Joventut ownership in play as Motiejunas moves for a controlling stake
Paulius Motiejunas, former Euroleague chief executive and owner of 55% of Zalgiris, is negotiating to buy a controlling stake in Joventut de Badalona from Scranton Enterprises, which holds about 86% of the club. Talks are said to be well advanced and the plan includes turning the Pavello Olimpic de Badalona into a revenue source.
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O Asisa Joventut pode estar prestes a mudar de mãos. Paulius Motiejunas, 45 anos, que comandou a Euroleague Basketball como diretor-executivo até janeiro de 2026 e detém a maioria do Zalgiris, vem negociando uma participação majoritária no clube de Badalona, uma movimentação revelada primeiro em 23 de outubro pelo insider Xavi Ballesteros.
As conversas estariam bem avançadas. O vendedor seria a Scranton Enterprises, o grupo de investimento que chegou em 2018 e elevou progressivamente sua participação para cerca de 86%.
Um acordo encerraria esse capítulo e entregaria o Penya a um projeto construído com a Tesonet, grupo lituano de tecnologia e investimento. A estrutura copia a que já funciona em Kaunas, onde Motiejunas detém 55% do Zalgiris e a Tesonet os 45% restantes.
Central no plano está o Pavello Olimpic de Badalona, a arena que o lado comprador quer transformar em fonte substancial de receita, e não em custo.
Motiejunas conhece o jogo continental por dentro, tendo-o comandado como diretor-executivo, e traz o mesmo modelo de parceria que já usa no clube de Kaunas.
Nas quadras, o time de Dani Miret está nas primeiras semanas da temporada 2026-27. O Joventut lidera o grupo H da Basketball Champions League, com 2-0, e está 2-2 na Liga Endesa.
Além desta temporada, o caminho do clube pode apontar para a projetada liga continental de elite, amplamente chamada de NBA Europe, com início previsto para 2027-28. O torneio de 16 times mantém quatro vagas abertas: duas vão para os finalistas da BCL, duas para os vencedores de eventos classificatórios ligados às ligas nacionais.
Para Badalona, o momento importa. Uma mudança de controle cairia no meio de uma temporada que começou bem nas duas frentes, e colocaria a questão da arena no centro da próxima década do clube.
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