PRESS RELEASE |

Euroleague Basketball issues lifetime ban to fan for racist comments towards referee

Euroleague Basketball has imposed a fan with a lifetime prohibition to access any Euroleague Basketball games and events due to the racist comments addressed to one of the officiating crew members at the Olympiacos Piraeus vs Valencia Basket game, on December 15, 2023.

The home club, Olympiacos Piraeus, had already canceled the individual’s season ticket shortly after the incident and announced that he would be prohibited from attending any Olympiacos’ games, ever.

Euroleague Basketball, Olympiacos Piraeus and all its fellow clubs are strongly committed to celebrating diversity and promoting respect, using basketball to unite fans, and applying a zero-tolerance policy at their events towards any acts that go against these values.

Euroleague Basketball (EB) is a global leader in the sports and entertainment business, devoted to running the top European competitions of professional basketball clubs under a unique and innovative organizational model. Owned and administered by some of the most successful and historic clubs in the world, EB manages the continent’s two premier men’s basketball competitions, the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague and the BKT EuroCup, as well as the sport’s premier under-18 showcase, the EB Adidas Next Generation Tournament.

The EB competitions bring the elite of European basketball to all five continents and to the entire sports community through the OTT platform EuroLeague TV. EB also organizes a series of community and educational activities, led by the One Team program, in alignment with the United Nations Agenda 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. On the academic side, the EB Sports Business MBA trains future professionals in sports management.