Women's handball: ETO would rebuild the myth of its invincibility

– You were little known in Hungary when you became the managing director of Győri ETO Kft. last year, but you are quite familiar with handball.
– Yes, I'm still the managing director of the company that runs the Agrofeed ETO-Uni Győr men's second-division team – said Péter Endrődi, the women's five-time Champions League-winning club's managing director, who was appointed last spring. – I played for ETO in elementary school, and handball was my everything besides my studies. There was a concrete court next to the prison building, and we practiced on it every day under slightly different conditions than now... Then, I wanted to study at the Benedictine High School in Pannonhalma, and when I was accepted, my father and I walked to the school and knocked on the teacher's room door. Father Antal Hirka opened the door, and I immediately asked how I can go to Győr for training while I'm studying here. The answer was short: I would have to go to another school. It took me weeks to decide what I wanted to do, but I ended up choosing Pannonhalma. In retrospect, it was the right choice because apart from my family upbringing, I am now living off what I received there. Later, I switched to basketball for eight years, made it to NB I/B, and quit after multiple ankle injuries.

– How did you become a sports manager?
– A few years ago, as the manager of the media center in Győr, I was traveling to an event in a minibus with László Hoffmann sitting next to me, who started to persuade me to revive men's handball in the city. The college team, SZESE, had just been promoted to the topflight. It seemed an incredibly exciting task, and five or six of us took the plunge and the team played in NB I for a year. In hindsight, we didn't have the financial backing, we fought through the season with integrity, but we were relegated. Since then, my friend Károly Auer and I have been keeping men's handball alive. From next season onwards, someone else will take over the managerial duties because I won't be able to devote as much time to this club as before, but we are now ranked in a position that's worth a promotion, and I hope that we can achieve our dream of making the team play in NB I again.

– You also have responsibilities in the City Hall, including being chief of staff to Mayor Csaba András Dézsi. Did you have the option last year to say no to the offer as CEO of the world's most prestigious women's handball club?

– I did not make a single move to get this position. I've been a board member for quite a long time, have probably never missed a meeting because I always try to give 100 percent to what I do. I did not want to say no to the offer because the task of managing the company that runs Győri Audi ETO is a privilege and plays as significant a role in my life as, say, my years in high school in Pannonhalma.

"TRIUMVIRATE" BEHIND THE DECISIONS

– In terms of its weight, this is a different job compared to your position in the men's section.
– Obviously, because this is a world-class team, and it's not just the players or the coaches who represent this quality, but the whole staff, the fitness trainers, the doctors, the physiotherapists or even the office staff. A team has been formed, this is the life of its members, everyone belongs to the ETO family. For that reason alone, I did not think for a minute about whether to take on this job.

– The spotlight is much more on their decisions, and specifically on your decisions. Did you not fear the pressure, the huge responsibility?
– So was the case with our predecessors, and it will probably be the same with our successors. I talk a lot with my managing partner Attila Vanyus, whose sanity, experience and insights I can always rely on, and with Anita Görbicz, who doesn't need to be introduced, and no explanation is necessary as to why I rely on her opinion. Of course, I take responsibility for the final decisions regarding the senior team.

– When you took over as managing director last year, how much did you have to change the habits and the system?
– No immediate changes were necessary as we are talking about a successful club. Let's not forget that we had to transform into a commercial company, which in itself was a huge change, because we had to re-negotiate all the contracts with players, staff, employees and sponsors. I have visited all our sponsors, big and small, and in my understanding, there is no difference between them. Perhaps I can say now that by January we had seen through and even transformed this system a little. We have a business or company model in which we put everyone in their place. We have a huge team, in addition to the senior team, we have the academic staff, the dorm parents, in total we have almost a hundred people working for us, which is considered a medium-sized company. We have built this up nicely and, perhaps for the first time in the history of the club, we have mapped it out, and we have a corporate structure. There has been no cardinal change in personnel, we have had and still have excellent professionals who can continue to work here.

