Fans head into the SWT Arena ahead of the Gladiators Trier home contest with Basketball Löwen Braunschweig on Oct. 12, 2025, in Trier, Germany. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

When Don Beck returned to Trier in 2023, the basketball franchise that he had taken on a run of success around the turn of the century was a shell of itself.

Under Beck, TVG Trier twice captured the German Cup for winning the annual midseason tournament and made the 1998 semifinals of the Bundesliga, Germany’s top level in the sport.

The decline in Trier’s fortunes had been so pronounced that the team, now named the Vet-Concept Gladiators, had been relegated to the second division for nearly a decade, and attendance at the 5,400-seat SWT Arena averaged a paltry 1,800.

Beck had one goal: bring good basketball back to the city of about 110,000 near Germany’s border with Luxembourg. In the wake of their return to the Bundesliga this season, the Gladiators are thriving once again.

Trier shocked the German basketball scene by becoming just the third-ever promoted team to win its first four games of the season.

“It is a feel-good story for basketball; it’s a feel-good story for our region, for our town,” said Beck, who has since moved into the front office as president of basketball operations. “To get back and do what we’re doing this early is great.”

Fans fill the seats at the SWT Arena ahead of the Gladiators Trier's contest against Basketball Loewen Braunschweig on Oct. 12, 2025, in Trier, Germany. The announced attendance was 5,292. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

Fans bang drums and cheer on the Gladiators Trier basketball team Oct. 12, 2025, during a game against Basketball Loewen Braunschweig at the SWT Center in Trier, Germany. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

With Trier being less than a 45-minute drive from Spangdahlem Air Base and a little over an hour by car from the western edge of the Kaiserslautern Military Community, Defense Department personnel and their families don’t have far to go to see that story.

I was on hand for the Oct. 12 contest, which resulted in a 78-73 victory for the Gladiators over Basketball Löwen Braunschweig, and the crowd was electric throughout the game.

Even though Trier trailed winless Braunschweig 20-8 with 2 minutes left in the opening quarter, the Gladiators overcame their slow start. Fans were cheering and banging their drums with few pauses.

I sat courtside in the press area but could tell that there isn’t a bad seat in the building, which gives spectators unobstructed views regardless of their vantage point.

For me, the atmosphere was just as good as it was for stateside games I’ve attended. The team and its roster of underdogs are quite a draw, with a quality of play that’s high enough for even hoops aficionados to appreciate.

The franchise also used to have a connection with U.S. service members stationed nearby. During Beck’s first stint in Trier, his teams scrimmaged against base teams at Bitburg and Spangdahlem.

Reconnecting with the Americans in Spangdahlem and Kaiserslautern is something he would like to see.

Braunschweig and Trier players battle for a rebound Oct. 12, 2025, during a game at the SWT Center in Trier, Germany. The home team went on to win by a score of 78-73. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

Trier power forward Clay Guillozet drives to the bucket against Braunschweig center David Nguessan during an Oct. 12, 2025, game at the SWT Center in Trier, Germany. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

“It definitely has a chance to grow amongst the (military) community if they know about it,” Beck said.

The Gladiators currently sit in second place in the 18-team league. The regular season runs through May 10, with playoffs to follow. The team has 15 home games remaining.

A big part of the surprise lies in the fact that Trier has one-sixth of the budget of defending champion Bayern Munich, Beck said.

The young coaching staff led by 33-year-old Jacques Schneider has turned heads with a roster that consists of 60% of the players who earned promotion last season.

American journeyman Urald King is one of the team’s newcomers. The Southeastern Oklahoma State University product started his odyssey in German basketball’s fifth division, then bounced around to teams in Iceland, France, Finland, Austria, Israel, Kosovo and Denmark before landing in Trier.

Gladiators Trier players led by Nolan Adejunle, center left, and Eli Brooks, foreground right, sign memorabilia and take photos with fans after a 78-73 victory over Basketball Löwen Braunschweig on Oct. 12, 2025, at the SWT Center in Trier, Germany. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

Trier power forward Marco Hollersbacher goes up for a dunk during the first quarter of an Oct. 12, 2025, game against Basketball Löwen Braunschweig at the SWT Center in Trier, Germany. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

The team now has a chance to reprise its German Cup triumphs of yore under Beck. With their 107-90 win Oct. 17 over Telekom Baskets Bonn, the Gladiators advanced to the tournament quarterfinals, where they will square off against the aforementioned Bayern Munich on Nov. 16. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m.

Interested Americans will have plenty of opportunities to check out the team, as four of Trier’s next six games through Dec. 13 are at home.

A word to the wise: The supporters section is Block 0 on the west side of the arena, so if the din of drums is a turnoff, it’s best to avoid that area. Concession stands offer traditional German stadium fare.

Because on-site parking options are limited, the best bet for people driving to a game is the Trier Nord Park and Ride lot on Zurmaiener Strasse.

Gladiators Trier center Maik Zirbes dishes out a pass to the wing against Braunschweig on Oct. 12, 2025, at the SWT Center in Trier, Germany. The city's basketball team is back in the Bundesliga, the top echelon of German pro league, and is off to a hot start. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

The Trier basketball team celebrates with fans Oct. 12, 2025, following the Gladiators' 78-73 win over Basketball Löwen Braunschweig at SWT Arena in Trier, Germany. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

Gladiators basketball in Trier

Address: Fort Worth-Platz 1, Trier, Germany

Prices: Ticket prices range from 15.50 to 38.50 euros for adults, 9 to 33 euros for kids and 13.50 to 34.50 euros in the family section.

Information: Phone: +49 6514628760; Online: vetconceptgladiators.de.