# First Federal Basketball League

The First Federal Basketball League (Serbo-Croatian: Prva savezna košarkaška liga) was the highest tier level men's professional club basketball competition in the former country of SFR Yugoslavia. Founded in 1945, and folded in 1992 (1991–92 Winer Broker YUBA League), it was run by the Basketball Federation of Yugoslavia. With a total of 16 European-wide trophy winners and 11 finalists, the Yugoslav First Basketball League was one of the strongest European national domestic basketball leagues of all time.
Although each of the former Yugoslav countries now have their own national domestic leagues, the six nations also now take part in the ABA League (commonly known as the Adriatic League), which was founded in 2001; and which is, the closest basketball league in existence today, that is similar to the former Yugoslav First Federal Basketball League.

## History

After the end of Second World War in Yugoslavia in 1945, there arose a need for athletic development in the fledgling nation. Post-WW2 Yugoslavia was (with the exception of major cities such as Belgrade, Ljubljana, Zagreb, and Sarajevo) for the most part lacking in competitive opportunities in sports. In response to this, 1945 and 1946 saw an explosion of new clubs and leagues for every sport, the basketball league being part of this phenomenon.
The very first competition under the newly formed Yugoslav Basketball League in 1945, drawing parallel to the Yugoslav First League (of football), was more or less a nationwide affirmation of unity. Instead of individual clubs competing in the usual fashion, there were only eight teams. Six representing each state within Yugoslavia, one representing the province of Vojvodina, and the last representing the Yugoslav People's Army.
Only in the 1970s did the basketball culture of Yugoslavia truly come to enjoy recognition as the top nation in basketball. Breaking away from the dominance of the Soviet Union, the Yugoslav league gave rise to stars that would go on to win multiple Basketball World Championships and European Basketball Championships. After a decade of dominance, the 1980s saw a disappointing slump of talent in the Yugoslav Basketball League.
Once again the world witnessed a sleeping giant come awake in the early 90s as Yugoslavia won two straight European Basketball Championships and a World Basketball Championship. This momentum was swiftly halted by the ethnic strife which broke out in 1991. Clubs from SR Slovenia and SR Croatia withdrew from the league so that the 1991–92 season, the competition's last, was contested without them. The country got divided into five successor republics, each founding their own basketball federations with the exception of Serbia and Montenegro, which retained the name Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and the YUBA League.
Despite all these changes, the joint league of clubs from the former Yugoslavia proved to be a winning league format formula, so on 3 July 2001, the Adriatic League was founded. It features teams from all the former Yugoslav states, and it exists alongside scaled-down versions of the individual national domestic leagues of each of the former Yugoslav states.

## Title holders

* 1945: Yugoslav Army
* 1946: Crvena zvezda
* 1947: Crvena zvezda
* 1948: Crvena zvezda
* 1949: Crvena zvezda
* 1950: Crvena zvezda
* 1951: Crvena zvezda
* 1952: Crvena zvezda
* 1953: Crvena zvezda
* 1954: Crvena zvezda
* 1955: Crvena zvezda
* 1956: Proleter Zrenjanin
* 1957: AŠK Olimpija
* 1958: OKK Beograd
* 1959: AŠK Olimpija
* 1960: OKK Beograd
* ......1961: AŠK Olimpija
* ......1962: AŠK Olimpija
* ......1963: OKK Beograd
* ......1964: OKK Beograd
* ......1965: Zadar
* ......1966: AŠK Olimpija
* ......1967: Zadar
* 1967–68: Zadar
* 1968–69: Crvena zvezda
* 1969–70: AŠK Olimpija
* 1970–71: Jugoplastika
* 1971–72: Crvena zvezda
* 1972–73: Radnički Belgrade
* 1973–74: Zadar
* 1974–75: Zadar
* 1975–76: Partizan
* 1976–77: Jugoplastika
* 1977–78: Bosna
* 1978–79: Partizan
* 1979–80: Bosna
* 1980–81: Partizan
* 1981–82: Cibona
* 1982–83: Bosna
* 1983–84: Cibona
* 1984–85: Cibona
* 1985–86: Zadar
* 1986–87: Partizan
* 1987–88: Jugoplastika
* 1988–89: Jugoplastika
* 1989–90: Jugoplastika
* 1990–91: POP 84
* 1991–92: Partizan

