At YAS Island in Abu Dhabi, in the Persian Gulf, from today until Sunday, May 25, the heart of European basketball will be beating—though louder still will be the hearts of Olympiacos and Panathinaikos fans, hoping to see their teams lift yet another EuroLeague trophy.

Just like last year in the Final Four in Berlin, this year in Abu Dhabi, two of the four finalists are Greek teams:

• 2024 EuroLeague champion Panathinaikos, with seven titles, and
• Olympiacos, regular season leader, making their fourth consecutive Final Four appearance, with three titles to date.

The Final Four Opening Press Conference did not disappoint! 🤩

Familiar faces both on the stage and in the audience 🙌#F4GLORY pic.twitter.com/qOBqHkMdOL

— Turkish Airlines EuroLeague (@EuroLeague) May 22, 2025

However, Ergin Ataman’s squad and Giorgos Bartzokas’ team must first overcome the hurdles of Fenerbahçe, led by Šarūnas Jasikevičius, and Monaco, coached by Vassilis Spanoulis, respectively. Only then can they meet in the first all-Greek final in the tournament’s history.

Olympiacos – Seeking Redemption

Olympiacos, led by Panagiotis and Giorgos Angelopoulos, finished first in the EuroLeague regular season and is chasing its first title since 2013 in London, which would be its fourth overall, during its 100th anniversary year. They also aim to break the curse of no team ever winning the title after finishing first in the regular season.

Panathinaikos – The Reigning Champion

Panathinaikos, under Dimitris Giannakopoulos, finished third in the regular season and is aiming to defend its title from last year, potentially achieving a first-ever back-to-back in its history and sewing an eighth star on its jersey. If it reaches the final, history favors them—7 wins in 7 finals.

Both Vassilis Spanoulis (Monaco) and Šarūnas Jasikevičius (Fenerbahçe) aim to become the third person in the last 62 years to win the EuroLeague both as a player and as a coach, and fourth overall, following:

• Armenak Alachachian (Armenian-Soviet player-coach),
• Lolo Sainz, and
• Svetislav Pešić.

SEMIFINAL A: Fenerbahçe vs Panathinaikos (May 23, 18:00)

Panathinaikos and Fenerbahçe will take the court first at 18:00, in the first semifinal—a rematch of last year’s Final Four, where the Greens eliminated the Istanbul side.

With twelve Final Four appearances (thirteen including the Suproleague), including two consecutive, and seven titles (1996 Paris, 2000 Thessaloniki, 2002 Bologna, 2007 Athens, 2009 Berlin, 2011 Barcelona, 2024 Berlin), Panathinaikos again faces Fenerbahçe, now led by Jasikevičius, who returns to the Final Four for the first time since 2019.

Last year, Panathinaikos defeated Fener 73–57 in Berlin and then beat defending champion Real Madrid in the final. Both Panathinaikos and Fenerbahçe return to the Final Four for a second straight year—each chasing the trophy for different reasons.

Fenerbahçe still has just one EuroLeague title, won in 2017 in Istanbul under Željko Obradović, when their current Panathinaikos captain, Kostas Sloukas, was a player.

Sarunas Jasikevicius is appearing in his sixth consecutive Final Four (including Abu Dhabi) and is running out of patience—he wants the trophy now.

Meanwhile, Panathinaikos is eyeing back-to-back titles—something it has never achieved. Ergin Ataman, who did it with Anadolu Efes, now seeks to become the first coach to do it twice with two different teams.

Coach Statements:

Ergin Ataman (Panathinaikos):
“I’m proud to be back at the Final Four, but I’m not letting my mind wander to the final. I’m confident in my team’s mental readiness.”

“I don’t care much about achieving another back-to-back. I’m proud of my previous three EuroLeague titles, and I’m here to defend this one. I believe we will win another title,” said Ataman during the official press conference featuring the four coaches and players.

Šarūnas Jasikevičius (Fenerbahçe):
He emphasized the importance of a strong start and referenced last year’s match:

“I hope we start the game on time—not like what happened in Berlin. We need a better beginning. We’ve been in the same situation for two years, and I hope it helps us this time. We must be better than we were in Berlin,” he stated.

