Intercontinental Cup pits Tel Aviv against Flamengo

Maccabi Tel Aviv will have the chance to add to is international honours as the Euroleague winners will face off against Flamengo in the 2014 Intercontinental Cup. The game is a celebration contest between the winners of the FIBA Liga de las Americas champions Flamengo and Europe’s best, Tel Aviv.

There will of course also be silverware on offer as the two elite teams clash, with the game set for late September in Rio de Janeiro. That will of course give Rio based club Flamengo home city advantage as Maccabi Tel Aviv attempts to win the Intercontinental Cup for the second time in its history. The Israeli powerhouse will be the favourites to win the trophy despite Flamengo’s familiarity with the surroundings and undoubted support.

The 2014 Intercontinental Cup is only the second time the rejuvenated competition has been held. Those of a certain vintage will remember when the game was viewed as an extremely important event in global Basketball. The competition fell on hard times and has stayed dormant for 20 years, until last year’s return where Olympiacos defeated Pinheiros Sky to bring the cup to Europe.

The future success of the Intercontinental Cup depends on how well these games are received by the wider Basketball community and supporters. Euroleague Basketball’s CEO and President, Jordi Bertomeu, stressed that the cup could bring plenty of excitement to Basketball fans in two continents.

The revival of the Intercontinental Cup shows how cooperation between sporting bodies and great clubs can mean something special for fans of our sport on different continents… We are sure that our new Turkish Airlines Euroleague champion, Maccabi, will add great momentum to this reborn initiative with its excellent team, consistent professionalism and worldwide following of fans.