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Türkiye's stunning semifinal victory over Greece at the 2025 European Basketball Championship generated unprecedented television viewership, with more than 10 million people watching the match in Türkiye alone, marking the largest basketball audience in recent years, according to FIBA Europe officials.
The Turkish national team's dominant 94-68 victory over Greece secured their place in the EuroBasket final while capturing the attention of an entire nation amid basketball's growing popularity in Türkiye.
"More than 10 million people in Türkiye followed the semifinal between Türkiye and Greece. This became the largest basketball viewership numbers in recent years," said Jorge Garbajosa, FIBA Europe President, during a press conference ahead of the tournament final at Arena Riga.
The atmosphere inside the packed arena drew particular praise from tournament officials, with Turkish and Greek fans creating what Garbajosa described as an "extraordinary" environment despite the intense rivalry between the nations.
"There was a great show in a completely packed hall. The behavior of both countries' fans was extraordinary. There were no barriers between the fan blocks. The fans were completely mixed," Garbajosa said. "I think both federations should be proud of the attitude their fans showed here."
Garbajosa also addressed the long-anticipated collaboration between FIBA and the National Basketball Association, confirming that plans for an NBA Europe project are progressing despite the complexity of such an undertaking.
"The NBA Europe project will happen. Of course, creating such a big organization is not easy. This will take time but it will happen, there is no doubt about it," Garbajosa said. "Some forecasts point to 2027, I think this could be a good year. The NBA is currently working on this."
The FIBA Europe president emphasized that the partnership would benefit European basketball broadly rather than serving either organization's individual interests.
"We want to be their partner. They also want to be with us. We believe this project will be very beneficial for the basketball ecosystem in Europe, not for FIBA or NBA," he said.
Tournament officials also addressed ongoing criticism regarding squad sizes after several teams struggled with depleted rosters due to injuries during the championship. Some coaches and federations have called for rule changes to allow larger squads.
Garbajosa defended the current system, citing usage patterns among coaching staffs across European competitions.
"Data clearly shows that head coaches use at most 9-10 players. Even if more players are included in the squad, this does not change the picture," he said. "This organization has an open structure. We have broad commissions and we evaluate every opinion. We value the opinions of athletes."
Looking ahead to future tournaments, FIBA Europe Executive Director Kamil Novak announced that the opening match of the 2029 European Basketball Championship will take place at Real Madrid's iconic Santiago Bernabeu Stadium, fulfilling a long-held ambition for the organization.
The 2029 tournament will be hosted across Estonia, Greece, Slovenia and Spain, with Madrid serving as a showcase venue for basketball's continued growth in Europe.
"The opening match being played at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium was part of Spain's candidacy file. This was something we had targeted for many years," Novak said. "Santiago Bernabeu, located in Spain's capital Madrid, is an iconic and massive stadium. We have 4 years ahead of us to prepare."
Novak acknowledged the logistical challenges of staging basketball in a football stadium but expressed confidence in the project's potential impact.
"This will be a big challenge. We will be very happy to offer such an experience to basketball lovers," he said.
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