XXII International Championship of the Slovak Republic in Three-Bounce Futnet Triples – Sliač, 15 August 2026

A record 37 teams and 138 players. On Saturday 15 August 2026, the four clay courts in the grounds of the Sliač Spa hosted the XXII edition of the International Championship of the Slovak Republic in three-bounce futnet triples. In the main category the title went to KAC “A”, led by Ján Brutovský, who beat Austin Vsetín “A” 2:0 in the final.

The tournament was organised by NK Dobrá Niva, the Slovak Futnet Association and the Sliač Municipal Office. Team registration opened at 8:00, the championship was ceremonially opened at half past eight, and the players were welcomed at the start by the Mayor of Sliač together with the President of the SNA. The last match – the final of the main category – was played at five in the afternoon, followed by the evaluation and the awards ceremony.

Record entry and international competition

Eighteen teams lined up in the main category, among them two Czech and two Hungarian sides. The over-50 category was filled by 14 teams, including one from the national championship, and 5 teams competed in the youth category.

• Main category
  18 teams in groups A, B, C and D – two groups of 5 teams, two of 4
• Men over 50 / *+50
  14 teams in groups E, F and G
• Youth
  5 teams in group H

The group stage was played round robin, two sets to 11 points with both sets played out. In the play-offs all categories switched to best of three sets, decided by a two-point margin or by the 15th point as the last one – in line with the international rules.

Main category: Brutovský’s comeback and a final of two champions

Twelve teams advanced from the groups to the play-offs – the four group winners went straight into the last eight, while the runners-up and third-placed teams fought for the quarter-finals in an elimination round. The battle for the quarter-finals ended for the home side Sliač, HT, the Slovak Juniors and Šaľa. NK Tornaľa, KAC “B”, AGT Sereď and A. Kochanovce ultimately fell short of the semi-finals.

The first semi-final was a duel between the two Vsetín teams – the “A” side deservedly went through to the final. In the second semi-final the ageless Ján Brutovský showed why he is a multiple world champion in doubles and in the blue-riband triples discipline: from 0:1 down in sets and 8:10 in the second set he turned the match around and KAC beat Vrbové 2:1 after a great fight.

Disappointed by that defeat, Vrbové also came off worse in the third-place match, losing 2:0 to Vsetín “1”. The final between KAC “A” and Vsetín “A” was a fine climax to the tournament – won by KAC “A” 2:0. For Brutovský it was an unusually interesting match, as he has played for both clubs and helped the Czech champions to their league title.

Over 50: victory for the Hungarian seniors

In the *+50 category four teams from each group advanced to the play-offs. The first four – the group winners and the best runner-up – went straight to the quarter-finals, while the second four played the third-placed teams for a place in the last eight. The title was eventually claimed by the Hungarfutnet senior team.

Youth: gold for Martin

For the youth the format was set according to the number of entries – first a round-robin group, then a classic play-off (1 – 4, 2 – 3) which decided the final standings. Interestingly, the group was won by the MIX team made up of players from several clubs, but in the play-offs the top two sides swapped places.

Individual awards

What caught our eye at the tournament

• The extreme heat was not much of a help – players looked for shade and the courts had to be watered more often, which slowed the schedule down a little.
• In the beautiful grounds of the Sliač Spa we saw just about everything futnet has to offer: plenty of dramatic matches, miraculous comebacks, superb smashes and brilliantly unexpected drop shots.
• Credit is due to KAC for coming with two young players – Brutovský is already bringing up the generation of his successors.
• We are pleased that new players keep coming. This time three Hungarian teams made their appearance and took home the Mayor’s Award.
• For the organisers, feedback from the players is the real reward. It is a pleasure when at the end the “boss of Vsetín”, a two-time winner of the Czech top league, says he enjoyed it and that they will gladly come back next year.

On behalf of the Organising Committee of the XXII International Championship of the Slovak Republic, Sliač 2026 – Ján Kristeľ