Europe's top-tier basketball tournament EuroLeague set to start Thursday

First game of the season, Monaco - Panathinaikos, will be played on Thursday

By Selcuk Bugra Gokalp

ANKARA (AA) - Europe's top-tier basketball tournament EuroLeague's 2021/2022 season will start on Thursday.

The season's first game will be between Monaco - Panathinaikos to be held at Salle Gaston Medecin in Monaco at 1700 GMT on Sept. 30.

Reigning champions Anadolu Efes will take on Spanish powerhouse Real Madrid at WiZink Center in Madrid at 1845 GMT on Thursday.

The 2021-22 season will be played with 18 teams and will end with the Final Four at Cologne, Germany, on May 28-30.

This season will also be held with some COVID-19 regulations regarding both teams and staff.

All clubs will be appointed a COVID-19 manager, given educational sessions. The organization also recommends daily health monitoring.

All players, coaching staff, and referees will perform a PCR test three days ahead of every game (two days for home games) and a post-game test, except individuals who have been vaccinated or previously tested positive for COVID-19 and subsequently received medical clearance.

Game arenas and practice facilities will have a maximum number of individuals in the playing court and locker room areas.

Games may be suspended, relocated and rescheduled if deemed necessary by the EuroLeague organization.

Reigning champions, Anadolu Efes, won the 2020-21 championship after defeating Barcelona in the final.

- Fixtures:

Thursday:

AS Monaco - Panathinaikos OPAP Athens

Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv - FC Bayern Munich

AX Armani Exchange Olimpia Milan - CSKA Moscow

Real Madrid - Anadolu Efes Istanbul

Friday:

UNICS Kazan - Zenit St Petersburg

Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul - Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade