- Magic and Grizzlies play two games in Berlin and London this month
- UK and Germany “untapped markets” for Florida-based team
- NBA commissioner Adam Silver warns NBA Europe won’t deliver immediate returns
The National Basketball Association’s (NBA) European league could provide opportunities for its North American teams to visit other cities around the world, according to the Orlando Magic.
The Magic played the first of two NBA regular season games in Europe this week, beating the Memphis Grizzlies in Berlin. The two teams will now travel to London to contest the second match on 18th January.
The league has played several regular season contests In Europe in recent years, viewing these fixtures as essential to grow its audience in the continent.
However, the NBA continues to iron out its plans for a new 16-team European division, which it hopes to launch with the International Basketball Federation (Fiba) around October 2027.
Speaking at a media roundtable, Charlie Freeman, the Orlando Magic’s president of business operations, said that NBA Europe was a “natural” step to growing basketball globally and that the division would act as an “additive for everything we do”, rather than as competition, for its existing North American franchises.
He also suggested that a European league would make it less necessary for NBA teams to come to Europe, freeing them up to play in other parts of the world.
“NBA Europe is going to be its own league that will continue to grow,” Freeman said. “We’ll leave this for Adam [Silver] and Mark Tatum to decide at the league level.
“But we still want to continue to grow the game, and it might allow us to go to other cities throughout the world that maybe we haven’t been to – that’s all about growing the game internationally.
“The great things that I expect from NBA Europe will allow us to go around the world, so I don’t think there will be any cannabilisation.”
While the Magic are open to travelling elsewhere, with Brazil and Puerto Rico named as core expansion targets, Freeman also noted that the franchise viewed both Germany and the UK as “untapped markets” from both a commercial and tourism perspective.
The team, which counts German stars Franz and Moritz Wagner and Brazilian-German forward Tristan da Silva on their roster, have held numerous events in Germany over recent years. They have additionally signed partnerships with the likes of Deutsche Telekom and Visit Orlando to bolster their international business strategy.
“It’s about finding the right partnerships and working with the right people,” Freeman said. “You can’t just show up in a marketplace and expect massive success, so I think over in the UK and in Germany, it’s [about] working with the right companies, growing the brand, and looking at commercial opportunities.”
The NBA currently does not have a formal international marketing structure for its teams, unlike the National Football League (NFL) which designates the rights to certain markets to individual teams.
However, Freeman believes the basketball league’s international program is progressing in its global efforts, noting this was the first time the NBA was playing in two different markets on the same trip.
“The NBA has allowed teams now to go into various markets with rights, and that’s what’s allowed us to do what we’ve been able to do,” he added. “In the past, we would not have been able to come over to Germany and have the commercial opportunities that we’ve done, or to come to London and do the same.
“For us to be able to come to two markets on the same trip, I think speaks volumes for how the NBA is trying to change and grow the program. We’re excited about being able to be in two different cities. Hopefully this is something that will continue.”
The two European games and the planned NBA Europe division represent the growing ambition held by the NBA to grow its presence on the continent.
For NBA Europe, it is aiming to secure 12 permanent teams based in cities in the UK, France, Spain, Italy, Germany, Greece and Turkey, with the remaining four clubs qualifying either by winning the Fiba Champions League, or through their performances in their respective domestic league.
Teams reportedly will be valued at US$1 billion, while the NBA plans to retain a 50 per cent stake in the division, leaving the door open for another investor. Bloomberg reports that it will hold a private conference in London to meet possible sponsors, investors and media partners.
Speaking prior to the Berlin game, NBA commissioner Adam Silver confirmed the league had held talks with Spain’s Real Madrid and Germany’s Alba Berlin around their potential participation.
Should NBA Europe be launched successfully, Silver said that a potential women’s basketball league in Europe would come under consideration. However, he also cautioned that NBA Europe would not provide prospective investors immediate returns.
“The funding would potentially come from, at least initially, the member clubs of the league,” Silver told reporters. “I think similar to any startup venture, the participants would be the investors, and over time would hope to seek a return.
“If we were to successfully launch this new league, it will take a while I think before it is a viable commercial enterprise. I think all the participants recognise that this is not for those who have a short-term perspective. What we are telling interested parties is that you need to have a very long-term perspective.”
Asked on whether he was concerned about a potential legal challenge from EuroLeague, Silver added: “I send the legal letters to my lawyers, so I’ll let them handle that. And I don’t think by any means it’s inevitable that there is a clash.”
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