– Did the changes last year or external circumstances cause financial difficulties?

– Our life is somewhat more difficult, we are a separate company from the club, and the financial model has had to be adapted to the company. Like its predecessors, all our activities are clean, legal and transparent. The economic foundations have not changed, helped by the fact that all our sponsors have remained the same. Many people predicted last year that our sponsors would leave us, and I made the mistake of reading comments on online platforms. Well, I rarely do that now. Fortunately, our sponsors have tended to increase their subsidy, and we have long-term contracts with our main sponsors, Audi and the City of Győr with county rights. We will now start negotiating the contract with Audi, which expires in a few years.

– With what prospects?
– I'm not aware of any indication that there would be a problem with our future cooperation. I'm in daily contact with the company's management because of my other responsibilities, but there is no sign of Audi wanting to leave. Obviously, the economic recession can affect companies in such a way that they may have to rethink certain things, but we do not feel any of that. Audi is as excellent a partner as any other sponsor, delivering everything on time. That is a great comfort. You also have to see that professional handball, whether women's or men's, is becoming more and more expensive. We certainly need to bring in new sponsors to keep stability.

– Do your duties and positions at city hall help you to build relationships and find new potential sponsors?
– I don't mix what I do there with what I do here, but Péter Endrődi is still a human being. I cannot be split in two and I try to do my best in every task I take on. That said, it's not a bad 'combo,' if I can call it so. I've also read before that politics has entered handball and is ruining everything, but I don't know how much more pronounced politics is here than anywhere else. During my negotiations, I easily switch from one task to another and back again, and indeed: I have negotiations in which one part is related to handball and the other to, for example, urban development.

KIRKELY'S DREAM WAS ETO

– You mentioned that you would consult Attila Vanyus and Anita Görbicz before making professional decisions. How does your cooperation work in practice?
– Fortunately, playing for ETO is still a huge prestige. There is a lot of interest in the team, I have already met most of the members of the women's handball managerial community, they are asking for us. On the other hand, we are about to change coaches, and with Ulrik Kirkely coming in the summer, it is possible to think about a long-term strategy, even for years ahead. I try to talk to the Danish coach every week, not about this season of course. He is the coach of Odense, and our goal is to win the Champions League, the national league, and the Hungarian Cup with Ambros Martín. At the same time, I have to plan the future with the new head coach, with whom we are already negotiating transfers for 2024, 2025 and even 2026. I think we have to be bold in thinking ahead, and I see that the players we are looking for are taking this well. I would like to plan two or even three years ahead, because maybe our current squad, our top players, will want to play at a different level then. But the stars of the future need to be brought in and slowly integrated. Going back to the question: I discuss everything with my colleagues, but there are times when I get stubborn. I have intuitions, and I try to convince Attila Vanyus and Anita Görbicz that it will be fine. One of these was the acquisition of Bruna de Paula from Brazil, whom I had already had my eye on in the Champions League final four last year. I already imagined her in the Green and Whites' jersey because I think she will bring a new color to Győr's game. I see a huge potential in her.

– Speaking of Ulrik Kirkely, can you tell us what made you choose him? According to the news, several other names were considered as well.
– We had serious discussions with three experts, all of whom we interviewed several times. All three candidates would have been impeccable professional choices, and based on their previous records, any one of them would have been a worthy candidate to take over the Győr bench. Ulrik convinced us with his human value, telling us he had two dreams. One is to win the Champions League, the other is to become the head coach of ETO. From the way he approached us, the way he came to our meetings prepared, we thought he was the answer. Obviously, he will have a different approach than Ambros Martín, who represents the Spanish school – Kirkely brings a northern mentality to Győr. Life is interesting... He now leads the Danish league with Odense, and on paper, we're fighting for a place in the final four of the Champions League with his team. But since our agreement, all decisions concerning the future of the team have been discussed with him.

