Partizan basketball club president Ostoja Mijailović announced that two central stands in the Belgrade Arena will be permanently named after club legends Duško Vujošević and Dražen Dalipagić, honoring the team’s most successful coach and all-time leading scorer ahead of the upcoming EuroLeague season.
Belgrade Arena will soon carry the names of two figures who defined the identity of the black-and-white squad. The decision, announced by club leadership, establishes permanent tributes on the central stands for the team’s historic contributors.
Honoring the Most Successful Coach in Club History
One of the newly named stands will honor Duško Vujošević, recognized as the most successful coach in the history of the Belgrade club. Vujošević spent 15 seasons on the bench across four separate stints spanning 1987 to 1989, 1990 to 1991, 2001 to 2010, and 2012 to 2015. During those years, the expert guided the team to 23 trophies, including 12 domestic championship titles, five national cups, five ABA League championships, and an international Radivoj Korać Cup.
Ostoja Mijailović, Partizan President, stated that the Duško Vujošević stand honors the most successful coach in the history of Partizan, a man who created generations of players, achieved great results, and left an indelible mark on the identity of their club.
Remembering the All-Time Leading Scorer Dražen Dalipagić
The second central stand will bear the name of Dražen Dalipagić, one of the most prolific players ever to wear the club jersey and a towering figure in European and global basketball. Dalipagić played for the team in two periods: from 1971 to 1980 and during the 1981–1982 season. He secured two Yugoslav championships and two Radivoj Korać Cups, alongside an additional national cup trophy.
Holding the record as the club’s all-time leading scorer, Dalipagić amassed 8.278 points across 307 official matches, averaging 27.1 points per contest. Club leadership emphasized that both figures represent an enduring legacy that current management intends to safeguard for future generations.
Securing Family Blessings and Preparing for the New Season
The initiative required formal coordination before reaching the public. Leadership sought and received the blessing of the Vujošević and Dalipagić families, who accepted the proposal with enthusiasm.
Ostoja Mijailović, Partizan President, noted that starting this season, every time they enter the Arena, those names will remind them of who they are, where they come from, and the history they are obligated to preserve.
The announcement arrives as the club prepares for the upcoming competitive calendar. Following a previous campaign that finished without a trophy under the guidance of coach Joan Peñarroya, the team will launch its new EuroLeague campaign on September 25 against Italian side Olimpia Milano in front of its home supporters at the Arena.
