LUKA DONCIC FILES HAGUE CONVENTION PETITION IN CUSTODY DISPUTE

Luka Doncic has filed a petition in Slovenia under the 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction, according to The Athletic's Dan Woike. The Lakers player is seeking access to his two daughters, whom he has with former partner Anamaria Goltes. The petition also aims to facilitate the children's movement between Slovenia and the United States. Speaking to The Athletic on 2 October, Doncic said: "Nothing is more important to me than my daughters." He added: "I will do whatever it takes to make sure they have both parents present in their lives."

The dispute has already affected Doncic's commitments outside the NBA. He skipped Slovenia's 2026 summer national team campaign to spend time with his daughters. In May, he said he had been forced to choose between playing for Slovenia and being with his daughters that summer. He said seeing them had been "extremely difficult" over the previous eight months. A child support case filed in Los Angeles was dismissed in August. In February, Doncic filed an interim injunction and parental-contact petition in Slovenia, an earlier step in the dispute.

Proceedings involving minor children in Slovenian courts are sealed, and no ruling has been made public. The United States and Slovenia are both parties to the 1980 Hague Convention, which covers cross-border disputes over parental access. A petition under the convention can address a child's return or rights of access, but does not decide permanent custody. Doncic returned to California in late September to join the Lakers' training camp as the new season began; the petition's outcome has not been made public.