Korstin and Kushchenko Preview VTB League Super Cup
League officials say the 2026 Super Cup returns to Moscow's VTB Arena with a festive atmosphere, featuring Anadolu Efes and Igokea as foreign guests.
Ilona Korstin, general director of the VTB United League, and league president Sergei Kushchenko have set out what they expect from this year's Super Cup, which opened on Thursday at VTB Arena in Moscow.
"The start of the season, we’ve missed basketball, and I hope the fans have too. I hope they have been waiting for this tournament. We are starting brightly. VTB Arena, in my view, is the best arena for basketball in Moscow, and perhaps in the whole country. For us this is a celebration. We want to create the atmosphere of a sporting celebration and show the fans high-level basketball. We have no chance to compare our strength with foreign teams, but we will be doing that now. I am looking forward to attractive basketball, bright moments, sporting ones, and to competition from the fans too. I want to see who turns out to be the strongest among the Russian teams, and how the Russian teams play against the foreign sides. I want to enjoy our favourite game," Korstin said.
"Every tournament has its own idea. The idea of this tournament is to return to Moscow after we tried it in Belgrade and it went down well. It is as if the touring schedule that has been in place for the last four or five years makes you weigh everything up. So that it comes out well, done properly and correctly, from the point of view of the clubs and the fans, our customers. Super Cup 2026 is the renewed partnership between Moskomsport and the League, the return of a very properly organised tournament back home to VTB Arena. This is not just a run of pre-season games, it is a meeting with our great acquaintances. Thanks to Anadolu Efes for accepting the invitation, thanks to Igokea, they always respond to our ideas. What sets this Super Cup apart is a friendly atmosphere off the court and very serious basketball, because the season is approaching. This is the final pre-season fixture. And it is happening here in Moscow. There is real anticipation of a good tournament. We are also preparing to pay tribute to the League's founder, Sergei Ivanov, before the final," Kushchenko said.
The tournament follows the Super Cup opener reported the same day, in which holders CSKA hosted Lokomotiv-Kuban in Group A while Zenit faced Anadolu Efes in Group B, also at VTB Arena. Kushchenko's remarks confirm Anadolu Efes and Igokea as the foreign guests for this year's edition, in a format the League has now brought back to Moscow after staging the previous Super Cup in Belgrade.
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