Zenit kicks off in the WINLINE Basket Cup. Preview
The official website of the Blue-White-Sky Blues covers everything you need to know before the tournament starts.
Format
Eight teams (including two foreign clubs) will take part in the WINLINE Basket Cup. They will initially be divided into two groups. At this stage, each club will play six matches — three at home and three away. The top two teams from each group will advance to the Final Four, which will take place in April 2026.
Zenit has been drawn into Group A, where they will face Ikogea from the Republika Srpska, Kazan’s UNICS and Yekaterinburg’s Uralmash. Group B will feature Belgrade’s Mega, Moscow's CSKA, Krasnodar’s Lokomotiv Kuban and Perm’s BETCITY PARMA.
Zenit’s schedule
On Monday, October 6, the team held a media day dedicated to the new Cup. The players wore jerseys designed specifically for the tournament for the first time and took part in a colorful photoshoot.
The group stage for Aleksander Sekulic’s team will begin with an away game in Yekaterinburg. The match between Uralmash and Zenit will officially open the WINLINE Basket Cup. The group stage will also end with an away game, against UNICS in Kazan. The team’s full schedule for the group stage:
October 8
Uralmash vs. Zenit
November 5
Zenit vs. UNICS
December 4
Ikogea vs. Zenit
December 23
Zenit vs. Ikogea
February 12
Zenit vs. Uralmash
March 26
UNICS vs. Zenit
Opponent
Excluding the Supercup held in Belgrade, the match against Uralmash will be Zenit’s first official away game of the new season.
Compared to last year, the opponent has largely retained its roster, but some changes occurred over the summer — the club’s top scorer, Jeremiah Martin, left. At the same time, Garrett Nevels, Timofey Gerasimov and Alexander Petenev joined the Yekaterinburg squad.
In mid-September, the teams met in a friendly match in Belgrade. Despite the final score of 92:80 in Zenit’s favor, Uralmash put serious pressure on their opponents throughout the game and truly fought for victory.
The fighting spirit of Rostislav Vergun’s team was already evident in the first round of the VTB United League regular season — Uralmash snatched a one-point win on the road against Krasnodar’s Lokomotiv Kuban, their conquerors from last year’s quarterfinals. However, in their next game against MBA-MAI, the Yekaterinburg team lost at home (77:83). One thing is clear: matches against Uralmash are never an easy ride.
Head-to-head
The WINLINE Basket Cup will be the third tournament in which Uralmash and Zenit face each other. In the VTB United League, the teams have played 11 times: Zenit has 8 wins, Uralmash 3. In the Russian Cup, all three encounters ended in victories for Blue-White-Sky Blues.
Direct speech
Zenit forward Pavel Zemskiy about the start of the WINLINE Basket Cup tournament:
We’re very glad that an additional tournament with so many games has been organized. It’s always great for us — more basketball, more emotions. We’re really happy to kick off this competition. We’ll fight in every match. We know that in Yekaterinburg the fans are very passionate and actively support their team, so I think the game will be amazing and enjoyable for absolutely all the fans. Two strong teams will face each other. We’ll put up a fight and, of course, battle in every game for victory — and only for victory — to win this new tournament. Our goals are always set as high as possible.
Who. Where. When.
Opponent: Uralmash
Location: DIVS, Yekaterinburg
Time: October 8, 17:00 (St. Petersburg time)
Broadcast: Match TV, VK Video
