Most of today’s matches in the second round of the 2026 Euro Cup saw home teams achieve victories.
Two notable come-from-behind wins in derby matches stood out.
In Budapest, BVSC faced Panathinaikos in Group C. The home team was down by four goals at halftime but came back in the second half with eight consecutive goals, ultimately winning the match 13:10.
In Group D, Savona secured three points by beating Sabac 17:12, despite trailing by three goals in the middle of the third quarter.
Hungarian teams had a successful day overall, as Szolnok also triumphed, defeating Trieste 16:14 in one of the day’s highlights (Group A).
2026 Euro Cup, Round 2
GROUP A
ASC Duisburg – Jug 9:18 (4:7, 1:5, 3:2, 1:4)
ASC Duisburg:Simic 3, L. Metten 3, Seifert 1, E.Metten 1, Gergeleyfi 1.
Jug Dubrovnik: Zuvela 5, Jokovic 4, Pavlic 4, Susic 1, Buslje 1, Krzic 1, Busic 1, Mozara 1.
Terrassa – Solaris 16:12 (4:2, 6:1, 5:4, 1:5)
Terrassa:Ten Broek 4, Blasco 3, Chico 3, Bargallo 2, Alarcon 1, Pericas 1, Cuacos 1, Teclas 1.
Solaris: Pelicaric 4, Cubranic 4, Mijic 3, Bajic 1.
The games in Group A lacked excitement.
Jug didn’t let ASC Duisburg cause a surprise in a game which offered a balanced battle only in the opening several minutes. The teams were tied at 3:3 in the fourth minute. In the following eight minutes, the Croats made a 7:1 series for a comfortable 10:4 lead. ASC Duisburg won in 3rd period, but it never came close to the 2024 Euro Cup winner.
Terrassa beat Solaris more easily than expected. The first quarter indicated that the teams will fight an equal battle. Terrassa took a 1:0 and 2:1 lead, but Solaris leveled on both occasions. Still, the Spaniards dominated the field between the 6th and 12th minutes, scoring six goals and taking an 8:2 lead. Midway through the third period, the hosts had a 9-goal advantage (12:3), and it was clear that there was no way back for Solaris. The Croats didn’t surrender and managed to reduce the deficit to four goals.
Standings: 1. Jug 6, 2. Terrassa 3, 3. Solaris 3, 4. ASC Duisburg 0.
GROUP B
Szolnok – Trieste 16:14 (4:3, 3:2, 3:4, 6:5)
Szolnok: Kovacs 4, Szabo 2, Bedo 2, Zeman 2, Jozsa 1, Kakstedter 1, Zernivary 1, Krasznai 1, Simon 1, Boroczky 1.
Trieste: Draskovic 6, Marziali 3, Cagalj 2, Podgornik 1, Manzi 1, Mezzarobba 1
Barcelona – Rapid 22:11 (5:2, 5:2, 7:2, 5:5)
Barcelona: Van der Weijden 5, Prat 3, Millan Martin 3, Goma 2, Daura 2, Watanabe 2, Ramon 2, Angelescu 1, Paul 1.
Rapid Bucharest: Prioteasa 6, Chikovani 1, Negus 1, Dragomir 1, Radu 1, Lutescu 1.
Szolnok dictated the pace and led for most of the derby against Trieste, but the game remained competitive until the final minutes. Although Trieste never took the lead, the Italians consistently chased Szolnok, managing to equalize the score three times at 1:1, 4:4, and 8:8. At the end of the third quarter, the visitors were trailing by just one goal (9:10). In the final period, Kakstedter scored during a man-up situation, extending Szolnok’s lead to 11:9 with their first possession. However, just 12 seconds later, he committed a penalty foul. Trieste’s Draskovic took advantage and scored from the 5-meter line, bringing the score to 10:11. Szolnok quickly responded with two goals, and in the 28th minute, Bence Szabo scored from distance, increasing their lead to 13:10. This marked the first time the Hungarians held a 3-goal advantage, which proved to be crucial. The Italians managed to close the gap to two goals, but they were unable to get any closer.
In Barcelona, Rapid kept up with the hosts for a while. After a 5:2 first period, the Romanians opened the second quarter with an action goal for 3:5. Shortly after, the game turned into a one-sided contest. Barcelona netted five straight goals for 10:3 and didn’t slow its rhythm after the halftam break.
Standings: 1. Szolnok 6, 2. Trieste 3, 3. Barcelona 3, 4. Rapid 0.
GROUP C
BVSC – Panathinaikos 13:10 (2:3, 2:5, 5:0, 4:2)
BVSC: Shushiashvili 4, Csacsovszky 3, Ekler 3, Tatrai 2, Meszaros 1.
