VTB United League President Sergey Kushchenko and General Director Ilona Korstin took part in a meeting of the Basketball Development Council entitled “Basketball 2030: From Regional Projects to National Wins” as part of the Expo Basket 2025 conference on the Russian basketball business.
From August 29 to 31, Perm is hosting an annual conference dedicated to the development of the basketball industry in Russia. The sports and business weekend brings together more than 300 industry experts. Among them are Minister of Sport and Chairman of the Russian Olympic Committee Mikhail Degtyarev, President of the Russian Basketball Federation Andrei Kirilenko, Governor of the Perm Region Dmitry Makhonin, President of the VTB United League Sergey Kushchenko, and VTB United League General Director Ilona Korstin.
As part of the Basketball Development Council, Sergey Kushchenko and Ilona Korstin presented the VTB United League’s key projects, emphasizing the importance of attracting new audiences interested in basketball.
Mikhail Degtyarev, Minister of Sport and Chairman of the Russian Olympic Committee:
– According to our statistics, 2 million people play basketball in Russia. We have 150,000 people in the sports reserve, almost 50,000 athletes have titles and ranks, and another 260 people are candidates for the national teams. For this, I am grateful to the professional league and the federation. These are very good results. We have singled out basketball in the state strategy for the development of sport until 2030, and it is included in this program. The program for the development of basketball until 2030 has been approved. I would like to thank everyone involved for this.
Sergey Kushchenko, VTB United League President:
– We have two major events this season – we are organizing our famous SuperCup, which will soon take place in Serbia, and a domestic tournament with the participation of two foreign teams. We have obtained all the necessary permits and approvals to hold these events. This is an important first step. Everyone is waiting for the window of opportunity to truly open, and as soon as that happens, we will be ready to participate in any international competitions. Our League provides high-quality training for Russian players, who get plenty of playing time in our professional clubs.
Ilona Korstin, VTB United League General Director:
– One of the main projects of the VTB League this year, apart from the international SuperCup, is the 10th anniversary All-Star Game. It will take place in Moscow at the VTB Arena on February 15.
Of course, the VTB League office has done a tremendous amount of work during this time. We used to think about how to attract fans – we invited various celebrities and star presenters, and tried to come up with something new every year. Now we are attracting a new audience by involving them in the voting process, creating interesting contests and activations for fans, and finding new creative solutions! The All-Star Game has become a brand, and our main stars are our players. They play basketball, and we try to build a show and introduce some innovations based on basketball.
In recent years, we have seen that the All-Star Game is capable of filling the arena on its own, without the involvement of top show business stars. This primarily indicates that the project is developing and that the audience loves it.