### Performance by club

| Titles | Club | Years |
| 12 | Crvena zvezda | 1946, 1947, 1948, 1949, 1950, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1955, 1968–69, 1971–72 |
| 6 | Olimpija | 1957, 1959, 1961, 1962, 1966, 1969–70 |
| 6 | Zadar | 1965, 1967, 1967–68, 1973–74, 1974–75, 1985–86 |
| 6 | Split | 1970–71, 1976–77, 1987–88, 1988–89, 1989–90, 1990–91 |
| 5 | Partizan | 1975–76, 1978–79, 1980–81, 1986–87, 1991–92 |
| 4 | OKK Beograd | 1958, 1960, 1963, 1964 |
| 3 | Bosna | 1977–78, 1979–80, 1982–83 |
| 3 | Cibona | 1981–82, 1983–84, 1984–85 |
| 1 | Yugoslav Army | 1945 |
| 1 | Proleter Zrenjanin | 1956 |
| 1 | Radnički Belgrade | 1972–73 |

### Performance by constitutional republics

| Titles | Republic |
| 23 | SR Serbia |
| 15 | SR Croatia |
| 6 | SR Slovenia |
| 3 | SR Bosnia and Herzegovina |

## Playoff finals

Playoffs, as a way of determining the Yugoslav First Basketball League champion following the regular season, got instituted in 1981 ahead of the 1981–82 season.
| Season | Home court advantage | Coach | Result | Home court disadvantage | Coach | 1st of Regular Season | Record |
| 1981–82 | Partizan | Borislav Ćorković | 0–2 | Cibona | Mirko Novosel | Partizan | 18–4 |
| 1982–83 | Šibenka | Vlade Đurović | 1–2 | Bosna | Svetislav Pešić | Šibenka | 16–6 |
| 1983–84 | Cibona | Mirko Novosel | 2–1 | Crvena zvezda | Ranko Žeravica | Cibona | 16–6 |
| 1984–85 | Cibona | Željko Pavličević | 2–1 | Crvena zvezda | Ranko Žeravica | Cibona | 19–3 |
| 1985–86 | Cibona | Željko Pavličević | 1–2 | Zadar | Vlade Đurović | Cibona | 21–1 |
| 1986–87 | Partizan | Duško Vujošević | 2–0 | Crvena zvezda | Vlade Đurović | Cibona | 22–0 |
| 1987–88 | Jugoplastika | Božidar Maljković | 2–1 | Partizan | Duško Vujošević | Jugoplastika | 21–1 |
| 1988–89 | Partizan | Duško Vujošević | 0–2 | Jugoplastika | Božidar Maljković | Partizan | 16–6 |
| 1989–90 | Jugoplastika | Božidar Maljković | 3–1 | Crvena zvezda | Zoran Slavnić | Jugoplastika | 19–3 |
| 1990–91 | POP 84 | Željko Pavličević | 3–0 | Partizan | Duško Vujošević | Pop 84 | 19–3 |
| 1991–92 | Partizan | Željko Obradović | 3–0 | Crvena zvezda | Duško Vujošević | Partizan | 20–2 |
Source: official website archive