Panathinaikos: Chalzvopoulos 4, Gkiouvetsis 2, Skoumpakis 1, Papanikolaou 1, Papasifakis 1, Kopelaidis 1.
Buducnost – Vouliagmeni 7:17 (0:4, 3:3, 3:4, 1:6)
Buducnost: Brguljan 2, Brnovic 2, Boskovic 2, D’Souza 1.
Vouliagmeni: Te Riele 5, Chatzis 3, Torulos 2, Kastrinakis 2, Ubovic 1, Tottis 1, Sapounakis 1, Spachits 1, Belesis 1.
Water polo fans in Budapest enjoyed two completely different matches in one in an encounter between BVSC and Panathinaikos. The visitors dominated the pool in the first half. The Hungarians leveled the score only once in the first 16 minutes – at 1:1. Late into the second period, Panathinaikos built a 4-goal lead (7:3 and 8:4). It looked like the Greeks were on their way to a new triumph.
During the middle break, BVSC head coach Daniel Varga created magic with his players, resulting in a completely different game in the third period. BVSC scored five unanswered goals in the third quarter and added three more by the 30-minute mark, turning a 4-goal deficit into a 4-goal lead, making the score 12-8. In the first 14 minutes of the second half, Panathinaikos failed to convert six man-up attacks and one penalty shot. The hosts’ goalkeeper, Gyapas, was outstanding with a series of excellent saves. Two minutes and 21 seconds before the end, Panathinaikos finally scored during a 6-on-5 situation, but from that point on, both teams managed to score just once more, allowing BVSC to secure the three points.
The other Greek club in this group, Vouliagmeni, kept the top spot with a convincing win over Buducnost in Podgorica. The Greeks dominated in the opening minutes, earning a 5:0 lead. The Montenegrins reduced the gap to two goals midway through the third quarter (5:7). Still, Vouliagmeni quickly responded with three goals to reestablish a 5-goal lead (10:5). The visitors doubled the winning margin in the final quarter.
Standings: 1. Vouliagmeni 5, 2. BVSC 4, 3. Panathinaikos 3, 4. Buducnost 0.
GROUP D
Savona – Sabac 17:12 (4:5, 3:4, 4:2, 6:1)
Savona: Leinweber 5, Bruni 3, Damonte 3, Occhione 2, Figlioli 1, Rizzo 1, Gullotta 1, Cora 1.
Sabac:Toholj 3, Barac 2, Stojanovic 2, Novakovic 1, Stanojevic 1, Micanovic 1, Macic 1, Kovacevic 1.
Steaua – Spandau 04 9:11 (2:5, 2:1, 2:2, 3:3)
Steaua: Fulea 3, Neamtu 2, Georgescu 1, Fenech 1, Colodrovschi 1, Oanta 1.
Spandau 04: Nagy 3, Kojic 2, Hofmann 1, Bauer 1, Chiru 1, Caraj 1, Culina 1, Bruns 1.
Sabac played quite better than Savona in the derby of Group D for more than two quarters but ran out of energy in the final 12 minutes. During that time, Savona, led by Hungarian Oliver Leinweber, scored nine goals while allowing only one.
Sabas started strongly and had a 4:1 lead already in the middle of the first quarter . Early in the second quarter, Cora equalized for Savona at 5:5 from a counterattack. However, Sabac managed to reestablish a three-goal lead three times: at 9:6, 10:7, and 11:8. Barac scored the 11th goal for the visitors in the 20th minute. After that, Savona began to dominate the game. By the end of the third quarter, the hosts had leveled the score at 11:11. Midway through the fourth quarter, Savona built a 14:11 lead. Stanojevic ended the hosts’ 6:0 run with a goal from a 6-on-5 situation with 128 seconds left, narrowing the gap to 12:14 and keeping Sabac’s hopes alive. However, Savona maintained their momentum and secured a convincing 17:12 victory.
Spandau left the pool empty-handed in their home match against Savona in the first round. However, they made up for that loss with an away victory in Budapest today. Two German players played a crucial role in the win. The first goal came in the first quarter. In the fourth minute, Steaua had a 2:1 lead. But then, Spandau went on a 4-0 run and finished the first break with a 5:2 advantage. Steaua fought back step by step, leveling the score in the 21st minute. Between the 22nd and 26th minutes, Spandau launched another significant run, scoring three consecutive goals to take a 9:6 lead. They Germans their win when Chiru extended the lead to four goals (11:7) with three minutes remaining.
Standings: 1. Savona 6, 2. Spandau 3, 3. Sabac 3, 4. Steaua 0.
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