Four hours before the start of the new year, FC Bayern Basketball returned to Munich on New Year’s Eve from their last business trip of 2025. And now? On New Year’s Day, there’s an evening training session, and the day after that, the new season begins with twelve games until February 1st—starting with the EuroLeague duel on Friday evening in a sold-out SAP Garden against Maccabi Tel Aviv. Tip-off for the first highlight of 2026 is at 9 p.m..
Israel’s record champions with five wins in a row
While Bayern are leading the league table by a wide margin despite their heavy schedule, they are at the bottom of the EuroLeague standings and have been waiting for their sixth win of the season since early November. Israel’s record champions stand at 8–10 and come to Munich with an impressive streak of five victories: most recently at Partizan, against current league leaders Valencia, away against Dubai, against Asvel, and in Kaunas, with a score of 83:65. Without question, Maccabi has also been buoyed by the excitement of being able to play home games at home again since December, after years of Gameday exile in Belgrade.
Maccabi always offers quality, and this season is no different, with their very deep roster. The three-time EuroLeague champion remains, under coach Oded Kattash, an especially athletic team that, with an average of 90.3 points, boasts the third-best offense. Longtime NBA guard Lonnie Walker (16.0 points per game) is impressing in his second EuroLeague stint (after half a season in Kaunas); US forward Jaylen Hoard (13.4 points, 6.9 rebounds per game) and national player Roman Sorkin (13.7) are also posting double-digit numbers. Guard Jeffrey Dowtin (9.9), who transferred from Philadelphia, could return after several weeks out with injury.
“A first test”
Svetislav Pesic knows how tough a fresh start against this team will be: “Respect: winning five times in a row is very rare in the EuroLeague, especially this season with so many games,” says the Bayern coach. “They have a very good balance between outside and inside players. This will be our first test to see how well, after three Bundesliga games, we have internalized the new philosophy. The players are eager, but Maccabi is a challenge as one of the best transition teams in Europe. They play very fast and with confidence—so we know what our first task is.”
In the easyCredit BBL, Bayern must play in Braunschweig on Sunday at 6 p.m.