## All-time participants

| 1st | Champions | Champions | Champions | Champions | Champions | Champions |
| 2nd | Runners-up | Runners-up | Runners-up | Runners-up | Runners-up | Runners-up |
| SF | Semi-finalists | Semi-finalists | Semi-finalists | Semi-finalists | Semi-finalists | Semi-finalists |
| QF | Quarter-finalists | Quarter-finalists | Quarter-finalists | Quarter-finalists | Quarter-finalists | Quarter-finalists |
| Q | Play-in qualifying round | Play-in qualifying round | Play-in qualifying round | Play-in qualifying round | Play-in qualifying round | Play-in qualifying round |
| | Relegated | Relegated | Relegated | Relegated | Relegated | Relegated |
| $^R$ | Regular season champions | Regular season champions | Regular season champions | Regular season champions | Regular season champions | Regular season champions |
| $^S$ | Yugoslav Second League clubs in Playoff phase | Yugoslav Second League clubs in Playoff phase | Yugoslav Second League clubs in Playoff phase | Yugoslav Second League clubs in Playoff phase | Yugoslav Second League clubs in Playoff phase | Yugoslav Second League clubs in Playoff phase |
| Team | 61 | 62 | 63 | 64 | 65 | 66 | 67 | 68 | 69 | 70 | 71 | 72 | 73 | 74 | 75 | 76 | 77 | 78 | 79 | 80 | 81 | 82 | 83 | 84 | 85 | 86 | 87 | 88 | 89 | 90 | 91 | 92 |
| Bosna | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 12th | 4th | 7th | 3rd | 2nd | 1st | 4th | 1st | 7th | QF | 2nd | SF | QF | QF | SF | Q | SF | 6th | 8th | 5th |
| Čelik | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 12th | – |
| Igman Ilidža | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 14th | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Sloboda Tuzla | 9th | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 11th | – | – | – | Q$^S$ | 11th | – | – | 11th | – | SF |
| Željezničar Sarajevo | – | 9th | – | – | – | – | – | 12th | – | – | – | – | 11th | 14th | – | 13th | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Cibona | 2nd | 4th | 6th | 6th | 4th | 7th | 8th | 5th | 5th | 4th | 2nd | 3rd | 8th | 10th | 8th | 7th | 4th | 5th | 3rd | 3rd | 2nd | 1st | QF | 1st$^R$ | 1st$^R$ | 2nd$^R$ | SF$^R$ | SF | 7th | SF | SF | Withdrawn |
| Dalvin | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 14th | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Kvarner | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 14th | – | 8th | 11th | 12th | – | 12th | Q$^S$ | 12th | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Mladost | – | 10th | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Slavonski Brod | – | – | – | – | – | – | 12th | – | – | – | 11th | 12th | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Split | – | – | – | 9th | 6th | 5th | 6th | 6th | 3rd | 3rd | 1st | 2nd | 6th | 2nd | 2nd | 2nd | 1st | 3rd | 2nd | 2nd | 11th | QF$^S$ | QF | 10th | Q | SF | QF | 1st$^R$ | 1st | 1st$^R$ | 1st$^R$ | Withdrawn |
| Šibenka | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 8th | 4th | QF | 1st$^R$ | QF | Q | QF | QF | QF | 10th | – | 11th | – |
| Zadar | 4th | 3rd | 5th | 2nd | 1st | 3rd | 1st | 1st | 4th | 6th | 7th | 10th | 9th | 1st | 1st | 8th | 11th | 6th | 10th | 6th | 3rd | SF | QF | SF | SF | 1st | QF | QF | 5th | SF | SF | Withdrawn |
| Zagreb | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 9th | – | Withdrawn |
| Zrinjevac | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 13th | – | 12th | 13th | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Željezničar Karlovac | 7th | 7th | 4th | 5th | 7th | 6th | 5th | 8th | 9th | 10th | 12th | 11th | 14th | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| MZT Skopje | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | Q$^S$ | QF | 11th | – | – | – | – |
| Rabotnički | – | – | – | – | 11th | – | 11th | – | 10th | 7th | 5th | 5th | 10th | 11th | 5th | 9th | 12th | 13th | – | 9th | 10th | 12th | Q$^S$ | 11th | Q$^S$ | Q | 12th | – | – | – | – | SF |
| Budućnost | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 8th | Q | 10th | Q | QF | QF | Q | 12th | – | – | 10th | 10th |
| Ivangrad | – | – | – | – | – | 12th | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Atlas | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | Q$^S$ | 9th | 12th | – | Q$^S$ | QF | 8th | 10th | 6th | 12th |
| OKK Beograd | 3rd | 2nd | 1st | 1st | 3rd | 8th | 4th | 7th | 8th | 5th | 4th | 8th | 7th | 9th | 11th | 4th | 5th | 12th | 9th | 11th | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Borac Čačak | – | – | – | – | – | 10th | 10th | 11th | 7th | 8th | 9th | 9th | 4th | 8th | 9th | 14th | – | 10th | 5th | 12th | – | 10th | 9th | QF | QF | Q | Q | Q | 12th | – | – | – |
| Crvena zvezda | 6th | 8th | 8th | 3rd | 8th | 4th | 3rd | 3rd | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th | 8th | 7th | 5th | 5th | SF | SF | 2nd | 2nd | QF | 2nd | QF | SF | 2nd | 9th | 2nd |
| Dinamo Pančevo | 10th | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Metalac Valjevo | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 12th | 12th | 11th | 9th | 9th | 11th | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Partizan | 5th | 6th | 2nd | 7th | 5th | 2nd | 7th | 4th | 6th | 9th | 10th | 6th | 3rd | 6th | 3rd | 1st | 3rd | 2nd | 1st | 4th | 1st | 2nd$^R$ | SF | QF | SF | SF | 1st | 2nd | 2nd$^R$ | 8th | 2nd | 1st$^R$ |
| Proleter Zrenjanin | – | – | 10th | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 13th | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Radnički Beograd | 8th | 5th | 7th | 8th | 9th | 9th | 9th | 9th | 11th | 11th | 8th | 4th | 1st | 5th | 10th | 6th | 7th | 7th | 6th | 10th | 9th | 9th | 11th | QF$^S$ | 11th | – | – | – | – | – | – | 9th |
| Zastava Kragujevac | – | – | 9th | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Sloboda Užice | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | Q$^S$ | 11th | – | – | 7th |
| Sloga | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | Q$^S$ | Q | 12th | – | – | – | – | – | 11th |
| Spartak Subotica | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 6th |
| Šabac | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 12th | – | – |
| Vojvodina | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 13th | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | Q$^S$ | 9th | 5th | 5th | 8th |
| Branik | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 12th | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Olimpija | 1st | 1st | 3rd | 4th | 2nd | 1st | 2nd | 2nd | 2nd | 1st | 6th | 7th | 5th | 7th | 6th | 10th | 10th | 4th | 8th | 7th | 6th | QF | QF | 12th | QF$^S$ | 11th | Q$^S$ | SF | 6th | 7th | 7th | Withdrawn |
| Plama Pur | – | – | – | – | 12th | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Slovan | – | – | – | 10th | 10th | 11th | – | 10th | 12th | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |

