan and Rome for Italy, Berlin and Munich for Germany, plus one each in Athens and Istanbul, to also strike a balance with values ​​like history and tradition," Aivazoglou said at the Football Business Forum in Bocconi in Milan, Italy, organised by Gazzetta dello Sport.

"(It will be) a semi-open formula of 16 teams, 12 permanent and four based on sporting merit: one could be the winner of the Basketball Champions League organised by FIBA, which is our partner, and the other three spots could come from the winners of the national leagues.

"This is the most intriguing part: we know that national leagues are no longer what they were 20-30 years ago, one of our great ambitions is to elevate the entire ecosystem starting from the base of the pyramid, the national leagues."

Aivazoglou also hinted NBA Europe and the NBA could play against each other in an international NBA Cup-type tournament.

"A new competition with teams from the NBA and NBA Europe combined, and perhaps in the future, with more organic integration, I imagine a scenario where something like the NBA Cup has four NBA teams and four European teams," he said.

"Or perhaps we can create a sort of global competition like FIFA's last summer."

Legendary Panathinaikos head coach and three-time EuroLeague champion Ergin Ataman has constantly scoffed at the notion the NBA champion aren't "World Champions" as they are dubbed every year in the US. This could settle it.

"I told people these things, if you took out one star player from these NBA teams, I believe that many EuroLeague teams can beat the NBA teams," Ataman told basketball.com.au in an exclusive interview.

How EuroLeague and the NBL will be impacted remains to be determined given both leagues' seasons run from October into late March every year with Aivazoglou revealing the NBA was in talks with European football clubs that don't have basketball teams but passionate, large fan bases.

“Milan? We definitely want a team here," Aivazoglou said.

"The city's brand is one of the most important in the world. There are two great football teams, there's a great basketball team, Armani, so there's no way we can forget Milan when we think about the cities we want in our league.

"There are many conversations underway with the city's ecosystem to understand what the club and the arena will be like (but) I can't comment on ongoing discussions.

"But I can say that we will have teams in three categories. First, we're talking with some existing basketball teams. Second, we're talking with football teams that have a strong brand, and therefore a large fan base, but don't have a basketball team: many of the most interesting conversations we're having in this country and in this city are of this nature. And there are situations, in very limited cases, where we'll start from scratch."

"In Rome, there hasn't been a team in recent years, but there is history. There's a huge fan base; we can revitalise some historic teams or create a new one."

Who is George Aivazoglou?

George Aivazoglou is the Head of NBA Europe and Middle East (EME), overseeing the league’s business and basketball development across the region. Based in London and reporting to NBA Deputy Commissioner and COO Mark Tatum, he is responsible for expanding the NBA’s popularity, partnerships, and grassroots programs in Europe and the Middle East.

Aivazoglou joined the NBA in 2020 as Head of Fan Engagement and Direct-to-Consumer for EME, later serving as Interim Managing Director before assuming his current role. Under his leadership, the league achieved record digital engagement, surpassing one billion video views across the NBA App and 18 localised social media channels in the region. He also played a key role in growing the NBA’s presence in the Middle East, particularly through its collaboration with Abu Dhabi’s Department of Culture and Tourism, which brought live NBA games and youth development programs to the Gulf.

Before joining the NBA, Aivazoglou was Chief Marketing Officer at Eurosport, where he led global brand, subscriber growth, and digital strategy. His career spans nearly two decades in media, telecommunications, and sports, including leadership roles at Sky, T-Mobile International, and fintech startup Ezbob.

A native of Thessaloniki, Greece, Aivazoglou holds a master’s degree in marketing from the Athens University of Economics and Business and a bachelor’s degree in international business and economics from the University of Macedonia.