Fenerbahce finished in 2nd place during the regular season, just one win behind Panathinaikos.
It is also the only team that managed a “sweep” in the playoffs, eliminating Paris 3-0.
Panathinaikos qualified as the 3rd seed in the regular season and needed a Game 5 to get past Anadolu Efes.
The “Greens” struggled with key absences throughout the season.
Most notably, the absence of their starting center, Mathias Lessort, played a crucial role.
Even so, they managed to advance to Abu Dhabi.
And Mathias Lessort returns to action… and will face Fenerbahce, which is led by Nigel Hayes-Davis, while they lost Scottie Wilbekin (ACL tear) before the season even began.
Panathinaikos holds an offensive edge, averaging 87.3 points per game, while Fenerbahce scores 83.8.

The Istanbul team allows 81 points per game on average, while the “Greens” concede 83.1.
In offensive rebounds, Fenerbahce shows superiority, while Panathinaikos leads in assists and steals.
McCollum, Baldwin, Coulson, Bibberovic, Hall, Pierre, and Guduric all find ways to score when Hayes-Davis doesn’t.
If Lessort plays, Panathinaikos will aim to “strike” in the paint, where Sertac Sanli and Khem Birch… pale in comparison to the “Green” front line when at full strength.

The officiating crew for the first semifinal consists of Carlos Peruga, Robert Lottermoser, and Mehdi Difallah.

SECOND SEMIFINAL: Olympiacos – Monaco (22/5, 21:00)
What Olympiacos failed to achieve in Belgrade in 2022—when Vasilije Micić denied them with a buzzer-beater three-pointer—in Kaunas in 2023—when Sergio Llull said “no” with a clutch jumper in the final seconds—and in Berlin in 2024—when they were defeated by Real Madrid in the semifinal—they will now pursue in the UAE, specifically at the “Etihad Arena” in Abu Dhabi.

Fate has it that standing on the bench of Olympiacos’ first opponent in this year’s (2025) EuroLeague Final Four semifinal in Abu Dhabi will be the greatest player in the modern history not only of Olympiacos… but arguably of the EuroLeague itself.

Giorgos Bartzokas, in his 6th Final Four appearance (5 with Olympiacos, 1 with Lokomotiv Kuban), is looking to become the second Greek coach with two EuroLeague titles, after Dimitris Itoudis (2016 and 2019 with CSKA Moscow), but the first to achieve it with a Greek team.
Across the court, on the opposing bench, stands his former player at Olympiacos—one with whom he celebrated the club’s third and most recent EuroLeague title in London in 2013.
Everyone at Olympiacos… will want to see “Kill-Bill” leave heartbroken on the night of May 23rd in Abu Dhabi.

“It’s obviously important to be part of such an event,” Bartzokas said at the pre-match press conference. “Being here four times in a row is amazing—but not enough. Winning the trophy is our goal, and we hope to have better luck this year.”
Asked about facing his former player turned rival coach, he replied:
“With Spanoulis, we were together in 2013 when we won the title. If you ask me, it was harder to face him as a player. He already has three titles as a player.”

On his part, Vassilis Spanoulis, former Olympiacos captain whose No. 7 jersey was the first ever retired by the club’s men’s basketball team, said:
“This is a game, and we’ll fight for 40 minutes. I’ll always love Olympiacos, and no one can question that—but now we’re opponents.
It’ll be harder for my kids, who support Olympiacos.
It’s easier to coach than to play. I pushed myself so much I lost my hair. I’m blessed that Monaco gave me the chance to lead a team capable of reaching the Final Four.”

Sasha Vezenkov, Giannoulis Larentzakis, and Stefanos Spartalis spoke from Abu Dhabi on Olympiacos TV, setting the tone for the semifinal against Monaco.
The Bulgarian superstar emphasized there’s no pressure on the Reds, while the Greek guard said he and his teammates will leave their hearts on the court.
The young center noted that Olympiacos will try to honor their fans who made the trip to the UAE capital.