- A big kick-off party has marked the start of the Liga Endesa 2023-24 season. More than a thousand people filled the legendary Florida Park room at Madrid's El Retiro park, watching the league's players and enjoying the best music at an event that made it clear that nothing here is artificial.
The start of the Liga Endesa 2023-24 season is upon us! After a weekend to remember, which saw the Endesa Super Cup disputed in Murcia, the new league season has kicked off with a lively presentation party held at the iconic Florida Park room in Madrid's El Retiro park.
And there is no better way to ring in the new season. Presented by comedian Dani Martínez and journalist Alejandra Llambés, more than one thousand attendees enjoyed an event packed with fun, great moments with the players and a concert by Maldita Nerea.
What was made clear, is that here nothing is artificial. That was the message transmitted by the ACB, turning the wonders of Artificial Intelligence on its head as part of a video produced by Canary Island-based agency, 22GRADOS. Of course, the message was clear that everything about the Liga Endesa is real, everything is true, everything is about emotions, that no machine is capable of replicating. There is nothing artificial about the Liga Endesa.
"It is true that the progress being made with Artificial Intelligence is wonderful, but we try to make everything true nonetheless. Everything we do, from television to sponsorship, we try to do while remaining normal, natural and down to Earth. We try to make basketball about passion and fun, not about anything artificial; that is the reason behind everything we do," remarked Antonio Martín, head of the ACB, about the proposal.
In turn, Endesa's director general of communication, Ignacio Jiménez Soler, took the opportunity to thank players and fans, offering an insight of what was to come, "This evening, we are going to bring together sport and music, which is the perfect testament to the way we do sponsorships".
And he was true to his word. Jorge Ruiz, vocalist from Maldita Nerea, then took to the stage, backed by Endesa Music Lover, to warm up the atmosphere with an acoustic performance. This was just a preview of what was to come and the best way to make way for the first two players of the evening, the happiest of the 18 in attendance. Chumi Ortega (Zunder Palencia) and Felipe Dos Anjos (MoraBanc Andorra), representatives of the two teams newly promoted to Liga Endesa, shared comments about their enthusiasm for the season head.
Little by little, players from all teams took to the stage, answering questions from Daniel Martínez and Alejandra Llambés and joking around and responding as spontaneously as they could. Eric Vilà (Bàsquet Girona), Miquel Salvó (Dreamland Gran Canaria), Jordi Rodriguez (Joventut Badalona) and Melwin Pantzar (Surne Bilbao Basket) took to the stage in the second round, while the third, tinged with a decidedly Anglo-Saxon accent, saw Markus Howard (Baskonia), Devin Robinson (BAXI Manresa), Obi Emegano (Casademont Zaragoza) and Dylan Ennis (UCAM Murcia) very comfortable in front of the cameras. Quite the showman.
After this unexpected break in proceedings, the fourth block of players took to the stage, including Lluís Costa (Coviran Granada), Vincent Poirier (Real Madrid), Erik Quintela (Río Breogán) and Xabi López-Arostegui (Valencia Basket), who continued the jovial atmosphere, taking a phone call from Rudy Fernández responding to comparisons to his brother, Sergi de Quintela.
Finally, it was the turn of Joel Parra (Barça), Edgar Vicedo (Lenovo Tenerife), Álvaro Muñoz (Monbus Obradoiro) and Augusto Lima (Unicaja) to welcome the Liga Endesa 2023-24 season, taking in the final standing ovation of the more than one thousand people who packed the Florida Park room, before Maldita Nerea played a concert to put the finishing touch to the evening.
About Endesa
Endesa is a leading electricity company in Spain and the second largest in Portugal. The company is also the second largest gas operator in the Spanish market. Endesa operates an end-to-end generation, distribution and marketing business. Through Endesa X it also offers value-added services aimed at the electrification of energy usage in homes, companies, industries and Public Administrations. It has also created a line of business. Endesa X Way is fully dedicated to electric mobility. Endesa is firmly committed to the United Nations SDGs and strongly supports the development of renewable energies through Enel Green Power España, the digitalisation of grids through e-distribución, and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). The Endesa Foundation is also active in CSR. Our workforce numbers about 9,260 employees. Endesa is a division of Enel, the largest electricity group in Europe.