TORINO (ITALPRESS) – More than a week from the first ball, there are already over 30 thousand tickets sold to attend the next Frecciarossa Final Eight basketball, scheduled from 18 to 22 February to the Inalpi Arena in Turin. The 50th edition was presented this morning at the Circolo dei Lettori in the Piedmontese capital, to be part of this year are Virtus Olidata Bologna, Germani Brescia, EA7 Emporio Armani Milano, Umana Reyer Venezia, Bertram Derthona Tortona, Pallacanestro Trieste, APU Old Wild West Udine and Guerri Napoli. An appointment introduced by President LBA Maurizio Gherardini: “We are happy to be in Turin for the fourth consecutive year, we feel the hunger for basketball that we breathe here, we have already exceeded the 30 thousand tickets sold – he said – We are curious to see how it will end, since in recent years the favorites of the eve have always been surprised by the so-called outsiders, it is the beauty of this competition where each game has a history to itself. It should be a competition that confirms a very balanced championship, unpredictable and with many protagonists. It will be a good time for basketball.”.
One of the novelties of this season is the presence of the final phase to the direct elimination of the IBSA NextGen Cup 2025/26, within the great event of the Frecciarossa Final Eight 2026: Thursday, February 19, the quarterfinals will be held at the PalaSermig, while Friday 20 and Saturday 21 February in the great stage of the Inalpi Arena are scheduled respectively the semifinals (at 15.30 and at 17,30) and the finals (at 13,30). Access to the NextGen Cup games is free of charge. “This year also the competition under 19 will be carried out in this context, you will be able to see at work the seniors and also the juniors, some of these boys are already at the gates of the National Major” Gherardini confirmed. Organized by the Basketball League in synergy with the Italian Basketball Federation, the event aims to enhance and promote the youth sectors of Serie A clubs, forming the champions of tomorrow.
Andrea Bargnani, a tournament ambassador and executive advisor of the League Basket Serie A, was also commenting on the next Final Eight. “In competitions with dry games can happen anything, there are a thousand variations. This is the beauty of the Final Eight, I hope they are all beautiful and fought matches – explained the former blue center – Regarding Italian basketball there is a moment of transformation and transition, there are so many things on the table that are still to be settled, we will see what will happen in the coming months”. Friday, February 20, following the semi-finals of the IBSA NextGen Cup 2025/26 and with free access to the Inalpi Arena, will be held the LBA Showtime Game, a game that will involve players who have made the story of our basketball and characters of the world of digital communication: “Thanks to Gianluca Gazzoli’s contribution, recently joined the LBA family as a Strategic Media Advisor, we are shaping this event that will try to recalculate the 360° show that is able to offer the NBA with its All-Star Game,” Bargnani said. All the event of the Final Eight is realized with the support of Regione Piemonte, Città di Torino, Camera di commercio di Torino and with the involvement of FIP Piemonte.
Also for the 2026 edition is renewed the collaboration with the Minister for Sport and Youth, Andrea Abodi, dedicating a space in the Foyer of the Inalpi Arena of Turin to the spread of a series of extra-field activities such as the promotion of the National Youth Card, a series of informative talks and other initiatives that integrate with the sports activities and engagement of the Final Eight. Gherardini also made a point of the situation after more than 100 days at the head of the LBA: “I am convinced that Italian basketball has great potential and we must continue to grow. The future goal we must have is a system that talks more often about sustainability and focuses more on improving structures, because only by improving the structures of the individual clubs can help the whole movement to raise its level,” he admitted. Lega Basket and Fondazione Piemontese per la Ricerca sul Cancro back into the field together, for the fourth consecutive year, relaunching “Una tripla per Candiolo”: Also on the occasion of the 2026 edition, for each basket made during the Lega Basket tournament he donates 100 euros, to support the daily work of doctors and researchers of the Institute of Candiolo – IRCCS.
– photo xn3/Italpress –
(ITALPRESS).
