Derthona joins BKT EuroCup with a multi-year license. Picchi: "We're proud: the result of years of work."
Derthona Basket is returning to Europe. Starting next season, Bertram Derthona Tortona will be competing in the BKT EuroCup. The black and white club is one of twenty-two to have obtained a five-year (3+2) license to participate in the second-largest Euroleague Basketball tournament, which next year inaugurates the new format expanded to 32 teams.
The expansion follows strong demand from the ECA board for a competition that promotes stability, encourages investment and fosters long-term planning among participating clubs, while providing a high-quality environment that allows teams to compete at the highest level.
Team selection was based on the final standings of their respective national leagues, with 22 clubs obtaining long-term licenses and others receiving wildcard invitations.
Among the other teams that have secured a multi-year spot in the BKT EuroCup are two other Italian teams: Aquila Basket Trento and Umana Reyer Venezia. These teams, along with the wild cards awarded to Napoli Basketball and the new Basketball Club Roma, make the Italian contingent the largest in the 2026/27 edition, followed by Turkey and Germany, which each have four. The list currently consists of 31 teams, pending the final wild card, which will be announced in the coming days.
STATEMENTS President Marco Picchi: "For all of Derthona Basket, it is a source of great satisfaction to have been chosen as one of the clubs with a multi-year license. I believe it is a sign of the work that has been ongoing as an organization for years and a great recognition of what the Gavio family has done for Derthona, starting with the construction of the Cittadella dello Sport, which, being the only basketball facility owned by the club in Italy, gives our club a perspective and a horizon on the continental level as well."
"On the one hand, we're therefore proud," the President continues, "but on the other, we're also aware of the challenges that await us in a EuroCup that represents another true championship, where we'll be playing practically every week for the first four months. We're already working to meet this dual commitment, starting with building the team, of course, but also as a club. We'll be ready for such a prestigious competition."
LIST The list of 22 teams with multi-year licenses:
Aris Betsson Thessaloniki (Greece)
AS Monaco (France)
Bahcesehir Istanbul (Türkiye)
Bertram Derthona Tortona
Besiktas Gain Istanbul (Türkiye)
Buducnost Flights Podgorica (Montenegro)
Cedevita Olimpija Ljubljana (Slovenia)
JL Bourg-en-Bresse (France)
Dolomites Energy Trento
Hapoel Midtown Jerusalem (Israel)
Tenerife Lagoon (Spain)
Le Mans Sarthe Basket (France)
Lietkabelis Panevezys (Lithuania)
London Lions (Great Britain)
Neptunas Klaipeda (Lithuania)
Niners Chemnitz (Germany)
PAOK Thessaloniki (Greece)
Ratiopharm Ulm (Germany)
Skyliners Frankfurt (Germany)
Turk Telekom Ankara (Türkiye)
U-BT Cluj-Napoca (Romania)
Umana Reyer Venice
The 10 teams with annual participation:
Balkan Botevgrad (Bulgaria)
Basketball Club Roma
Kids&Us Manresa (Spain)
Naples Basketball
Riga Zelli (Latvia)
Rostock Seawolves (Germany)
Siauliai (Lithuania)
Slask Wroclaw (Poland)
Tofas Bursa (Türkiye)
n. 1 wild card
FORMULA The 32 teams will be divided into four groups of eight, each playing a home-and-away format. After the fourteen matches in the first phase, the top four teams in each group will advance to the playoffs, which will begin with the round of 16, followed by the quarterfinals, semifinals, and final, all best-of-three series.
Click on the graphic below to see the format of the 2026/27 BKT EuroCup.
