The best basketball league is approaching its culmination in the 2022/23 season. The playoffs are heating these days, but the EUROLEAGUE already announced all-time records for regular season attendance.

But how is this possible? How come the EUROLEAGUE became such a powerful sports, business, and marketing machinery over the decades? That's exactly what we are going to talk about in this post. Keep reading to learn about the League's transformation from a regional to a global brand.

EUROLEAGUE's growth and success as a global brand

Most people consider the EUROLEAGUE to be the second most influential league worldwide, at least when it comes to marketing and the business side of basketball. Extremely talented players are the main success driver, but there are also factors like exciting gameplay and innovative marketing strategies.

However, we want to focus on one specific element here - it's the EUROLEAGUE's ability to expand its reach beyond Europe. The league invested heavily in international promotion, with a particular emphasis on the US, Asia, and South America. That's mostly what made the EUROLEAGUE a truly global brand.

Take the US as an example. The EUROLEAGUE went so far to hire talented American players who couldn't find NBA engagements so quickly. This actually helped the Europe's best basketball league steal a few genuine gems. Billy Baron of the Armani Exchange Milano and Kevin Punter of Partizan Belgrade are only a couple of highly respectable names on the list of US players in EUROLEAGUE.

And here's another way to acknowledge the importance of non-domestic and non-European players. It turns out that international players are responsible for over 50% of all points scored in the League.

The EUROLEAGUE's Business Model

With annual revenues exceeding $1 billion, the EUROLEAGUE is a prime example of a successful sports organization. So, if you're wondering how to start a basketball business, you might as well learn from the EUROLEAGUE's example. This league built a robust business model, but three components make it particularly successful. Here they are:

1. Broadcasting Rights
A big revenue stream comes from broadcasting rights. The league has deals with major television networks like Sky Sport and ESPN. All of these networks provide extensive coverage of EUROLEAGUE games:
-Live shows
-Match previews
-Post-match analytics
-Expert analysts and former EUROLEAGUE players
Broadcasting deals generate significant revenue for the league and its teams. According to some media reports, broadcasting rights account for around 35% of the EUROLEAGUE's total revenue, which is incredible.

2. Merchandise Sales
Another major revenue source for the EUROLEAGUE is merchandise sales. This is pretty obvious because the league features some of the best athletes in the world. Millions of fans globally wear jerseys with names like Vasilije Micic, Kevin Punter, Nikola Mirotic, Sasha Vezenkov, and so on.
They also purchase hats and other branded merchandise. The EUROLEAGUE simply capitalized on this demand by creating an extensive line of products. The League also partnered with big brands to make its merchandise available in retail stores all over the world.

3. Sponsorships and Advertising
Sponsorships are another thing that makes the EUROLEAGUE a huge basketball business. It has partnerships with major brands, including Turkish Airlines, Adidas, EA7, and Spalding. All of them pay huge sums to have their products and services associated with the EUROLEAGUE.

It also gets sponsorship from casino companies. You can see that the top UK online casinos with PayPal payments contribute to the League's business ecosystem - they want to attract basketball fans with new games and innovative payment solutions. Casino sponsorships are getting bigger, but we can say the same thing for many other types of sponsors.

In addition to these partnerships, the EUROLEAGUE also generates revenue through advertising during games, with companies paying a premium to have their ads shown during nationally televised games. The league has also been proactive in embracing new forms of advertising, such as social media sponsorships and influencer marketing campaigns.

The EUROLEAGUE's Expansion Strategy

According to the report, the EUROLEAGUE is still not in the 10 most popular sports leagues in the world, but it's approaching. This couldn't be possible with global expansion.

Expansion into New Markets
Every organization grows by expanding into new markets. The EUROLEAGUE has been expanding for decades, with the most recent additions being Partizan Belgrade. This move was so successful that Partizan broke the League's attendance record multiple times in a single season.

The Growth of Basketball in Emerging Markets
We briefly mentioned this trend, so we should only add a few more details. The EUROLEAGUE is trying to popularize the sport in emerging markets. Apart from the US, Africa seems to be an uncharted territory for the game.
For instance, Real Madrid - the League's most decorated team - heavily relies on African players. This season, a Cape Verdean pro basketball player Edy Tavares is Real Madrid's driving force in the paint.

The Role of Technology and Innovation

New technologies make it possible to promote the sport all over the globe. Here's how they do it:

1. Emerging Technologies
It's impossible to mention all technologies being used in the EUROLEAGUE, so we'll briefly discuss only one. Casino sponsors in the EUROLEAGUE use AI-powered marketing tools to offer free spins on sign-up and other promo deals. It's just one example of how tech innovations help both the league and its sponsors.

2. Data Analytics
The EUROLEAGUE has its own Game Center, aka a place where you can find everything there is to know about every team and players. It collects data in real-time and distributes advanced analytics to all parties involved - teams, broadcasters, and fans.

3. Social Media and Fan Engagement
Millions of people follow the League through social networks. That way, they can enjoy game highlights and behind-the-scenes content.

Conclusion

It's hard to imagine a bigger and better business organization than the EUROLEAGUE. This post focused on the business side of basketball, so feel free to write a comment if you have other interesting details to share about the EUROLEAGUE and its business model.