FIBA EuroChallenge (called the FIBA Europe League in 2003–05, and FIBA EuroCup in 2005–08) was
the 3rd-tier level transnational men's professional continental club
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
competition in Europe, from 2003 to 2015. It was organized and run by
FIBA Europe
FIBA Europe is the administrative body for basketball in Europe, within the International Basketball Federation (FIBA), which includes all 50 national European basketball federations. In reaction to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, FIBA Euro ...
. It is not to be confused with the
FIBA EuroCup Challenge – the now defunct 4th-tier level transnational men's professional continental club basketball competition in Europe, which was also organized and run by FIBA Europe, and played during the 2002–03 to 2006–07 seasons. In 2015, FIBA dissolved the EuroChallenge, in order to start the
Basketball Champions League
The Basketball Champions League (BCL) is an annual professional basketball competition for European clubs, organised by FIBA. It is the top-level competition organised by FIBA Europe, therefore the champion participates in the FIBA Intercontin ...
(BCL) and
FIBA Europe Cup
The FIBA Europe Cup (FEC) is an annual professional club basketball competition organised by FIBA for eligible European clubs. It is FIBA's European-wide second level. Clubs mainly qualify for the competition based on their performance in nation ...
(FEC), in order to compete with the
EuroLeague and
EuroCup competitions, which are organized by the rival
Euroleague Basketball
Euroleague Basketball is the private company that runs and operates the top continental-wide basketball men's professional sports club competitions in Europe, the first-tier level EuroLeague, and the second-tier level EuroCup. It has been org ...
.
EuroCup promotion
Each season's two EuroChallenge finalists were
promoted
Promotion may refer to:
Marketing
* Promotion (marketing), one of the four marketing mix elements, comprising any type of marketing communication used to inform or persuade target audiences of the relative merits of a product, service, brand or i ...
to the next season's
2nd tier level, the
EuroCup competition.
History
The competition was created in 2003, following the defections of most of the top European basketball teams from the former
FIBA SuproLeague, which heralded the formation of the new version of the
Turkish Airlines EuroLeague, under the umbrella of
Euroleague Basketball
Euroleague Basketball is the private company that runs and operates the top continental-wide basketball men's professional sports club competitions in Europe, the first-tier level EuroLeague, and the second-tier level EuroCup. It has been org ...
. From the
2004–05 season, EuroChallenge was considered to be the 3rd strongest international professional basketball competition for men's clubs in Europe, after both the
Turkish Airlines EuroLeague and the
EuroCup (both of which fall under the supervision of
Euroleague Basketball
Euroleague Basketball is the private company that runs and operates the top continental-wide basketball men's professional sports club competitions in Europe, the first-tier level EuroLeague, and the second-tier level EuroCup. It has been org ...
). Though, during the first two seasons of the competition's coexistence with the
EuroCup, the EuroChallenge (under the name FIBA Europe League) was favored by Italian, Russian and Greek teams, making both competitions quite comparable in strength.
In 2015,
FIBA Europe
FIBA Europe is the administrative body for basketball in Europe, within the International Basketball Federation (FIBA), which includes all 50 national European basketball federations. In reaction to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, FIBA Euro ...
dissolved the EuroChallenge, to start a new self-anointed second-tier competition, called the
Basketball Champions League
The Basketball Champions League (BCL) is an annual professional basketball competition for European clubs, organised by FIBA. It is the top-level competition organised by FIBA Europe, therefore the champion participates in the FIBA Intercontin ...
(BCL), in an attempt to compete with the
EuroCup.
[ ]
Final Fours
All-time EuroChallenge Finals/Final Four MVP award winners (2004–2015)
Records and statistics
Performances by club
Performances by country
Individual records and statistical leaders
All-Star Game
Winning rosters
FIBA Europe League
FIBA EuroCup
FIBA EuroChallenge
References and notes
External links
FIBA EuroChallenge official website
{{Men's professional basketball leagues
International club basketball competitions
Defunct basketball cup competitions in Europe
2003 establishments in Europe
Recurring sporting events established in 2003
2015 disestablishments in Europe
Recurring sporting events disestablished in 2015