League management has decided that, starting with the coming season, the opening game for the Winner League will be a rematch of the final in the championship, with the champions hosting the second place team. That means that Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv’s first game of the 2010 – 2011 season will take place in the renovated Gan Ner Arena.
By Amy Samin
The directorate of the league management approved yesterday (Monday) the suggestion of the league’s chairman, Avner Koppel, to establish an annual tradition of kicking off the new season with a festive rematch between the previous season’s champion and the second place team.
As a result of this decision, it was determined that league champion Altshuler Shaham Gilboa/Galil will host Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv in the first game of the season.
It will also be the inaugural game in what will by then be Gilboa/Galil’s newly-renovated Gan Ner arena, which is even now undergoing improvements and expansion.
By the start of the coming season, the arena will seat 2,400 fans.
The complete lottery for the remainder of the coming season will be held at the start of September.
It was also decided that, starting with the coming season, before every game the teams of the Super League will be required to open the final fifteen minutes of practice the day before a game to the media.
In that quarter-hour, the media may film the practice; immediately following the practice there will be interviews with the coach and players.
This is a common practice in the Euroleague, the European championships, and in the Israeli Final Four.
