VTB United League 2026/2027 Outright Predictions

The balance of power in the VTB United League has not changed fundamentally over the summer. The coming season is once again expected to be dominated by the “Big Three” of CSKA, UNICS and Zenit. What should we expect from the new campaign, and who will become champion? We break it down below.

VTB United League 2026/2027 Outright Odds Including the Playoffs

Scores24 VTB United League 2026/2027 Outright Winner Prediction

CSKA to Win – Yes

Odds: 2.00

Our editorial team considers the Moscow club the main favorite. The “Army Men” are the defending champions and the most consistent Russian club of recent years. Under Andreas Pistiolis, CSKA kept the core and chemistry of the title-winning team while making targeted additions. The roster has become even deeper and more versatile. The only regular member of the main rotation to leave was center Luka Mitrovic.

At the same time, alongside Mitrovic's departure, the club extended the contracts of several important rotation players: Casper Ware, Nikita Kurbanov, Semyon Antonov, Anton Astapkovich, Vladimir Karpenko and Livio Jean-Charles all signed new deals. This means the core of the team that won three consecutive titles has remained almost untouched — a rare situation for a champion, which usually loses players as their market value rises.

The main addition is Kirill Elatontsev. Arguably the most high-profile move of the league's offseason: the 24-year-old center, twice named the VTB United League's best young player, signed a three-year contract with CSKA. He became a free agent after a controversial departure from Lokomotiv Kuban, and the Russian Basketball Federation chose not to impose sanctions, opening the way for a move to Moscow. Club president Andrey Vatutin described the maximum objective as helping the promising Russian restart his career specifically at CSKA. In practical terms, this fills the center position vacated by Mitrovic with an upgrade rather than a like-for-like replacement. Elatontsev is only 24, and his ceiling as a player has not yet been reached.

Why This Matters So Much Compared With the Competition

The contrast with last season's main rival, UNICS, is striking. The Kazan club went through a major upheaval: captain Dmitry Kulagin, head coach Velimir Perasovic, who took the club to the final, and imports Xavier Munford and Elijah Stewart all left. UNICS now has to rebuild around new head coach Milan Karakas, Perasovic's former assistant, a process that inevitably comes with an adaptation period and the risk of a drop in results early in the season.

While their rivals deal with rebuilding, CSKA enter the new season with their internal chemistry intact — many of the same players have now been together for three consecutive years — and with targeted rather than forced roster improvements.

You can follow match results, current data and odds in the VTB United League section of our website.