LONDON LIONS SECURE BKT EUROCUP PLACE WITH MULTI-YEAR EUROLEAGUE DEAL

London, Friday 12 June 2026 - London Lions will compete in the BKT EuroCup in 2026-27 after agreeing a three-plus-two year deal with Euroleague Basketball, securing the club’s place in one of the continent’s premier competitions and a potential five-year licence in the expanded competition.

The agreement confirms the Lions among the 32 teams set to contest an expanded BKT EuroCup, following approval of the competition’s new format by the ECA Board. London earned their place on the back of a quadruple-winning domestic campaign, having swept the SLB Playoff Title, SLB Championship, SLB Cup and SLB Trophy in 2025-26.  2026-27 will mark the club’s fourth season in the BKT EuroCup.

London first entered the competition in 2022-23 and made history the following year, becoming the first British team to reach the EuroCup Semifinals in 2023-24. The Lions returned to the competition last season and will be hungry to go deeper into the postseason this time around, backed now by the security of a long-term place at Europe’s top table.

The competition grows in both size and scope for 2026-27. The 32 teams will be split into four groups of eight, with 16 advancing to the postseason. The playoffs run through Eighthfinals, Quarterfinals, Semifinals and Finals, each played as a best-of-three series, giving the Lions a clear and competitive route deep into European basketball.

The expanded field features clubs from 16 different countries and territories, underlining the strength and reach of the competition London will be part of. In total, Euroleague Basketball competitions will field 52 teams across the 2026-27 season, 20 in the EuroLeague and 32 in the EuroCup.

For London, the multi-year agreement is a statement of intent. The five-year licence secures continental basketball at the highest club level in the capital for years to come, supporting the kind of long-term planning and investment the Lions have built their recent success on.  

"A long-term EuroCup license is not only recognition of what we have achieved, but a clear signal of where we are heading," Lions General Manager Martynas Purlys said.

"London Lions are firmly establishing themselves in Europe and we work every day to make this club an important landmark on the European basketball map."

The Lions will learn their group and fixture details in due course, with the full list of participating teams to be ratified by the Euroleague Basketball General Assembly ahead of the new season.