BBL Opens Up Title Sponsorship Deal To Other Businesses After Beko Misses Deadline

The Basketball Bundesliga's (BBL) title sponsorship deal with Beko "could come to an end as the league is already probing the market," according to Nils Lehnebach of SPONSORs. The Turkish appliance and consumer electronics company has been the league's title sponsor since '09. BBL CEO Stefan Holz said that Beko "missed the deadline for an early contract extension." The current contract "is set to expire at the end of the '15-16 season." The original contract ran through '14-15, but both parties "agreed to extend the deal for an additional year" in Dec. '11. Beko pays an estimated €1M ($1.1M) annually for the rights. Holz said that the league "is still in negotiations with Beko." But he also said that the league "will also open the sponsorship to other businesses" (SPONSORs, 11/11).