Pro Basketball League
The Pro Basketball League , for sponsorship reasons, known as the EuroMillions Basketball League, is the highest tier level professional basketball league in Belgium for clubs. Through 2014, for sponsorship reasons, the league was previously known as the Ethias League, and from 2014–2016, it was known as the Scoore! League, for sponsorship reasons. The league is organized by the Basketball League Belgium. The current president of the league is Arthur Goethals.
The most successful team in the league is Oostende, which holds the record for the most league titles won, with 20, and the now defunct team of Racing Mechelen is second, with 15.
History
On 15 March 2020, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic the season was prematurely cancelled. Based on the standings in the regular season, Filou Oostende was crowned national champions.Sponsorship names
- Until 2014: Ethias League
- 2014–2016: Scooore! League
- 2016–present EuroMillions Basketball League
Format and rules
Licensing
Teams that play in the BLB all have to get a license to play in the league. There are three types of licenses:- A-license: for teams who have more than a € 1 million budget. A-licensed team can qualify for European competitions.
- B-license: teams with at least a €750,000 budget. B-licensed teams can't qualify for European play.
- C-licence: given to teams that are on the rise, with a budget of at least €400,000. C-licenses do not allow teams to qualify for European play and have to get replaced by B-licenses after two years.
Current clubs
Finals
Since 2005, play-offs are played to decide which team is crowned the champion of each season. The finals series are played in a best-of-five format, with the team which had the higher seed in the regular season having home court advantage.Performances by club
Title holders
- 1927–28 Brussels A.C.
- 1928–29 Daring B.C.
- 1929–30 Brussels A.C.
- 1930–31 Brussels A.C.
- 1931–32 Daring B.C.
- 1932–33 Brussels A.C.
- 1933–34 Daring B.C.
- 1934–35 Amicale Sportive
- 1935–36 Amicale Sportive
- 1936–37 Fresh Air
- 1937–38 Fresh Air
- 1938–39 Royal IV
- 1939–41 Not held due to WWII
- 1941–42 Royal IV
- 1942–45 Not held due to WWII
- 1945–46 Semailles
- 1946–47 Semailles
- 1947–48 Semailles
- 1948–49 Semailles
- 1949–50 Semailles
- 1950–51 Semailles
- 1951–52 Royal IV
- 1953–53 Royal IV
- 1953–54 Royal IV
- 1954–55 Hellas Gent
- 1955–56 Antwerpse
- 1956–57 Royal IV
- 1957–58 Royal IV
- 1958–59 Antwerpse
- 1959–60 Antwerpse
- 1960–61 Antwerpse
- 1961–62 Antwerpse
- 1962–63 Antwerpse
- 1963–64 Antwerpse
- 1964–65 Racing Mechelen
- 1965–66 Racing Mechelen
- 1966–67 Racing Mechelen
- 1967–68 Standard Liège
- 1968–69 Racing Bell Mechelen
- 1969–70 Standard Liège
- 1970–71 Bus Fruit Lier
- 1971–72 Bus Fruit Lier
- 1972–73 Racing Antwerpen
- 1973–74 Maes Pils
- 1974–75 Maes Pils
- 1975–76 Maes Pils
- 1976–77 Standard Liège
- 1977–78 Fresh Air
- 1978–79 Fresh Air
- 1979–80 Maes Pils
- 1980–81 Sunair Oostende
- 1981–82 Sunair Oostende
- 1982–83 Sunair Oostende
- 1983–84 Sunair Oostende
- 1984–85 Sunair Oostende
- 1985–86 Sunair Oostende
- 1986–87 Maes Pils
- 1987–88 Sunair Oostende
- 1988–89 Maes Pils
- 1989–90 Maes Pils
- 1990–91 Maes Pils
- 1991–92 Maes Pils
- 1992–93 Maes Pils
- 1993–94 Maes Pils
- 1994–95 Sunair Oostende
- 1995–96 Spirou
- 1996–97 Spirou
- 1997–98 Spirou
- 1998–99 Spirou
- 1999–00 Telindus Racing Antwerpen
- 2000–01 Telindus Oostende
- 2001–02 Telindus Oostende
- 2002–03 Spirou
- 2003–04 Spirou
- 2004–05 Euphony Bree
- 2005–06 Telindus Oostende
- 2006–07 Telindus Oostende
- 2007–08 Spirou
- 2008–09 Spirou
- 2009–10 Spirou
- 2010–11 Spirou
- 2011–12 Telenet Oostende
- 2012–13 Telenet Oostende
- 2013–14 Telenet Oostende
- 2014–15 Telenet Oostende
- 2015–16 Telenet Oostende
- 2016–17 Telenet Oostende
- 2017–18 Telenet Oostende
- 2018–19 Filou Oostende
- 2019–20 Filou Oostende
Performance by club
| Titles | Team | Seasons |
| Oostende | 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1988, 1995, 2001, 2002, 2006, 2007, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020 | |
| Racing Mechelen+ | 1965, 1966, 1967, 1969, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1980, 1987, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994 | |
| Spirou | 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2003, 2004, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 | |
| Antwerpse+ | 1956, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1973 | |
| Royal IV+ | 1939, 1942, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1957, 1958 | |
| Semailles+ | 1946, 1947, 1948, 1949, 1950, 1951 | |
| Fresh Air | 1937, 1938, 1978, 1979 | |
| Brussels A.C.+ | 1928, 1930, 1931, 1933 | |
| Daring B.C.+ | 1929, 1932, 1934 | |
| Standard Liège+ | 1968, 1970, 1977 | |
| Lier+ | 1971, 1972 | |
| Amicale Sportive+ | 1935, 1936 | |
| Bree+ | 2005 | |
| Antwerp Giants | 2000 | |
| Hellas Gent+ | 1955 |
Individual awards
Not all awards are official ones handed out by the league itself, but all are regarded and respected as BLB awards. As example the Belgian Player of the Year award is handed out by the Belgian newspaper Het Nieuwsblad, but the league itself reports the winner on its website.- Belgian Basketball Player of the year
- Coach of the Year
- MVP
- Star of the Coaches
- Young Player of the Year
- Lifetime Achievement Award