Zodiac CNAB ruined FTC-Telekom’s bid for a third successive Champions League title as they forced a shootout, where Unai Aguirre crowned a magnificent performance with his 13th save to end Barceloneta’s semifinal and penalty-shootout curse in one stroke. They will now face Pro Recco, who ruthlessly dismantled Olympiacos’ defence in the opening 10 minutes, effectively settling the second semi by half-time, and then cruised to a record-breaking victory. Their 19-goal haul was the highest ever recorded in a Champions League semifinal.
2025/26 Champions League Men
Final 4, Semifinals
Thursday 11 June
Zodiac CNAB (ESP) 13-11* FTC Telekom Waterpolo (HUN) (9-9 FT)
Pro Recco (ITA) 19-13 Olympiacos SFP (GRE)
Zodiac CNAB (ESP) 13-11* FTC Telekom Waterpolo (HUN)
(3-2, 3-1, 1-3, 2-3, 4-2P)
A 32-game unbeaten run over the last seven months on CNAB’s side, and a third monstrous season featuring two title-winning campaigns in the past two years for FTC-Telekom.
Against that stood a semifinal curse for the Spanish side, stretching across six occasions since 2014, plus the painful injury that sidelined key winger Vince Vigvari.
Fradi, however, were boosted by the return of Edoardo Di Somma after appendicitis had kept him out for several weeks.
The Hungarians created some fine chances early on in Thursday’s first semifinal, but CNAB goalkeeper Unai Aguirre denied Szilard Jansik in a six-on-five before charging out of his cage to make a sensational steal as compatriot Miguel del Toro was about to finish a one-on-one.
By contrast, one big chance was enough for CNAB to take the lead after three minutes when Alessandro Velotto found the net from their first man-up.
Fradi missed their next opportunity as a block denied Vendel Vigvari, while Soma Vogel also came up with a stop on Bernat Sanahuja’s shot in a man-down.
Then, after five minutes, Gergo Fekete broke the ice with a powerful 6m blast to level the game.
Di Somma sent the ball wide from FTC’s third six-on-five and Gonzalo Echenique punished that miss with a superb goal from the counter attack.
The Italian quickly made amends, though, as his fierce skipshot found the net for 2-2.
Vogel and Aguirre both produced fine saves before Velotto unleashed a pinpoint rocket under the bar from the perimeter with just six seconds remaining, handing CNAB a 3-2 lead at the first break.
Both goalkeepers came up with big saves from centre-shots before Unai Biel doubled CNAB’s advantage with a classy finish from the left wing during the first six-on-five of the second quarter.
Fradi then missed their fourth extra, failing to register a proper shot.
Jansik’s drive pulled Fradi back within one, but only briefly. Velotto struck his third goal, again from a six-on-five, to make it 5-3 midway through the period.
Di Somma rattled the bar to leave Fradi scoreless from their first five extras, while Krisztian Manhercz’s back-to-back efforts caused little trouble.
To further sharpen the contrast, Biel’s pinpoint action shot flew straight into the net as Fradi appeared to be heading into the same kind of trouble as their women’s side the night before at 6-3.
Limiting last season’s champions to just three goals in the first half was a tremendous feat by CNAB. Whether they could maintain that level was the million-dollar question.
They did almost everything right, but luck deserted them during the seventh man-down as Dusan Mandic’s second attempt took a deflection that left Aguirre stranded.
Just 26 seconds later, Vigvari finished off a counter-like attack following a steal, lifting the title-holders’ spirits midway through the third period.
The Spaniards then missed two extras, while Manhercz finally converted a clean chance from a man-up to bring Fradi level at 6-6.
Fradi had the chance to move ahead, but Aguirre made another fine save. Biel then stunned Vogel with a brilliantly timed perimeter effort 55 seconds before the break, restoring CNAB’s advantage at 7-6 heading into the fourth quarter.
After the restart, Manhercz quickly converted the next extra for 7-7. Then Vigvari found himself with a clear shooting opportunity, but Aguirre was equal to it once more.
CNAB earned a man-up and after a time-out, Biel struck the bar. At the other end, Fradi also earned an extra, and after their time-out, Stylianos Argyropoulos – who had been unusually quiet – finally found the net.
Fradi moved ahead for the first time, but not for long. The Spaniards responded immediately in their next man-up with Biel delivering a brilliant pass into the centre and Roger Tahull tipped it home for 8-8 with 4:37 remaining.
Manhercz then attempted an audacious finish from Fradi’s next six-on-five, firing in from an impossible angle on the right wing, but the bar denied him.
