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The star-studded Hungarian beach soccer league is set to begin on Friday near Budapest as Energia SC taste victory in the Cup
The COVID-19 pandemic may have put a stop to a lot of beach soccer this season, but not in Hungary…
Despite the difficulties, a ground-breaking season in Hungary has seen the MSMN (Hungarian Beach Soccer Non-profit Management) host their first Cup competition, a new women’s Division, new beach soccer youth projects and on top of that, they are to host their first ever Super Cup.
The League will take place near Budapest between 17 and 25 July, and follows the conclusion of their first-ever Cup competition which saw Energia SC take victory.
The Cup consisted of 11 teams in three groups with an elimination stage for the best eight teams. In the group stage, newcomers Balla Bau SRO Cigand SE, beat the would-be champions Energia SC – AVA Pietra Epuletgepeszeti Kft with a two-goal cushion, a clear indicator of how competitive the tournament was.
The elimination stage featured some fantastic beach soccer and Energia SC – AVA Pietra Epuletgepeszeti Kft won the first Hungarian Cup by beating Jaszfenyszaru-Goldwin-Pluss, last year’s Hungarian champion, 6-2 in the final. Bonhyad BFC went on to finish third by winning the play-off match against Ujhartyan BSC in extra time.
The Hungarian Beach Soccer Cup 2020 was also the perfect opportunity for the teams to test out young talent and to analyse their opponents, as well as their own tactics. It was essential too, as from 17 to 25 July the Hungarian Beach Soccer Championship 2020 will begin, seeing two new teams (JLC – BSC Aramis and Hidegkuti SC) as well as some of the best players in the world, compete for the Hungarian title.
Spaniards Llorenç Gómez León, Edu Suarez, Antonio and José Arias will be playing for new side JLC – BSC Aramis, while three members of Portugal’s World Cup winning squad, Rui Coimbra, Nuno Ricardo Belchior, and Andre Lourenco, will be amongst the Jaszfenyszaru-Goldwin-Pluss ranks.
Other big names who will be appearing in the Hungarian League are FIFA Golden and Silver Boot winners from the last World Cup, Gabriele Gori and Emannuele Zurlo, as well as Oliver Romrig, David Hoeveler, Robert Husty, Kevin Lapouge, Benjamin Colje, Alessio Frainetti, Dario Ramacciotti, Maksym Viotok and many more… The championship will be be held at Lupa Beach near Budapest, playing a total of 40 games over two weekends.
After the championship, the victors will face the winners of the Cup in the first Hungarian Super Cup on 1st of August. The day will also feature an All-Star match and the Hungarian National Beach Soccer Team playing against the U-21 Hungarian National Beach Soccer Team.
MSMN is also organising the Hungarian Women Beach Soccer Championship and the Hungarian Beach Soccer Championship II, the latter already won by Kelen SC with a dominant performance. Women’s League has huge popularity amongst clubs so the MSMN aims to broaden the league and make it as prolific as the men’s league. 21 women teams were registered in the 2020 competition stages, nine teams in Division I and 12 teams in Division II.
The Hungarian youth system is also flourishing with numerous young players already present in the big clubs that are consistent participants of the beach soccer season but in order to involve more and more young players, MSMN organises tournaments all over the country and national championships from U-20 all the way to U-11.
The Puma x ProSport.hu Hungarian Beach Soccer Cup 2020 showed that the system works and the whole beach soccer community in Hungary is growing, which could ensure the success of the National Team in the future.
Despite the COVID-19 restrictions in 2020, MSMN, the exclusive promoter of Hungarian beach soccer, was able to expand the popularity of beach soccer in the country by organising historical events such as the first Hungarian women’s Division II, the first Hungarian Cup, the first Hungarian Super Cup, making 2020 its strongest championship season ever.
Photo credit: @peter.jordanoff