– How ready is ETO's squad for the next season?
– I think it is ready, but there is one thing. Silje Solberg is expecting, and Amandine Leynaud, who has stepped in for her, has only agreed to play until the summer, so we are now considering whether to start the next season with two or three goalkeepers. We have some young goalkeeping talents who have already been given a chance, but we are still hesitating.

THE POWER IN THE TEAM IS FELT

– You mentioned that this season the team still has every chance of winning all three series they are competing in. At the same time, ETO has had some lows that it's never experienced before. How was it possible to recover from the bad periods?
– Every low point had a reason. We were hit by injuries at the worst moments, we had our pregnant players fall out, we almost always had absentees. At critical moments, when we suffered unusual defeats, Ambros Martín had to use the six or seven-player rotation, which is unfeasible in modern handball. In training before the home defeat to Metz, Stine Oftedal broke her nose, but it is impossible to replace a player of that caliber overnight. For example, even though Estelle Nze Minko is one of the best players in the world, we could not deal with the sudden loss of our Norwegian pivot player. The defeat should not be explained, our low points were evident on the court, but at the same time, we feel the strength in the team every day with which we can overcome the difficulties. Ambrose and I have a similar opinion, medals are not awarded in the fall or winter, but at the end of the season. Kari Brattset, for example, is already doing ball training, I don't know when she will be back, but if anyone wants to play again, it's definitely her. If there are no more injuries before the end of the season, we will only get stronger every day. What is very important for me is that we are strong as a team, that's how we won the last Champions League group game against Esbjerg – it wasn't individual flashes that decided the game.

– You gave objective reasons for the defeats. Has your confidence in Ambros Martín never wavered?
– It was horrible to live through these games. The most recent one is the away battle against Metz when we attacked for the victory at the end but still lost. I didn't sleep for a couple of nights, and it would have been more comfortable to finish first in the group, as we used to do, but that's not the case anymore... The following week we went to a team-building event: the professional staff obviously has the techniques to get the team back on its feet in such a situation and we managed to turn the defeat into positive energy.

THEY ARE PREPARING FOR A “HAT TRICK”

– How odd do you find the practice in handball that change in players or clubs is discussed 6 months, a year or even a year and a half in advance?

– I see perfect professionalism in this. I also see it with our players who will be playing elsewhere from the summer, just like the players who will come to us – everyone respects that. It certainly gives rise to fan rumors, but I've never seen them draw the wrong conclusions. I think it's a good practice in handball, and if my plans become reality, we might announce someone this year who will join us in 2025.

– So, the short-term plan is for ETO to make a “hat trick” at the end of the season?
– That is the goal every year.

– Do you think the club can rebuild the myth of its invincibility that has surrounded it for almost a decade?
– Whatever team comes to the Audi Aréna, they will be determined to defeat us, because that's the big news if they can. If there have been timely defeats, then we have had them at the right time. Our players have only got stronger, and I'm sure that if we achieve our goals at the end of the season, we can rebuild the myth of invincibility because obviously everyone wants to defeat the champions.

GYŐRI ETO SQUAD 2023-2024 THAT HAS BEEN ANNOUNCED SO FAR
Goalkeepers: Silje Solberg (Norway), Sandra Toft (Denmark)
Right wing:  Dorottya Faluvégi, Viktória Győri-Lukács, Hovden Emilie (Norway)
 Right back:    Ana Gros (Slovenia), Ryu Eun-hee (South Korea)
Center back:   Estelle Nze Minko (France), Stine Oftedal (Norway)
Pivot:    Linn Blohm (Sweden), Kari Brattset (Norway), Yvette Broch (Netherlands)
Left back:   Bruna de Paula (Brazil), Jelena Deszpotović (Montenegro), Line Haugsted (Denmark)
Left wing:   Csenge Fodor, Nadine Schatzl
 Coach:  Ulrik Kirkely (Denmark)