LNB Pro A Leaders Cup
Current season, competition or edition:
Current sports event 2020 Leaders Cup
SportBasketball
FoundedFounded:
1988 (Tournoi des As Cup)
Re-founded:
2003 (Semaine des As Cup)
No. of teams8
Country France
Continent Europe
Most recent
champion(s)
ASVEL
(2nd title)
(2023)
Most titlesPau-Orthez
(4 titles)
TV partner(s)Sport+
Related
competitions
LNB Pro A
French Cup
(French Federation Cup)
Match des Champions
(French Supercup)
Official websiteLNB.fr (in French)

The LNB Pro A Leaders Cup, or French Basketball League Cup, is the annual national league cup competition for teams from the top-tier level of French professional basketball, the LNB Pro A. It was created in its current form in 2003 (after originally being founded in 1988). It is organized by the Ligue Nationale de Basketball (LNB), which also organizes the top two leagues of French professional basketball (Pro A, and Pro B).

Inspired by the Spanish Copa del Rey (Spanish Basketball King's Cup), the Final Eight format has always been used. At the end of the first half of the regular season, the top eight teams (or the top seven teams and the tournament's host team) from the first division French LNB Pro A League qualify. The eight teams compete in a playoff that is held at one venue over four days, which eventually produces a winner. The Final Eight is one of the highlights of the French basketball calendar. At one point in time, the winner of the competition was entitled to a place in the now defunct FIBA EuroChallenge competition.

History

Tournoi des As (1988 – 1993)

The Tournoi des As (Tournament of Aces) was the ancestor competition of the current Leaders Cup, being held from 1988 to 1993. At the end of the season, the top 4 teams from the top-tier level French League qualified. Over 2 days of competition, the first placed team of the regular season faced the fourth placed team, and the second placed team faced the third placed team, in semifinals games. The 2 losing teams of the first day would meet for the third place spot, while the two semifinals winners would compete for the cup title.

Semaine des As (2003 – 2012)

After being interrupted for ten years, the cup returned in 2003, as the Semaine des As (Week of Aces), and it was largely inspired by the Spanish Copa del Rey (Spanish Basketball King's Cup) format. The first edition was organised in Pau, France. The competition was traditionally organized in February. It featured the top eight placed teams of the top-tier level French League, at the end of the regular season's halfway point. It was held in a playoff format over a period of four days. The competition was often highly disputed, producing a different winner every year, except in 2009, when Le Mans won its second title, after previously winning the 2006 edition.

Leaders Cup (2013 – present)

The Leaders Cup is the current name of the competition. Gravelines beat Strasbourg, by a score of 77–69, in the first edition of the cup competition, that was played under the Leaders Cup name.

Results

Season Winner Score Runners-up Venue Location MVP
Tournoi des As (Tournament of Aces)
1988 Limoges CSP 8885 Pitch Cholet
1989 Mulhouse 8280 Pitch Cholet
1990 Limoges CSP 8784 Pitch Cholet
1991 Orthez 6865 Limoges CSP
1992 Pau-Orthez 8375 Limoges CSP
1993 Pau-Orthez 7158 Pitch Cholet
Semaine des As (Week of Aces)
2003 Pau-Orthez 10180 Le Havre Palais des Sports de Pau Pau
2004 JDA Dijon 6260 Le Mans Sarthe Palais des Sports de Mulhouse Mulhouse
2005 SLUC Nancy 11276 BCM Gravelines Maison des Sports de C-F Clermont-Ferrand
2006 Le Mans Sarthe 7860 JL Bourg-en-Bresse Palais des Sports de Dijon Dijon United States Eric Campbell
2007 Chorale Roanne 8782 Le Mans Sarthe Palais des Sports Jean Weille Nancy United States Marc Salyers
2008 Cholet 6740 JA Vichy Palais des Sports de Toulon Toulon France Nando de Colo
2009 Le Mans Sarthe 7464 Orléans Salle des Docks Océane Le Havre Israel David Blu
2010 ASVEL 7069 Orléans Astroballe Villeurbanne Lithuania Mindaugas Lukauskis
2011 BCM Gravelines 7971 Élan Chalon Palais des Sports de Pau Pau France Yannick Bokolo
2012 Élan Chalon 7366 BCM Gravelines Halle André Vacheresse Roanne United States Blake Schilb
Leaders Cup
2013 BCM Gravelines 7769 SIG Disneyland Paris Paris France Ludovic Vaty
2014 Le Mans Sarthe 7464 JSF Nanterre Disneyland Paris Paris Brazil João Paulo Batista
2015 SIG 60–58 Le Mans Sarthe Disneyland Paris Paris France Antoine Diot
2016 Monaco 99–74 Élan Chalon Disneyland Paris Paris United States Jamal Shuler
2017 Monaco 95–91 ASVEL Disneyland Paris Paris Ukraine Sergii Gladyr
2018 Monaco 83–78 Le Mans Sarthe Disneyland Paris Paris United States D. J. Cooper
2019 SIG 98–97 JL Bourg-en-Bresse Disneyland Paris Paris United States Jarell Eddie
2020 JDA Dijon 77–69 ASVEL Disneyland Paris Paris United States Rasheed Sulaimon
2021 Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic in France
2022 Cancelled due to economic problems
2023 ASVEL 83–74 JL Bourg-en-Bresse Arena Saint-Étienne Métropole Saint-Chamond, Loire France Nando de Colo

Titles by team

Team Winners Runners-up Winning Years
Pau-Lacq-Orthez401991, 1992, 1993, 2003
Le Mans Sarthe332006, 2009, 2014
Monaco302016, 2017, 2018
Limoges CSP221988, 1990
BCM Gravelines222011, 2013
ASVEL222010, 2023
SIG212015, 2019
JDA Dijon202004, 2020
Cholet142008
Élan Chalon122012
Mulhouse101989
SLUC Nancy102005
Chorale Roanne102007
JL Bourg-en-Bresse03
Orléans02
Le Havre01
JA Vichy01
Nanterre 9201

See also

References

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