Main facts bullet points
- this Veszprém’s first international campaign
- club manager József Éles made the world team twice
- Line player Simon Machác is the only non-Hungarian in the squad
- Gábor Danyi, former Győri Audi ETO KC coach who won the EHF Champions League is part of the management team
Most important question: One hit wonder or beginning of the long-term success?
In 2013, Fejér-B.Á.L. Veszprém was founded and took immediate steps forward. In seven seasons they have gone from third division to first and last season reached the domestic cup final which meant a place in Qualification Round 2 of the EHF European League.
“Our goal is to ingrain the name of another team from Veszprém into the public consciousness of the international handball community and to absorb the atmosphere of the Europa League,” club manager József Éles said. “Furthermore, we can continue to develop our club from the experience gained playing against these highly ranked teams.”
Fejér will face SL Benfice, Kadetten Schaffhausen, Tatran Presov, Frisch Auf Göppingen and Montpellier HB in Group A, sides with more experience and higher EHF rankings.
However, that means the players don’t feel the pressure.
“For us, it is extremely important to show to future handball players what they can achieve thanks to the system and approach we represent,” Éles said. “The strength of the bond formed between the players - even from childhood - and their hard work makes them capable of anything.”
Team captain, Kristóf Mátyás understands what their job will be in the group stage.
“Our motivation for the season is that we can show us in the European stage,” Mátyás said. “It's the first time for many of us, and we would like to play good games against these great teams.”
Under the spotlight: János Stranigg
The left back who recently arrived at the club from rivals NEKA is already leading scorer. He netted 10 times against Chambery and has scored 29 times in the domestic league.
At 27 he is one of the more experienced players and has fitted in well with his team
How they rate themselves
“For me Flensburg is the absolute favorite for the title, they are a Champions League level team,” team captain Mátyás said. “They have a lot of experience which will help them win the European League. Everybody knows that we do not have a much of a chance to qualify from the group, but we are going to fight in every game, and we will be happy if we can win some games and make our fans proud.”