The Spaniards also earned a man-up, but their sharpness wasn’t the same as in the first half. Fekete took full advantage, finishing the ensuing counter-attack to make it 8-9 with 2:15 left on the clock.
With two minutes remaining, CNAB earned another extra. Fran Fernandez sensed it might be their final opportunity and called his second time-out.
It made little difference as the horn interrupted play before a shot could be taken.
With 1:20 remaining, Fradi earned a six-on-five of their own, and after a time-out they effectively had a match ball. However, Fekete’s close-range effort was sensationally blocked by the defenders.
That miss proved painful as Velotto delivered yet another outstanding finish on extra to level the contest 34 seconds from time.
Fradi couldn’t create a genuine threat during their final possession, sending the match to penalties.
This time, CNAB emerged victorious. Mandic struck the bar with his second-round attempt before Fekete’s penalty was superbly saved by Aguirre.
At the other end, the Spaniards converted all of their efforts, giving Vogel no chance and securing a place in the final for the first time since 2014.
At the same time, they denied Fradi a historic three-peat.
Holding FTC to 4-from-13 in man-ups proved decisive, while Aguirre’s 12 saves and string of heroic interventions were paramount to CNAB’s success.
After losing their previous two semifinals in shootouts, in 2023 and 2025, their outstanding efforts were finally rewarded as fortune smiled on them in the decisive penalty shootout.
Pro Recco (ITA) 19-13 Olympiacos SFP (GRE)
(8-4, 5-3, 3-2, 3-4)
Changing goalkeepers back and forth is rarely a good sign in high-stakes matches, especially when the re-sub comes early in the second quarter.
That alone told the story of the second semifinal, where Pro Recco had already reached 10 goals in less than 10 minutes. For comparison, Fradi and CNAB managed nine goals each across their entire semifinal earlier on Thursday night.
Neither Panagiotis Tzortzatoz nor Emmanouil Zerdevas could provide significant backing, although their defenders offered little help with blocks either.
Recco hit the target 11 times in the opening 9:30 minutes and scored from 10 of those attempts, with only a single save recorded in the Greek goal.
The Italians struck twice in 43 seconds to set the tone and, although Gergo Zalanki pulled one back from a six-on-four, Luke Pavillard and Francesco Condemi both converted man-ups while the Greeks missed theirs.
Zalanki then tried to keep Olympiacos in the contest with two more fierce strikes, but the gap continued to grow as almost every Recco shot found its way into the net.
Giacomo Canella, Francesco Di Fulvio, Alvaro Granados and Max Irving all got on the scoresheet, with the Spaniard adding another 40 seconds before the buzzer to hand Recco a commanding 8-4 lead after the opening eight minutes.
The scoring spree continued in the second quarter. Irving netted twice more, although Ioannis Alafragkis converted a man-up in between.
The Greeks searched desperately for a way back and managed to convert a couple of six-on-fives, but they simply couldn’t contain Recco’s man-up attack.
The Italians were 7-for-10 in extras by half-time, and their success was not built around one player enjoying an extraordinary shooting display.
Matteo Iocchi Gratta and Nicholas Presciutti also found the net, meaning all but three Recco field players had already scored before the first half was over.
Alexandros Papanastasiou pulled one back, but Irving completed his hat-trick with 1:09 remaining.
Fountoulis then struck the post from Olympiacos’ next man-up, leaving the Italians firmly in control at 13-7 at the turnaround.
A rare Greek save opened the third quarter, but Recco immediately earned a penalty after the ensuing corner and Granados made no mistake with his finish.
Dimitrios Nikolaidis replied with a somewhat fortunate man-up goal, yet the same pattern unfolded at the other end.
Another save in a man-down situation was quickly followed by a thunderous Granados effort that bounced in off the bar after the corner, stretching the lead to 15-8.
By then, the contest was practically decided and Recco’s concentration levels began to drop, reflected by a missed penalty and a couple of less composed attacks.
What remained unchanged was their defensive intensity. They refused to allow easy goals, even at the expense of exclusions, and their man-down defence continued to function as effectively as ever.
Konstantinos Genidounias managed to convert one extra, but three others were shut down, while Irving added his fourth goal from action to make it 16-9 with eight minutes remaining.
The fourth quarter offered little drama. It was a period that simply had to be played, with both teams fully aware that another challenge awaited in 48 hours, although that upcoming encounter carried far greater significance for Recco.
The last quarter was more balanced. The Greeks scored four times, but Recco added three more goals of their own to finish on 19 – the highest total ever recorded by a team in a Champions League semifinal.
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Gergely Csurka for European Aquatics
