The LNB is expected to soon accede to clubs’ request to increase the quota of American players in their squad for the upcoming season.
The National Basketball League (LNB) will shake things up for the upcoming season. For many years, the composition of professional clubs’ squads has been subject to a quota regarding players from the United States. In fact, the LNB’s regulations state that a club cannot field more than four players “possessing the nationality of a state not affiliated with FIBA Europe, a state that has not signed the Cotonou agreements”, in other words, American players. There is a limit set at only one player falling into this category for Elite 2 teams (formerly Pro B).
One more American player per club
Nevertheless, American players tend to obtain a passport from a Cotonou agreement signatory country, a treaty linking the European Union to countries in Africa, the Caribbean, and the Pacific since June 2000, to bypass this rule. According to information from the regional newspaper Ouest-France and the specialized website BeBasket, LNB leaders will soon give their approval for a revision of this rule to broaden the quota in the first divisions for the start of the 2026-2027 season. Thus, this quota will increase to five American players for Betclic Elite clubs and two for Elite 2 clubs.
A response to the allure of the NCAA
This evolution was strongly suggested by the clubs themselves facing the growing trend of young players opting not to complete their training in France in order to join the North American NCAA university championship. Indeed, they are particularly attracted by the prospect of earning significant amounts of money through negotiations around their image rights. With this relaxation, which maintains the maximum number of foreign players at six but expands the possibility of recruiting Americans, French professional clubs hope to be able to attract top players and remain competitive both nationally and continentally.
