Buducnost sent a letter to the ABA League: The Board of Directors unanimously decided not to travel to Dubai, a neutral venue is the only acceptable option

The basketball club Budućnost Voli sent a letter to the sports director of the ABA League, Milija Vojinović, stating that after the meeting of the Board of Directors, a unanimous decision was made not to travel to Dubai for the semifinals of the regional competition.

After reaching the semifinals of the AdmiralBet ABA League, Dubai expressed its desire to play the finals on its home court at the "Coca-Cola Arena." The Emirati team, due to the war in the Middle East, played its Euroleague and ABA League matches on a neutral field in Sarajevo.

Buducnost eliminated Cluj in the quarterfinals last night, and after the game, consultations were held with the entire playing staff and coaching staff regarding the possibility of holding the semifinal series in the UAE.

"After discussions with the players and coaching staff, the club has come to the conclusion that, in the event that the ABA League semi-final match against BC Dubai is played in the UAE, it would not be able to assemble a full-strength team, as a certain number of players and coaching staff do not want to travel to an area where, unfortunately, circumstances that could jeopardize the normal functioning of the team during the trip, stay and the match itself are possible on a daily basis," the letter to Buducnost states.

Buducnost emphasizes that the club earned its place in the ABA League semifinals on the field, through the regular season and the quarterfinal series, with major sporting and organizational investments, with the expectation that the final of the competition will be organized in conditions that guarantee full sporting regularity, the safety of all participants and the smooth running of the competition.

"Following a meeting with the team and coaching staff, a session of the BC Buducnost VOLI Board of Directors was organized, at which the unanimous decision was made not to travel to Dubai. The decision was made for several reasons, primarily related to security risks, but also to the possibility of the match not being played, which would further question the organization of the finals and the most important part of the ABA League. At the same time, we would like to emphasize that BC Buducnost VOLI remains fully committed to the regularity of the competition and the interests of the ABA League, and we believe that possibly playing matches on neutral grounds in Europe would be the only acceptable solution in the current circumstances," the letter from Buducnost states.

The first match, hosted by Dubai, is scheduled to be played on May 20th.

"We sincerely regret that BC Dubai is unable to play the most important part of the season and possibly finish it in front of its fans and in its own stadium, and we sincerely hope that the war events in the region from which our league member comes will end as soon as possible. We believe that you will have understanding for our club's position and decision," the club's letter states.