Fenerbahçe eye Türkiye’s 17th European basketball title in Abu Dhabi
Turkish basketball is on the cusp of another historic milestone as Fenerbahçe Beko prepares to battle AS Monaco in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague final Sunday night at the Etihad Arena, aiming to deliver Türkiye’s 17th European club trophy and their own sixth.
A win would mark Fenerbahçe’s second EuroLeague title, the first since their 2017 triumph, and crown a season that already saw their women’s side lift the FIBA SuperCup.
Weight of history
Should the Yellow Canaries defeat Monaco, they would bring home Türkiye’s fourth EuroLeague men’s championship and add to a rich but hard-fought legacy of continental success.
To date, Turkish men’s clubs have clinched 10 European titles: Anadolu Efes leads with three, including back-to-back EuroLeague wins in 2021 and 2022.
Fenerbahçe, Galatasaray, Beşiktaş, Darüşşafaka, and Bahçeşehir Koleji each contributed one with victories across the EuroLeague, EuroCup, and FIBA Europe competitions.
Efes Pilsen, as they were known then, etched Türkiye’s name into European basketball history in 1996 by winning the Korac Cup – the nation’s first international triumph.
On the women’s side, Turkish clubs have notched six major European trophies.
Fenerbahçe leads the way with four – including back-to-back EuroLeague titles in 2023 and 2024 – while Galatasaray and Yakın Doğu Üniversitesi added three more combined.
The SuperCup wins by Fenerbahçe in 2023 and 2024 pushed the nation’s club title tally to 16.
Fenerbahçe’s head coach Sarunas Jasikevicius, speaking at the pre-final press conference, emphasized the challenge ahead. “You must be great in every aspect. Maybe you won’t play your best game, but if you’re complete – smart on offense, sharp on defense – you give yourself a chance.”
Jasikevicius praised mid-season signing Errick McCollum, who stepped up after Wilbekin’s injury: “He’s been huge for us. In tough moments, he’s the kind of player who rises.”
Reflecting on his own journey, Jasikevicius acknowledged the full-circle moment of now coaching against his former Panathinaikos teammate and current Monaco coach Vassilis Spanoulis: “Back then, I dreamed of NBA stints and titles, but not this – coaching a EuroLeague final against Vassilis. It’s surreal.”
For Monaco’s Spanoulis, a EuroLeague legend now in his first Final Four as a head coach, the moment is equally significant.
“Just being here is special,” said Spanoulis. “We earned it. Both teams did. Now it’s down to one game, one chance.”
Known for his feel for the game, Spanoulis acknowledged the fine line between instinct and strategy. “Sometimes it’s about feeling – sending in a guy the opponent never expects. That’s coaching.”
He lauded Jasikevicius as both a friend and a fierce competitor: “We both live for this sport. But facing each other like this? Never imagined it.”
Monaco forward Alpha Diallo credited Spanoulis for transforming the team’s culture. “His arrival changed our mentality. He’s been there as a player – he gets it. He says things we didn’t think of. And it works.”
