The 2026/27 ETTU Champions League Women is underway in Budaörs, with eight clubs beginning their battle for the two available places in Stage 2. From 28 to 30 August, the teams are competing at the BVUSS, with only the winner of each four-team group progressing. This season also brings a distinctive scoring system to the competition. Each individual match is played over three games, with every game won counting as one point towards the team’s overall score, placing added importance on every game throughout the tie. MIRÓ Ganxets recorded a narrow 8-7 victory over PGE Fibrain KU AZS Politechnika Rzeszow in the opening match of Group A. The Polish side made the stronger start. Ilona SZTWIERTNIA took two games against Olga VOROBEVA, before Zuzanna WIELGOS also secured two against Anastasia KOLISH. MIRÓ responded through Olga BLIZNET, who took two games against Paula KRYSINSKA. VOROBEVA then added two more against WIELGOS to bring the Spanish side back into contention. The outcome was eventually decided in the final encounter between KOLISH and SZTWIERTNIA. KOLISH took the opening game 12-10 before SZTWIERTNIA responded 11-8, leaving everything to the last game. KOLISH prevailed 11-9, giving MIRÓ Ganxets the decisive point and an 8-7 victory in a thrilling opening contest in Budaörs. The second match in Group A produced exactly the same score, as Linz AG Froschberg edged STK Dr. Časl Zagreb 8-7. Yurika NAMBA gave the Austrian side a perfect start, taking all three games against Yun-En TSAI, including a tight opener at 12-10. Dr. Časl responded through Miu HIRANO, who took two games against Emiko TAGUCHI, before Margaryta PESOTSKA also collected two against Sara TOKIC. NAMBA proved crucial again in her second appearance, taking the opening two games against HIRANO 11-9 and 11-4. HIRANO responded in the third, but Linz had moved closer to the winning mark. Once again, everything came down to the final encounter. Kotomi OMODA took the opening two games against TAGUCHI, including a marathon first game at 19-17, but TAGUCHI responded by taking the last game 12-10. That point proved decisive, completing another 8-7 thriller and giving reigning Europe Cup champions Linz AG Froschberg a winning start in Budaörs.
Lille Welcomes the Start of the HYLO ETTU Champions League Men
The 2026/27 HYLO ETTU Champions League Men is underway in Lille, where 16 clubs are competing in Stage 1 from 28 to 30 August. Divided into four groups of four, the teams are battling at the Complexe sportif Micheline Ostermeyer for eight available places in Stage 2, with the top two clubs from each group progressing. The opening matches in Group A saw HB Ostrov z.s. and STK Vyhne make successful starts, overcoming ASD TT Santa Tecla Nulvi and STK Starr Croatia respectively. Czech side HB Ostrov z.s. opened with a 3-1 victory over ASD TT Santa Tecla Nulvi. Pavel SIRUCEK set the tone with a straight-games win over Gabrielius CAMARA, before Vladislav URSU also recorded a 3-0 success against Tommaso GIOVANNETTI. Jordy PICCOLIN kept the Italian side in contention by overcoming Tomas POLANSKY in five games, but URSU returned to the table to seal the victory for Ostrov. He defeated CAMARA 3-0 to complete a strong opening performance for the Czech club. STK Vyhne was even more convincing, starting with a 3-0 victory over STK Starr Croatia. The closest contest came in the opening match as Croatia’s Liang QIU took the first two games against Dmitrij PROKOPCOV. The experienced PROKOPCOV fought his way back, taking the next two games before prevailing in the deciding game to put Vyhne ahead. Adam KLAJBER then overcame Jia ZENG in straight games, before Jakub GOLDIR completed the victory with a 3-1 success against Ronald REDJEP. In Group B, last season’s Europe Cup runners-up SF SKK El Nino Praha opened with a 3-1 victory over CTT Olot, while Roskilde Bordtennis BTK 61 made an impressive start with a 3-0 win over CSS-SZAK Odorheiu Secuiesc. El Nino had to work hard from the very beginning. Tomas KONECNY found himself two games down against Damien Rolland PROVOST, but turned the match around to win 3-2. David REITSPIES was also pushed to the limit by Dylan Bienvendido Jacques CHAPERON. After taking the opening two games, REITSPIES saw his opponent level the contest before edging the deciding game 6-5. Rafael DE LAS HERAS kept Olot alive with a 3-1 victory over Yevhen PRYSHCHEPA, but KONECNY returned to secure the overall win for the Czech side. He overcame CHAPERON 3-1, taking the crucial third game 12-10 before closing out the match 11-4. Roskilde Bordtennis BTK 61, semi-finalists in last season’s Europe Cup, made a perfect start against CSS-SZAK Odorheiu Secuiesc. Jens LUNDQVIST gave the Danish club the lead with a straight-games victory over Szilard GYORGY. Anders ERIKSSON recovered after losing the opening game against Sebastian LOSO to win the next three and extend Roskilde’s advantage. Tobias RASMUSSEN then completed the 3-0 victory, although Szabolcs TAMAS pushed him all the way. Their contest went to a deciding game before RASMUSSEN prevailed 6-5.
