EuroLeague Basketball rejected an official offer from the NBA to merge into a unified European entity, following a meeting of club owners held in the Italian city of Cernobbio.
The Spanish club Barcelona confirmed, on Wednesday, that the 13 clubs participating in the Euroleague had decided not to accept the American proposal, as part of a set of decisions related to the future of the tournament.
The list of clubs participating in the EuroLeague includes Barcelona and Real Madrid of Spain, Bayern Munich of Germany, Olympiacos of Greece, Milan of Italy, and ASVEL of France, owned by Tony Parker, in addition to two clubs based in Istanbul.
EuroLeague announced in an official statement that representatives of the clubs met to discuss and coordinate major strategic decisions related to the future of their collective ownership, without referring directly to the offer submitted by the NBA.
But Barcelona confirmed, in response to an inquiry from the Associated Press, that rejecting the American offer was among the decisions taken by the club owners during the meeting, which was attended by Catalan club president Joan Laporta.
Barcelona explained that the door has not been completely closed on the project, as the clubs and Euroleague can reconsider their position if the NBA submits a modified offer in the future.
EuroLeague did not reveal the details of the clubs’ votes or the position of each club separately, and merely announced the decisions related to the future of the competition.
The EuroLeague currently includes 20 teams, including 13 contributing clubs that enjoy immunity from relegation, while the rest of the teams obtain their places through their results in local leagues or through invitations to participate in the tournament.
On the other hand, the NBA, in partnership with the International Basketball Federation (FIBA), is working on a new project to launch a European competition that includes 16 teams.
According to the French newspaper L'Equipe, the American League has offered an amount of up to 400 million euros ($448 million) to each club that agrees to join the new entity.
Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi lived two contradictory scenes in the final stage of their international careers. At a time when Messi bid farewell to the Argentine national team amid an emotional atmosphere and great public celebration, Ronaldo found himself at the heart of a public crisis with Portugal coach Jorge Jesus, without giving up his desire to continue his international career.
Hours before Messi played his last match for Argentina, Ronaldo published a lengthy statement in which he detailed his dispute with Jesus, confirming that there had been a “complete collapse of trust” between them, but in return he stressed that his story with the national team was not over yet.
The crisis dates back to Portugal's match against Norway, as Ronaldo said that he was initially scheduled to be rested, before he was asked to warm up in preparation for participating as a substitute, without Jesus bringing him into the match.
Ronaldo, 41 years old, left the national team camp after that, before later admitting that the decision to leave was not correct and that he bears full responsibility.
Ronaldo said: “Despite the complete collapse of trust in the coach’s word, which everyone who witnessed these conversations can confirm, I should not have done that. The responsibility lies entirely with me, and I apologize once again to the Portuguese people.”
He added that he felt that remaining in the camp after what happened would not be beneficial to the group, so he decided to pack his bags and leave, while acknowledging the possibility of being subjected to punishment from the coach or the Portuguese Federation.
Despite the crisis, Ronaldo refused to announce the end of his international career, stressing that the time for farewell would come later. He said: “I can promise all my fans, especially the Portuguese people, that there will be one or more farewell matches.” "The time will come."
The Portuguese captain also continues to chase his goal of reaching a thousand goals in his career, after his tally reached 979 goals, and he had confirmed last December his confidence in reaching this number if he was not injured.
On the other hand, the picture was different for Messi, who played his last match for Argentina in front of about 80,000 fans who came to watch the national team captain’s farewell.
Messi scored from a penalty kick in the 3-0 win over Benin, raising his tally to 126 goals in 208 international matches, before speaking about the difficulty of the moment when his career with the national team came to an end.
“Not coming again would be very painful,” Messi said. “I swear, I wanted to play all my life, because representing the Argentine national team is the most beautiful thing that can happen to you.”
Messi's farewell came amid performances and honors before the match, in addition to a large banner bearing the phrase "Thank you, No. 10," while feelings of sadness and gratitude prevailed in the stands during his last appearance.
On the other hand, Ronaldo's future with Portugal remains undecided, despite his confirmation of his desire to return, in light of the ongoing dispute with Jesus and the possibility of him being punished for leaving the camp.
While Messi's international journey ended after 208 matches, Ronaldo is still committed to continuing his journey with Portugal, in two different forms for the final stage of the two stars' careers.
Italian Napoli said that midfielder Scott McTominay had been given the green light to return to the field after a period of undergoing surgery to treat a heart rhythm disorder.
The 29-year-old Scottish international underwent surgery in Manchester last September, after it was found that he was suffering from a “simple and benign arrhythmia,” a condition that causes an irregular heartbeat.
McTominay underwent further examinations and obtained permission to resume his sporting activity. He returned to training with Napoli and will be ready to join the squad that coach Massimiliano Allegri will choose.
Napoli said in a statement: “Scott McTominay underwent additional diagnostic tests, which showed that he is fit to play. Therefore, the Napoli player resumed training with the rest of the team after the period he spent in solo training.
McTominay has not played since August 30, and missed Napoli's 3-2 loss to champions Inter Milan, as well as the loss to Arsenal in the Champions League.
Napoli, which ranks ninth in the Italian League, will host Frosinone, which is in sixth place, on Saturday.