## Notable players

Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
Krešimir Ćosić (1996)
Dražen Petrović (2002)
Dražen Dalipagić (2004)
Dino Rađa (2018)
Vlade Divac (2019)
Toni Kukoč (2021)
FIBA Hall of Fame
Krešimir Ćosić (2007)
Dražen Dalipagić (2007)
Ivo Daneu (2007)
Mirza Delibašić (2007)
Radivoj Korać (2007)
Dražen Petrović (2007)
Vlade Divac (2010)
Dragan Kićanović (2010)
Zoran Slavnić (2013)
FIBA's 50 Greatest Players
Krešimir Ćosić (1991)
Dražen Dalipagić (1991)
Ivo Daneu (1991)
Mirza Delibašić (1991)
Vlade Divac (1991)
Dragan Kićanović (1991)
Radivoj Korać (1991)
Toni Kukoč (1991)
Dražen Petrović (1991)
Dino Rađa (1991)
Petar Skansi (1991)
Zoran Slavnić (1991)
50 Greatest EuroLeague Contributors
Dejan Bodiroga (2008)
Krešimir Ćosić (2008)
Predrag Danilović (2008)
Mirza Delibašić (2008)
Vlade Divac (2008)
Aleksandar Đorđević (2008)
Radivoj Korać (2008)
Toni Kukoč (2008)
Dražen Petrović (2008)
Dino Rađa (2008)
EuroLeague Final Four MVP
Dino Rađa (1989)
Toni Kukoč (1990, 1991, 1993)
Predrag Danilović (1992)
Žarko Paspalj (1994)
Zoran Savić (1998)
Željko Rebrača (2000)
Dejan Bodiroga (2002, 2003)
EuroLeague Finals Top Scorer
Petar Skansi (1972)
Žarko Varajić (1979)
Dražen Petrović (1985)
FIBA Saporta Cup Finals Top Scorer
Zoran Slavnić (1974, 1975)
Srećko Jarić (1977)
Andro Knego (1982)
Dragan Kićanović (1983)
Dražen Petrović (1987, 1989)
Branislav Prelević (1991, 1992, 1996)
Roman Horvat (1994)
Petar Naumoski (1995, 2002)
Predrag Danilović (2000)
FIBA Korać Cup Finals Top Scorer
Nikola Plećaš (1972)
Dražen Dalipagić (1974, 1978)
Željko Jerkov (1977)
Dragan Kićanović (1979)
Dražen Petrović (1988)
Vlade Divac (1989)
Aleksandar Đorđević (1993, 1999)
Teoman Alibegović (1995)
Petar Naumoski (1996)
Euroscar
Dražen Dalipagić (1980)
Dragan Kićanović (1981, 1982)
Dražen Petrović (1986, 1989, 1992, 1993)
Toni Kukoč (1990, 1991, 1994, 1996, 1998)
Mr. Europa
Dražen Dalipagić (1977, 1978)
Dragan Kićanović (1981, 1982)
Dražen Petrović (1986, 1993)
Vlade Divac (1989)
Toni Kukoč (1990, 1991, 1992, 1996)
Aleksandar Đorđević (1994, 1995) :

## Successor leagues

* YUBA League (1992–2006)
* HT Premijer liga (1991–present)
* Premier A League (1991–present)
* Basketball Championship (1993–present)
* First League (1992–present)
* Basketball League (2006–present)
* Basketball League (2006–present)
* Adriatic League (2001–present)