PAOK Among First Four New EuroLeague Franchises, Spanish Report Says

By Taki Panos

Thessaloniki has waited a long time for a headline like this one. PAOK will be one of the first four clubs admitted as new EuroLeague franchises in the first days of November, alongside Valencia Basket, Paris Basketball and Dubai Basketball, according to Spanish outlet Encestando on Saturday. There is a catch, and it is a big one. The report says PAOK would pay 130 million euros for its place, by far the highest fee of the four clubs named.

For readers who do not follow European basketball closely, here is the short version. The EuroLeague is the top club competition on the continent, and it is moving toward permanent franchises, with new clubs paying an entry fee to become shareholders. Valencia, Paris and Dubai already play in it, while PAOK currently competes in the EuroCup, the second tier run by the same organization, Mundo Deportivo noted. If the history of the PAOK sports club is new to you, its basketball team is one of the proudest names in Greek sport.

The numbers are eye-watering. Valencia and Paris would pay 50 million euros each, Dubai about 70 million and PAOK 130 million, for a combined 300 million euros, Encestando reported, with the fees payable in installments and the first payment due in December once the clubs are admitted. Sportando and Gazzetta carried the same figures. Encestando wrote that PAOK would be the fourth club "barring an unexpected turn" (translated from Spanish), describing a club that made striking signings this summer and has a very wealthy owner who does not hide his wish to be in the EuroLeague.

That owner is Aristotelis Mistakidis, the metals trader who took control of PAOK's basketball club in November 2025 by buying a 60.81 percent stake through his company Alpha Sports Group, Kathimerini reported at the time. The club's statement that day spoke of "a clear vision for the future" and called the change of ownership a new historic step, coming shortly before the club's 100th anniversary. Less than a year later, if the Spanish report is right, that vision now comes with a price tag in nine figures.

The ambition is already visible on the court. PAOK's new project under coach Andrea Trinchieri added Nick Calathes, the EuroLeague's all-time assists leader, who arrived from Partizan and won the EuroLeague with Panathinaikos in 2011, per Eurohoops. Cedi Osman is on the roster too, and he showed what he can do on Saturday with 37 points in Rhodes. Encestando described PAOK as a clear candidate to win the EuroCup this season, which tells you how people outside Greece see this team. That is not a small compliment.

A EuroLeague return would also be a homecoming of sorts. PAOK won the European Cup Winners' Cup in 1991 and the Korać Cup in 1994, finished third at the 1993 Final Four in Athens and played in the first season of the modern Euroleague Basketball competition in 2000-01, according to the club's history on Wikipedia. Financial trouble followed, and the club spent most of the next two decades below that level. For fans who remember the 1990s, a permanent seat at the top table would feel like getting something back that was lost.

The franchise plan is part of a much larger financial picture. Encestando reported that the EuroLeague has presented a revenue plan for the next 10 years that would distribute 3.4 billion euros to its clubs, with 1.2 billion expected from entry fees paid by 12 to 15 new teams over the next four years. Fosonline relayed the same numbers for Greek readers. According to BasketNews, as cited by Mundo Deportivo, the expansion would come in three stages: this November, early 2027 and before the summer of 2027.

Not everyone makes the first cut. Partizan and Virtus Bologna had advanced talks, but their financial situations may keep them out in November, Encestando wrote, while Crvena Zvezda is expected to wait for a second round in the spring or summer and Hapoel Tel Aviv is seen joining during 2027. The clubs that have reportedly submitted bids also include Napoli, two new Rome clubs, London Lions, Hapoel Jerusalem and, interestingly for Greek fans, Aris, per Sportando. A PAOK and Aris race to the EuroLeague would be a very Thessaloniki story.

All of this is happening while the NBA tries to build its own league in Europe. At their meeting in Cernobbio, Italy, earlier this month, the EuroLeague's club owners agreed to turn their 10-year licenses into franchises and to keep working on expansion, the league's statement said, with in.gr reporting a planned move from 20 to 24 teams. Former EuroLeague boss Jordi Bertomeu has called the NBA plan a step backwards, as we covered in our story on his comments about Olympiacos. Bringing in clubs like PAOK is one way for the EuroLeague to show it can grow on its own terms.

A word of caution before anyone plans EuroLeague road trips. This is a report, not an announcement. Encestando is citing its own sources, and the decisions are only expected in the first days of November. Until the EuroLeague publishes an official list, the 130 million figure, the timing and even the four names should be treated as reported rather than confirmed. Plenty of deals in basketball look done until they are not. A few more weeks of patience will not hurt anyone.

My take: if the report is accurate, PAOK is paying a real premium, 30 million euros more than Valencia and Paris combined, and that tells you how badly the club wants back in. Is 130 million fair for a team that is not in the competition today? That is a reasonable question. Still, PAOK brings a huge fan base, Greece's second city, a deep basketball tradition and an owner willing to fund the project. The EuroLeague gets money, a third Greek club and a strong foothold in Thessaloniki. PAOK gets certainty. The real test is building something that lasts.

In the meantime, there is basketball to play. PAOK face Ulm on Wednesday, October 21, in round four of the EuroCup, Sport24 reported, and every win this season helps make the case that this club belongs at the top. The bigger date is early November, when the EuroLeague is expected to make its call. Keep an eye on our Greek Sports section for the moment it becomes official. Thessaloniki is ready.

Sources: Encestando, Sportando, Gazzetta, Fosonline, Mundo Deportivo, Kathimerini, Eurohoops, in.gr, Sport24.

Image: White and black flag with a double-headed eagle in PAOK colors by Sportingn, cropped, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0).