Ferencvaros are on the verge of achieving something only two teams have managed since 1964 – winning three consecutive Champions League titles. Despite the long and illustrious history of Europe’s premier club competition, only 10 times in more than six decades have teams successfully defended the title. Just two sides, Mladost Zagreb (1968-1970) and Pro Recco (2021-23), have gone one step further and claimed three straight crowns.
Fradi lifted the trophy in Malta in each of the last two seasons and now return to the island aiming for a third successive triumph. They are also looking to extend an extraordinary streak of 11 trophies won from 11 consecutive finals across all competitions.
Ever since ending Recco’s magnificent run in the 2024 Champions League final, they have continued to win everywhere. League, national cup, Champions League and Super Cup honours have all followed. Just last week they collected trophy No. 10 in Budapest, sweeping Conference Cup runners-up Honved 3-0 in the domestic finals.
That success came as little surprise. Ferencvaros have not lost a Hungarian league match since April 2022, and their closest domestic encounters this season were two four-goal victories over Honved.
As coach Balazs Nyeki underlined in his post-match interview: “Winning is always great and I think we played the finals with good energies and great motivation.
“However, for us, the real challenge comes this month in Malta. Assessing the season is due only after the Final 4 – for this team, that is the ultimate goal.
“Winning golds in the home competitions is expected – of course, I’d be more than happy to have a lot tighter matches in the league, but the reality is that this team’s real playing ground is the Champions League.”
Back in 2019, when Fradi reached the Final 8 for the first time, they immediately went all the way in what was a genuine sensation.
They finished fourth in their group before producing three upsets in a row, defeating Jug in the quarterfinals, CNAB in the semifinals and Olympiacos in the final.
Their last two triumphs came as far less of a surprise. The team had matured and grown into a genuine superpower.
One defeat per season across all competitions – 40-1 in 2023-24 and 48-1 in 2024-25 – tells its own story.
Some may feel FTC have become slightly more vulnerable this season after suffering two defeats already, against Brescia and Recco, both at home in the Champions League.
However, they demonstrated their resilience in Recco, where they gained revenge by defeating the Italians.
Ironically, it came on Day 4 of the Quarterfinal Stage, the round in which they had suffered their only defeat of the season in each of the previous two campaigns – against Olympiacos and then CNAB.
At the same time, it is worth noting that Fradi’s campaign has been disrupted by injuries more frequently than ever before.
Their foreign stars all missed stretches of the season. Stylianos Argyropoulos required a recovery break last autumn, Dusan Mandic missed most of the spring months, while Edoardo Di Somma sat out the league play-offs.
Several key Hungarian players also encountered problems, most notably Akos Nagy, who broke his finger in early April after making the MVP team at the European Championships in Belgrade.
Yet the squad possesses enormous depth and that has enabled Fradi to travel to Malta with a still remarkable record of 46-2 across all competitions.
Star player Gergo Fekete agrees that their Champions League campaign has had its ups and downs.
“It has been a rollercoaster, physically and mentally as well,” he said. “It was pretty hard to come back after a national team, because we knew we were going to have a lot of tough games.
“This last phase of the Champions League was really pretty hard, and it was all decent games. So it was good we managed to make our ticket to the Final 4, that’s what matters, and now we are only focusing on our semifinal.”
There, they will face Zodiac CNAB, who have also enjoyed a tremendous campaign. Although they suffered a surprise defeat to Marseille on Day 2 of the Group Stage in late October and were beaten by Sabadell in the Spanish league a month later, they have not lost another match since 29 November.
Last year, Barceloneta were the only team to beat Fradi, even if it came in a penalty shootout. Earlier, on Day 1 of the Quarterfinal Stage, the Hungarians had demolished them 18-10 at the Komjadi Pool.
A Spaniard in FTC, Miguel de Toro, and two Hungarians in CNAB, Vince Vigvari and Gergo Burian, add further intrigue to what promises to be an entertaining contest.
The battle lines have also been drawn on the international stage. These two clubs provide the backbone of their respective national teams, and Hungary and Spain have contested a series of fierce encounters in recent years.
Spain defeated the Magyars to claim the world title in 2025, but Hungary prevailed in a thrilling shootout when the teams met in January for a place in the European Championship semifinals.
And for the record, Fradi’s women’s team will also face Spanish opposition, taking on Sant Andreu in the Champions League semifinals a day earlier.
Gergo Fekete believes staging the men’s and women’s Final 4s together is an excellent idea.
“That’s a pretty good idea, a lot of fans can come, and also it’s good for Fradi fans, because they can cheer for the women’s team and the men’s team as well. So I think it was a pretty good idea, and Malta is always a good place to play water polo, so I can’t wait.”
Neither can we.
FTC – Route to Malta Final 4
2025/26 Results
Group Stage
(1st place, Group C)
FTC Telekom Waterpolo 19-11 CSM Oradea
AN Brescia 17-21 FTC Telekom Waterpolo
FTC Telekom Waterpolo 26-15 VPK Primorac Kotor
CSM Oradea 5-17 FTC Telekom Waterpolo
FTC Telekom Waterpolo 13-16* AN Brescia (12-12 FT)
VPK Primorac Kotor 15-25 FTC Telekom Waterpolo
Quarterfinal Stage
(2nd Group B)
FTC Telekom Waterpolo 9-13 Pro Recco
Waspo 98 Hannover 13-21 FTC Telekom Waterpolo
HAVK Mladost 10-15 FTC Telekom Waterpolo
Pro Recco 14-16 FTC Telekom Waterpolo
FTC Telekom Waterpolo 17-8 Waspo 98 Hannover
FTC Telekom Waterpolo 16-10 HAVK Mladost
Best Champions League finishes
1st – 2019, 2024 & 2025
2nd – 2021
3rd – 2022
2026 Final 4 Fixtures
Semifinals
Thursday 11 June
(Local times shown)
19:00: Zodiac CNAB (ESP) v FTC Telekom Waterpolo (HUN)
21:00: Pro Recco (ITA) v Olympiacos SFP (GRE)
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Gergely Csurka for European Aquatics
