Basketball referee with connections to Serbian criminal organization arrested with €250,000

Basketball referee Uros Nikolic was arrested in Serbia on Wednesday after police officers found him in possession of €250,000 while searching his apartment. According to reports, Nikolic is suspected of having connections with an organized crime group in Serbia, known as Vracarci.

Nikolic’s arrest was carried out as part of an international police operation that resulted in the arrest of 10 people. The suspects are facing serious criminal charges, including murder and disruption of public order.

According to reports, Nikolic is expected to appear in a Serbian court on Thursday to present his case to the prosecutors.

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The referee has been working with EuroLeague Basketball since 2019, headlining several high-profile games during his stint. Most recently, Nikolic was part of the refereeing team officiating European giants Real Madrid’s Round 2 clash against Olympiacos.

Moreover, Nikolic was also part of the refereeing team for the EuroLeague Final Four in 2021 and 2024. He had officiated four games this season before being arrested.

How will the arrest of basketball referee Uros Nikolic reflect on the EuroLeague?

Uros Nikolic’s arrest is likely to send ripples down the EuroLeague and is expected to reflect poorly on the league’s hiring practices. The European basketball league already faces considerable scrutiny from its fans each season due to its refereeing situation.

Unlike the NBA, where different referees are selected for each game of a playoff series, the Euroleague has been known to appoint the same referee for consecutive games of a series, a practice that has been criticized by many, including the players.

In April, the owner of Panathinaikos Aktor, Dimitris Giannakopoulos, threatened to leave the league, citing the league’s officiating issues. Giannakopoulos even suggested that he could take his team’s talents to the upcoming European league being worked on by the NBA and FIBA.

Speaking to the media in September, NBA commissioner Adam Silver had called 2027 an ambitious launch date for the upcoming league. He also expressed that he does not wish to see the project extend beyond 2028.

The noise surrounding EuroLeague’s referee selection issues could become an issue of individual quality in light of Uros Nikolic’s arrest in Serbia. The European basketball league has yet to comment on the situation publicly.

Edited by Sameer Khan