The ACB League, Spain’s first division, is one of the best basketball leagues in the world. Players from many different countries play there. As you might know, famous leagues are the best ones to put your money on. And that includes the Spanish league.
Knowing that, we have prepared a content full of tips, information and curiosities on how to bet on ACB!
Created in 1957, the league is the first division of the Iberian country, as said before. Decades later, in 1983, the Association of Basketball Clubs (ACB) started to organise the competition, which has been called ACB League ever since.
Before you learn how to bet on ACB online, let’s take a look at the history of the tournament. After all, it is almost impossible to get greens without knowing the league you are betting on.
ACB League 2021-22
You might have thought, “have we got to the part about how to bet on ACB online for free yet?” Not yet, but not quite yet!
The 2021/2022 ACB season, better known by the name Liga Endesa for commercial reasons, features 18 teams spread across Spain, and even Andorra, a small country with an area of 468 km² located between Spain and France.
In the first part, which began on 18 September 2021 and is scheduled to end on 15 May 2022, everyone plays against everyone else, in home and away matches.
After the first round, the Copa del Rey is held between the eight best-placed teams. This short-shot tournament is not worth any League points.
At the end of the first round, the bottom team is relegated to the Access Division. Meanwhile, the top eight teams are guaranteed a direct ticket to the playoffs.
The matches in this stage are defined by an Olympic cross-over (1st x 8th, 2nd x 7th, 3rd x 6th and 4th x 5th). The stage is played in a best-of-three system until the semi-finals and best-of-five in the championship decider.
ACB League History
The final of the inaugural edition featured Barcelona vs Real Madrid. In other words, the clash of the fields decided the title on the courts. And the merengue team won against their arch-rivals.
As in football, Barcelona and Real Madrid also dominated the first years of the League. Between 1956 and 1983, the capital team won 22 times, the Catalans three and Joventut Badalona won twice.
In the modern era, after the change to Liga ACB, the duo continued to win the trophy. From 1983 to 2021, the rivals have won 29 championships. Below, see all the champions:
- Real Madrid (35 titles);
- Barcelona (19 titles);
- Joventut Badalona and Baskonia (4 titles each);
- Malaga, Valencia and Manresa (1 title each).
Even with the sovereignty of Barça and Real, there is still room for underdogs, the famous zebras.
The latest ones have appeared recently. In 2016-17, Valencia broke all the predictions by winning their first title. Subsequently, in 2019-20, Baskonia once again lifted the trophy after a 10-year drought.
Meanwhile, the 2020-21 season had no big surprises: Barça and Real shared the lead in the initial phase. In the playoffs, the blaugranas eliminated Badalona and Tenerife. On the other side, Real beat Gran Canaria and Valencia.
Thus, we had another final between rivals. Barça won the League without too much trouble, winning the first game 89-75 and the second 92-73.
Giorgi Shermadini was the MVP of the competition. Nikola Mirotic, the man who helped Barcelona win their 19th title, was awarded the MVP of the finals.
In addition, we must highlight the performances of two Players: Léo Meindl (Fuenlabrada) and Vitor Benite (Tenerife).