University Footballers Win European Tournament

07/31/2024

The student women's football team from Würzburg won the championship title at the European University Games, while the men finished runners-up. The University Board congratulated the teams.

The University Board congratulated the successful women's team and their support staff. At the back from left are: Andreas Reuter, Head of University Sports, Olaf Hoos, Scientific Director of the Sports Centre, Gernot Haubenthal, Head of Delegation, and Chancellor Uwe Klug and President Paul Pauli on behalf of the University Board. (Image: Gunnar Bartsch / JMU)

They are something like the European Olympic Games for students: the European University Games, or EUG for short. The latest edition took place from 12 to 24 July in the Hungarian cities of Debrecen and Miskolic. From chess to water polo, students competed in a total of 18 sports.

In football , the teams from the Würzburg competition team brought the German delegation a shower of medals: The women won the title and the gold medals, while the men returned as runners-up with silver medals after a narrow defeat in the final.

Congratulations from the University Board

Shortly after returning from Hungary, the university management congratulated the successful athletes. The women's team was invited to the university's Senate Hall along with their companions and carers. "It's great that you have won. I would like to congratulate you warmly," said University President Paul Pauli.

According to Pauli, the world of sport is not so different from everyday life at a university: "Everyone is an individual, but only together can we achieve something," said the university president. This motto currently needs to be carried into the university - with a view to the ongoing excellence strategy. In this competition for money and prestige, JMU has successfully survived the group phase. Now, in the knockout phase, the aim is to mobilise all forces together to successfully progress.

Olympic Flair in the Hungarian Heat

For student Nicolas Reinhart, it was his second international appearance with the university team after the 2023 European Championships. The team was crowned European champions in Albania a year ago and travelled to Hungary with corresponding ambitions.

However, Antonia Hemmerich and her team-mates did not really know how they compared to the international competition before the tournament.

In terms of organisation, the competitions were convincing across the board. "Everything ran a whole lot smoother than in Albania, which was perhaps also due to the larger framework of the European University Games," praised Nicolas. Both were particularly impressed by the flair of the event and the team spirit among the athletes. The Würzburg teams not only supported each other, they were also able to watch the futsal and 3x3 basketball competitions up close.

A German Evening organised by Allgemeiner Deutscher Hochschulsport (ADH) - just before the German-German semi-final between the men and the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology - provided the final Olympic atmosphere.

Only the Hungarian midsummer, with temperatures well over 30 degrees and no air conditioning in the accommodation, dampened the mood somewhat.

Tactical Tricks and Mental Coaching

The women's team had to cope with these difficult conditions with only three substitutes, and the regular goalkeeper was also missing. Outfield player Isabell Heinisch stepped in and saved the day in the nine-metre shoot-out in the semi-final and final against the representatives from Spain and France.

The women's tournament was played in 7-a-side mode on a small pitch. "Gernot Haubenthal had prepared us really well for this in training. We were extremely successful with set pieces, especially in the early stages of the tournament," says Antonia. Perhaps the decisive advantage was provided by Lena Jakob. The former player was responsible for the team on site: "Lena helped us a lot with her mental coaching. We didn't really know where we stood. That's why we defined measurable goals, which we kept raising as the tournament progressed. That way, we always kept our feet on the ground and stayed focused." The initial desire to win the group ultimately turned into winning the title.

Pride Outweighs Disappointment

With a little distance, Nicolas can also categorise the silver medal as a great success: "Sure, the sporting ambition is simply there and when you're in the final, you want to win. Nevertheless, we played a great tournament overall," he says happily.

In a tough group, the Würzburg team came out on top against opponents from Croatia, Switzerland and Poland. In the quarter-finals, after a tough duel against France, a penalty shoot-out had to decide the outcome, before they defeated their national rivals from Karlsruhe 4:1 in the semi-finals with perhaps their best performance of the tournament.

"Our trump card is simply our team spirit. We're 18 friends in the university team, and you can see that on and off the pitch," said Nicolas. Special praise went to team-mate Jannik Feidel, who, in his role as player-coach, repeatedly adjusted the team to the different opponents in an outstanding manner. This was also the case in the final, where they held their own for a long time against the Ukrainians, who had an excellent individual line-up. However, when the score was 0:1 in extra time, the Würzburg team were unable to respond after a tough few days and ultimately had to settle for a strong second place.