The 2026/27 HYLO ETTU Champions League Men gets underway in Lille this week, where 16 clubs will battle for eight places in Stage 2 from 28 to 30 August. Three days of group-stage action at the Complexe sportif Micheline Ostermeyer will open the road towards the HYLO Final Four, with the teams divided into four groups of four and the top two from each group continuing their Champions League journey. Stage 1 will feature three days of group action, with matches starting at 10:00, 13:00, 16:00 and 19:00 each day. Group A brings together Czech club HB Ostrov z.s., Slovakia’s STK Vyhne, Italy’s ASD TT Santa Tecla Nulvi and STK Starr Croatia. Both HB Ostrov and STK Vyhne have recent experience of the latter stages of European competition. The two clubs reached the quarter-finals of last season’s Europe Cup. HB Ostrov faced eventual champions Real Club Cajasur Priego TM, while STK Vyhne met this week’s Stage 1 host Lille Metropole TT. The competition opens on Friday morning with HB Ostrov facing Santa Tecla Nulvi, while STK Vyhne meets STK Starr Croatia. Group B features two of the most successful teams from last season’s Europe Cup. SF SKK El Nino Praha is joined by Denmark’s Roskilde Bordtennis BTK 61, Spain’s CTT Olot and Romania’s CSS-SZAK Odorheiu Secuiesc. El Nino Praha enjoyed an outstanding 2025/26 Europe Cup campaign. The Czech side overcame TTC Sokah Hoboken in the quarter-finals before beating Roskilde in the semi-finals to book its place in the title contest. El Nino’s run eventually ended in the final against Real Club Cajasur Priego TM, who lifted the trophy. Roskilde also arrives in Lille with impressive credentials. The Danish club reached the semi-finals after overcoming AS Pontoise Cergy TT in the quarter-finals, before El Nino Praha ended its challenge. That makes Saturday’s meeting between El Nino Praha and Roskilde particularly attractive – a repeat of last season’s Europe Cup semi-final. The two sides meet at 13:00. Host club Lille Metropole TT leads the challenge in Group C, alongside Czech side SKST Havirov, Belgium’s TTC Sokah Hoboken and Spain’s CTT Les Borges Vall. Lille was another of the standout teams in last season’s Europe Cup. The French club overcame STK Vyhne in the quarter-finals to reach the last four, where eventual champions Real Club Cajasur Priego TM stopped their run. TTC Sokah Hoboken also reached the quarter-finals of the Europe Cup, where the Belgian side faced eventual runners-up SF SKK El Nino Praha. Lille starts its Champions League campaign on Friday at 16:00 against CTT Les Borges Vall. The hosts then meet SKST Havirov on Saturday before completing the group against TTC Sokah Hoboken on Sunday. Group D brings together AS Pontoise Cergy TT, Austria’s SPG Felbermayr Wels, Poland’s Dojlidy Białystok and Czech club TTC Ostrava 2016. Pontoise also knows what it takes to reach the closing stages of the Europe Cup. The French side advanced to the quarter-finals last season, where its campaign was ended by Roskilde. Pontoise opens against Dojlidy Białystok on Friday evening, while SPG Felbermayr Wels faces TTC Ostrava 2016. All four groups will be played through three rounds from Friday to Sunday, making every match in Lille crucial in the battle for progression. The final group matches are scheduled for Sunday, with Group A at 10:00, Group B at 13:00, Group C at 16:00 and Group D at 19:00. The event is organised by Lille Metropole TT, with matches played on two competition tables at the Complexe sportif Micheline Ostermeyer. The top two clubs from each group advance. Those eight qualifiers will then join the top eight seeded clubs in Stage 2, when the competition switches to the knockout format. Both the Round of 16 and the quarter-finals will be contested over home-and-away legs. The four quarter-final winners will secure their places at the prestigious HYLO Final Four, where the semi-finals and final will be decided over one weekend to crown the 2026/27 European club champions.
