Niels Giffey recently appeared on the “Swish Cast” podcast, where the Bayern forward recalled one of the most unusual road games of his career, a trip to Belgrade to face Partizan.
Niels Giffey was part of a game that quickly became one of the strangest atmospheres seen in European basketball. During the matchup between Partizan and Bayern, the most passionate supporters of the Belgrade club loudly booed their own players as they walked onto the court.
Claim Now The reaction from the home crowd was a protest following the resignation of club legend Zeljko Obradovic, and the Bayern player explained how surreal the moment felt from the court.
“It was very strange, super strange. A very, very unusual situation. To be booed by your own fans — you could see on their faces that they were not only playing against us.”
He continued describing the unusual atmosphere inside the arena.
“Honestly, I have never seen anything like that. It was a strange situation, tough for many of their players. Those fans are so passionate and they were deeply involved in the whole situation.”
Even today, many Partizan fans have not fully come to terms with the fact that the most decorated coach in European basketball history, Zeljko Obradovic, is no longer on the bench of their beloved club.
His position was taken by Joan Penarroya, who after making several roster adjustments and tactical changes, appears to have restored some balance within the reigning Serbian champions.
However, Partizan no longer has realistic chances of achieving anything significant in this EuroLeague season. The Belgrade team currently sits in 17th place in the standings with a 10-20 record and will host Dubai in the next round.
And I’m still thinking about that, how come we finished 15th with that roster 😪 https://t.co/obhZauShiP
— Sylvain Francisco (@S_CISCO_2) March 14, 2026
