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.
See the pictures here.
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.
In Group C, TTC Sokah Hoboken and hosts Lille Metropole TT both made winning starts, although their paths to victory were quite different.
Hoboken had a smooth opening against SKST Havirov, recording a 3-0 win. Quentin ROBINOT gave the Belgian side the first point with a convincing straight-games victory over Daniel KOSTAL. Olav KOSOLOSKY followed against Mykhailo LOVHA, winning the opening two games before the Havirov player responded in the third. KOSOLOSKY kept control, however, and closed the match in four.
Benjamin BROSSIER completed the victory against Matyas KOLECKAR. After the Czech player levelled at 1-1, BROSSIER pulled away, taking the next two games 11-5 and 11-4.
For Lille Metropole TT, the opening match in front of the home crowd brought considerably more drama. CTT Les Borges Vall took the lead through Marc DURAN, who edged Romain BRARD in five games. There was almost nothing between them in the decider, with DURAN eventually taking it 6-5.
Lille responded immediately. Amir Hossein HODAEI beat Francesc CARRERA in straight games, while Fabio RAKOTOARIMANANA came from a game down against Jair JIMENEZ to win 3-1 and put the hosts ahead.
That brought BRARD back to the table, this time against CARRERA. It was another five-game contest for the Frenchman, but with a very different ending. Twice behind, BRARD twice fought back before racing through the deciding game 6-0 to secure a 3-1 victory for Lille.
