The results of the VTB United League Council
The Astana Basketball Club has withdrawn from the tournament, so the 2025/26 season will feature 11 teams. However, the Kazakhstan club will participate for the first time in the Youth League, whose number of participants will increase to 14 teams.
The regular season format will remain almost unchanged — four rounds in a round-robin format (two games at home and two away), with each team playing 40 games. However, the play-in stage has been eliminated. Now, the top eight teams at the end of the regular season will advance directly to the playoffs, which will follow the usual structure: quarterfinals and third-place series will be played in best-of-three format, while semifinals and finals will be best-of-seven.
The Supercup will be held abroad for the first time — in Belgrade. But the main news from the Council was the introduction of a new mid-season tournament. In addition to the main championship, the League will organize a Cup tournament involving six Russian teams and two foreign teams. This new competition will run from October 2025 to March 2026, with the winner determined in a Final Four format. Teams will be divided into two groups of four. In the group stage, each team will play six games (three at home and three away). The top two teams from each group will advance to the decisive stage and compete for the trophy. In total, the tournament will feature 28 games — 24 in the group stage and 4 in the Final Four.
Excluding the VTB United League playoffs and the Final Four of the new Cup, Zenit is set to play at least 46 games in the new season.
Additionally, during the Council meeting, Zenit was recognized for the first time as the winner of the marketing championship. The evaluation was based on the following criteria: game attendance, ratio of ticket sales to complimentary invitations, implementation of eco-initiatives, and the organization and quality of match-day experiences.
