The EuroLeague, the second-best …

The EuroLeague, the second-best basketball league in the world, has been more top-heavy, with a strong central system and a peripatetic player base. That began to change in 2018, when players across the league (then at 18 teams in 11 countries before EuroLeague kicked out three Russian teams in Feb.) united under one banner. That year, the EuroLeague Players Association was born, and for the first time, the league had a union. It was a seminal achievement for the league and an attempt by players to provide a voice for their own working conditions. In 2020, as the pandemic raged, the players association had talks amongst its representatives about whether to continue their suspended season. Ultimately, ELPA voted not to play. Then, so did the EuroLeague.