Ofer Yannai reveals: The astronomical budget of Hapoel Tel Aviv

Ofer Yannai, owner of Hapoel Tel Aviv, revealed in an interview that the club's budget for the 2026-27 season will stand at approximately €70 million. Yannai explained that taxation costs, hosting Euroleague games in Sofia, and league regulations inflate the budget, and without these factors, the standardized amount is about €55 million, similar to the budgets of Panathinaikos and Olympiacos.

Ofer Yannai, owner of Hapoel Tel Aviv's basketball team, revealed in an interview with the website "Sportal" that the club's budget for the 2026-27 season will stand at approximately €70 million. Yannai explained that the high amount stems from three main factors: high taxation costs in Israel compared to countries like Greece, the expenses involved in hosting Euroleague games in Sofia, Bulgaria, due to the security situation, and the limitation of league regulations that allow registering only five foreign players, requiring greater investment in local players. According to him, without these costs, the budget would stand at about €55 million, an amount similar to that of the powerhouse clubs Olympiacos and Panathinaikos. Yannai added that the club may need to pay an additional "premium" to attract top players, due to the lack of an established Euroleague brand and the security situation.