When Barceloneta stunned the other five visiting teams in the inaugural season of the competition under its new Champions League name and won the first Final 6 at the famous Picornell Pool in Barcelona in 2014, few would have imagined the Spanish side wouldn’t reach another final over the following 11 years.
Apart from a couple of dips in performance – missing the Final 6 in 2017 and the Final 4 in 2024 – CNAB have always been there or thereabouts, consistently regarded as one of the favourites. Yet they have never managed to get beyond the semifinals again.
They have reached the top four on six occasions since then (2015, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2023 and 2025), but somehow became specialists in bronze-medal matches.
Last season was particularly painful because they genuinely looked capable of going all the way.
The Spaniards were the only team to beat FTC during the entire campaign, albeit in a shootout, gaining revenge for their lone defeat in Budapest on the opening night of the Quarterfinal Stage.
With Recco absent and competing in the Euro Cup, many anticipated a dream final between CNAB and Fradi. Instead, the Spaniards once again fell in the semis, this time to Novi Beograd.
Although a late and somewhat unexpected equaliser in the circumstances earned them another chance to reach the final, the Serbians prevailed in the shootout and Barceloneta had to settle for the bronze-medal match once more.
The new season began with a change on the bench. Elvis Fatovic moved to Piraeus and Fran Fernandez, after several years as the Croatian’s assistant, faced a huge challenge in his first campaign as head coach.
He was tasked with leading CNAB without Felipe Perrone, whose influence on any team has always been invaluable. Alvaro Granados also departed, leaving significant gaps to fill.
Even so, Fernandez retained plenty of weapons. The team still possess the tremendous shooting power that helped propel Spain to the top of the world in 2025, while also boasting one the most valuable assets in modern water polo – Unai Aguirre, who is arguably the best goalkeeper in the world.
Naturally, after a golden World Championship campaign during the summer, many players required time to regain full momentum.
Alongside the newly crowned world champions – Aguirre, Alberto Munarriz, Bernat Sanahuja, Roger Tahull, Unai Biel, Alejandro Bustos and Biel Gomila – the squad also included Hungarian wingers Vince Vigvari and Gergo Burian, who had been beaten by their club team-mates in the final but still returned proudly with silver medals.
Fernandez also needed time to settle into his new role. During that transition period, CNAB suffered two rare home defeats.
Marseille surprised them on Day 2 of the Group Stage, while domestic rivals Sabadell edged them in the Spanish league.
Both losses came by a single goal, showing how easily those contests could have swung in Barceloneta’s favour.
What proved significant, however, was their response. Since those defeats, every subsequent match has ended in victory.
The Spanish champions arrive in Malta on a 32-game winning streak across all competitions since the end of November – a run longer than the respective unbeaten sequences of either Recco or Fradi.
They recovered from the Marseille setback in impressive fashion. Ironically, the French side ultimately failed to qualify for the Quarterfinal Stage and dropped to the Euro Cup, which they won last weekend.
Barceloneta secured victories in their remaining four group matches before producing a flawless quarterfinal campaign with six consecutive triumphs.
Home-and-away wins over Novi Beograd and Olympiacos, coupled with a commanding 17-6 demolition of Brescia at home, provided compelling evidence of CNAB’s rise.
As Marc Valls recalls, “The most difficult part of the season was the beginning of the Champions League when we lost to Marseille.
“We were quite a new team with some new players. It’s not easy to put all the pieces altogether quickly and develop our water polo.
“But since that game, I think we’ve played great, and we’ve enjoyed this season a lot. That’s the most important thing.”
The campaign was not entirely smooth, however. Following the European Championships in January, where the Spanish national team surprisingly failed to reach the semifinals for the first time in six years, similar defensive issues appeared in CNAB’s performances.
Conceding 16 goals at home against Novi Beograd raised particular concern.
Aguirre looked more vulnerable than at any other stage of the season, yet the attack consistently found ways to compensate by outscoring opponents.
As spring arrived, however, defensive solidity returned while their attacking game continued to flourish.
Across their three home matches in the Quarterfinal Stage, Barceloneta scored 56 goals – an extraordinary average of 18.6 goals per game.
“Well, I think that we enjoy playing and we ended the quarterfinal stage with a really good result with six wins in six games,” Valls added. “And I think this is amazing. This is the proof we played really great water polo. We have a lot of power.”
The Spaniards secured their Final 4 place after four rounds but continued winning. There was another satisfying victory over Novi Beograd, avenging the previous season’s semifinal defeat while simultaneously ending the Serbians’ hopes of reaching Malta.
Another win over Olympiacos was equally impressive. Restricting the Greeks to just nine goals in Piraeus was a significant achievement, especially considering that Genidounias and Co. reached double figures in every other match of the stage.
It also suggested Aguirre had fully rediscovered his best form ahead of the decisive domestic play-offs and the Final 4.
Now comes the major challenge against Ferencvaros and Aguirre fully appreciates the scale of the task.
“I have to say it’s really difficult to play against Fradi. Of course, we know they are a much better team with top class players in every position.
“Ours is a team whose characteristics are more about the team effort, let’s say. And we have been training hard now to prepare for the Final 4 to arrive in a good shape.
“Still, we know it’ll be a really difficult match because they are two-time champions in a row. Of course, it will be hard, but we’ll try with everything, with our heart and passion.”
The challenge ahead recently became even greater for CNAB, though, as it was announced they will be without the services of Vince Vigvari.
The Hungarian ace broke a finger on his shooting hand during the home final against Sabadell – without any clear indication of when or how the injury occurred – and subsequently underwent surgery.
So, Vigvari will only be able to support his team from the stands in Malta this week, which is a huge blow to their chances.
As a consequence, the long-awaited 2026 edition of the brothers’ duel will not take place at the Final 4, with only the elder sibling, Vendel Vigvari, set to be in the pool representing Fradi.
Zodiac CNAB – Route to Malta Final 4
2025/26 Results
Group Stage
(1st place, Group D)
CN Sabadell 12-16 Zodiac CNAB
Zodiac CNAB 11-12 CN Marseille
Waspo 98 Hannover 11-27 Zodiac CNAB
Zodiac CNAB 13-7 CN Sabadell
CN Marseille 11-12 Zodiac CNAB
Zodiac CNAB 20-12 Waspo 98 Hannover
Quarterfinal Stage
(1st place, Group A)
AN Brescia 11-13 Zodiac CNAB
Zodiac CNAB 19-16 VK Novi Beograd Tehnomanija
Zodiac CNAB 20-13 Olympiacos SFP
Zodiac CNAB 17-6 AN Brescia
VK Novi Beograd Tehnomanija 14-16 Zodiac CNAB
Olympiacos SFP 9-12 Zodiac CNAB
Best Champions League finishes
1st – 2014
3rd – 2013, 2015, 2018, 2023 & 2025
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
