In response to calls from prominent Euroleague players for the establishment of a union for players in Europe, the Union des Basketteurs Europeen (UBE) has been relaunched with new elections held and its statutes updated to allow for the European wide collective representation of players. Players are concerned that the current governance crisis in European basketball is having a negative effect on player welfare, physical integrity, and working conditions.
The effort to address these problems is being spearheaded by player unions from Spain, Italy, France, Israel, and Switzerland who represent a majority of Euroleague players and many of the top national teams competing in FIBA competitions. Outreach has also begun to player associations outside of Europe to form a global player alliance.
Newly elected UBE President, Alessandro Marzoli, said:
“In light of the current problems between FIBA and the Euroleague, our group of unions decided to reinvigorate our cooperation and work towards negotiating a collective bargaining agreement with the Euroleague and a global agreement with FIBA. We will be reaching out to players to ensure that they drive these discussions. It’s long past time that an independent players voice had a seat at the table.” He continued, “Many of the problems currently facing European basketball can be solved through a social dialogue process with the clubs and federations. Players want basketball in Europe to thrive and the current jockeying for control is only hurting players and the development of the game. We will be meeting in Barcelona in September to move this project forward.”