Budaörs Ready to Turn Champions League Weekend into a Celebration of Table Tennis
For Budaörsi Sport Club, hosting Stage 1 of the ETTU Champions League Women 2026/27 will mean much more than three days of top-level European competition. From 28 to 30 August, the event will bring together the club’s European ambitions, its home supporters and the celebration of the 50th anniversary of its Table Tennis Department. Eight teams will gather at the Budaörs City Sports Hall, with 12 matches played over three days. The teams are divided into two groups of four, with the two group winners progressing to the next stage of the Champions League, while the remaining clubs will continue their European season in the Europe Cup. For the hosts, it will be the biggest international table tennis event they have staged in terms of both the number of participating teams and the level of competition. The home supporters will have the opportunity to see Budaörsi Sport Club at 16:30 on each of the three competition days. The nine-time Hungarian champions and 2024 Europe Cup winners will be represented by Dóra MADARÁSZ, Leila IMRE, Nóra DOHOCZKI, Emma SZOSZNYÁK, Liza MUSKÓ and Emma VÁRADI, with Péter BACHMAN leading the team as coach. There is another significant milestone behind Budaörs’ appearance this season. The club is entering its 24th consecutive season in European club competitions, a remarkable run achieved throughout that period with Hungarian players. “For Budaörsi Sport Club, hosting the Champions League is both a major sporting occasion and a celebration. We want to make the most of playing at home, enjoy the support from the stands and turn the last weekend of August into a real table tennis celebration together with our supporters,” the organisers said. The timing makes the occasion particularly special. The Champions League weekend coincides with the 50th anniversary of the Budaörsi Sport Club Table Tennis Department, adding another dimension to an already important week for the club. The anniversary will be marked on 27 August, on the eve of the Champions League action, with a special event celebrating five decades of the department’s history, achievements and community. A jubilee publication is also being prepared, while commemorative plaques will be presented to people who have played significant roles in the department over the years. “This is a special chapter in the history of our club. Alongside welcoming some of Europe’s leading teams to Budaörs, we have the opportunity to celebrate 50 years of our Table Tennis Department and the people who have helped build it,” the organisers highlighted. The club also wants the occasion to reach beyond the competition tables. Activities are planned to give local residents an opportunity to try table tennis themselves, bringing the sport closer to the Budaörs community while the Champions League is taking place.
Strong Europe Cup Contenders Set for Champions League Women Stage 1 in Budaörs
The road to the 2026/27 ETTU Champions League Women title begins in Budaörs this week, with eight clubs ready to start their journey in Stage 1 from 28 to 30 August. Over three days of competition, the teams will battle for the two available places in Stage 2, with host Budaörsi Sport Club looking to make home advantage count in a strong and competitive field. The two Stage 1 group winners will progress to Stage 2, where they will join the six directly qualified clubs to form one group of eight teams. Stage 2 will be played as a single round-robin over seven rounds, with each club facing every other team once. The three-day competition will be played at the BVUSS (Budaörs Városi Sportcsarnok Uszoda és Strand), with four matches scheduled each day at 11:00, 13:30, 16:30 and 19:00. Group A features Austria’s Linz AG Froschberg the Champions League winners in 2013, Poland’s PGE Fibrain KU AZS Politechnika Rzeszow, Spain’s MIRÓ Ganxets and Croatia’s STK Dr. Časl. Linz arrives in Budaörs with particularly strong memories of last season’s European campaign. The Austrian side went all the way to the Europe Cup title, overcoming Son Cladera TTC – Mallorca in the quarter-finals and MIRÓ Ganxets in the semi-finals before defeating ASD Quattro Mori Cagliari in the final. MIRÓ Ganxets also enjoyed an impressive run, reaching the semi-finals. The Spanish side overcame STK Dr. Časl in the quarter-finals before their campaign was stopped by eventual champions Linz. That recent history adds extra interest to Group A, with three of its four teams having featured in the closing stages of last season’s Europe Cup. Linz and MIRÓ Ganxets will meet again on Saturday in a repeat of last season’s semi-final, while the opening day will also bring Linz and STK Dr. Časl together after both were part of the Europe Cup quarter-final line-up. The group opens on Friday with PGE Fibrain KU AZS Politechnika Rzeszow facing MIRÓ Ganxets at 11:00, followed by Linz AG Froschberg against STK Dr. Časl at 13:30. Group B brings together Italy’s ASD Quattro Mori Cagliari, Czech club SKST Plus Hodonin, host Budaörsi Sport Club and Spain’s Son Cladera TTC – Mallorca. Quattro Mori was one of the standout teams in last season’s Europe Cup. The Italian club overcame Fenerbahce Sports Club in the quarter-finals before beating SKST Plus Hodonin in the semi-finals. Their run ended only in the title contest, where Linz AG Froschberg claimed the trophy. Hodonin therefore arrives with a Europe Cup semi-final appearance behind it, having reached the last four after overcoming TTC Novi Sad in the quarter-finals. Son Cladera also reached the quarter-finals, where the Spanish side was stopped by eventual champions Linz AG Froschberg. That means Quattro Mori, Hodonin and Son Cladera all return to European action after reaching at least the last eight of the Europe Cup, promising a demanding challenge for host Budaörsi Sport Club. The group will also feature a rematch of last season’s Europe Cup semi-final between Quattro Mori and Hodonin on Sunday. The hosts begin their campaign on Friday at 16:30 against SKST Plus Hodonin, before Quattro Mori and Son Cladera meet at 19:00. Budaörs then faces Quattro Mori on Saturday before closing the group against Son Cladera on Sunday. The final day will begin with STK Dr. Časl against MIRÓ Ganxets at 11:00, followed by Linz against PGE Fibrain KU AZS Politechnika Rzeszow at 13:30. Budaörs and Son Cladera will meet at 16:30 before Quattro Mori and Hodonin bring the Stage 1 programme to a close at 19:00. With the reigning Europe Cup champions, last season’s runners-up and both other semi-finalists all present in Budaörs, the opening stage of the 2026/27 ETTU Champions League Women promises three days of high-level European club action.
