EMF Nations Games for the first time this year in Košice

The traditional international futsal event called the EMF Nations Games will take place for the first time this year in Košice, specifically from Wednesday 30.4.2025 to Thursday 1.5.2025. 6 national teams will meet on the artificial grass in the newly renovated area at the Starozagorská Primary School.

The premiere edition of the EMF Nations Games took place in 2019 with the participation of four countries in Galanta. The winner was the Czech national team. After a break caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, 2 more editions took place - in 2023 and 2024. In 2023, the US national team triumphed, and in 2024, the Slovak representatives enjoyed the win for the first time. Therefore, our representatives will enter this year's edition in the position of defenders.

At the turn of April and May, this year the fights will take place for the first time in Košice. In the basic group A, the national teams of Slovakia, Azerbaijan and Ukraine will meet. In the basic group B, Hungary, Poland and Belgium will measure their strength. After the end of the regular season, in which each team will play 2 games, the playoffs will follow. The third-placed teams will meet in a double-header for 5th place, and the top two teams from each group advance to the semi-finals. The fights in the basic groups will take place on Wednesday, April 30, from 2:30 p.m. to the evening. Playoff matches will start on Thursday, May 1, from the morning and the final is scheduled for 17:00.

The Slovaks will play their first match on Wednesday at 18:30 against Ukraine and the second group match will be played at 21:15 against the host country of the World Cup – Azerbaijan. The representatives of Azerbaijan certainly have good memories of Slovakia and especially of Košice. In 2022, they became the winners of the European Championship, which was hosted by the metropolis of the East. Ukraine was eliminated at the last European Championships in Sarajevo in 2024, just like Slovakia, in the eighth-finals.

The great news is that viewers will be able to enjoy selected matches from the event again on the screens of Slovak television on the TV station :SPORT.

Visitors can buy tickets for the event on the predpredaj.sk portal, at the network's points of sale in advance, or directly on the spot (in case of free capacity). The price of an all-day ticket for each game day is €5.

Peter Králik (President of EMF/SZMF): "We are happy that after the last 3 years of the EMF Nations Games, which took place in Galanta, we can also bring national futsal to the east of Slovakia. The European Championship, which took place in 2022, had a great response in Košice and was a clear signal that this city has a very positive relationship with futsal. I am glad that we can welcome high-quality national team selections here in Slovakia. I am especially looking forward to Azerbaijan, which won gold in Košice in 2022. It was this success that was the impetus for them to become the host of the World Championships this year at the turn of May and June. At EMF Euro 2022, they were the ones who eliminated us in the quarter-finals, so it's a space for us to retaliate. I believe that the fans will find their way to the matches and will support Slovakia in as many numbers as possible."

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