2009 SU Update: Belgrade to Host Finals of NLB League Tournament

Between April 16th and April 18th, “Partizan”, “Crvena Zvezda”, “Cibona” and “Hemofarm” will battle for the national basketball champion’s title. The tournament finals will be organized by the city of Belgrade, clubs “Crvena Zvezda” and “Partizan”, but also by the Universiade Belgrade 2009 team.

The Final Four NLB League tournament will be held in Belgrade Arena, the largest sports venue in the city, one that hosted numerous sports events and where the Opening Ceremony of the 2009 Su will be staged.

From the very beginning, Arena was irrevocably linked with the magical game under the hoops. The plan for Arena is the work of the renowned architect Vlade Slavica. Arena was to be ready for the 1994 World Championship in basketball, but it was postponed. The location for the Arena was chosen in 1991 and on-and-off construction work went on until 2004 when the Arena was officially finished.

On March 5th, 2009, the Euroleague Top 16 match between “Partizan” and “Panathinaikos” signified the beginning of a new era in the history of Serbian basketball and Arena. The NLB champion will go down in history as the first club to play in the Arena and break Euroleague record as to the number of spectators. The spectacle drew 22,567 basketball fans to the Arena.

That was the crucial moment that decided that the “black-and-whites” must play against European champion CSKA in the Euroleague quarterfinals in the Arena. Tickets were sold within an hour. It meant that the Arena and Serbian basketball were ready for another spectacle, the NLB League final tournament.

The climate for such a spectacle has never been more favorable – basketball is once again No.1 sport in Serbia. “Partizan”, “Zvezda”, the city of Belgrade and Company “Universiade Belgrade 2009” went into this project with great confidence. Preparations are already underway. Belgrade will be presented once again as the city with a big heart and a place where great basketball is played. With the help of basketball fans they cannot go wrong.

The quality of contestants, the battle between “eternal rivals”, the clash between a Eurocup Final Eight and a member of the Euroleague Top 16 in the semi-finals, as well as an invitation to the championship celebration in the Arena are a guarantee that the forthcoming matches will be spectacular.

The Final Four is an event that will announce in the best possible way this year’s biggest sports event worldwide, the 25th Summer Universiade in Belgrade.