His football project has added a new historical layer to Hungary, where communist-era towers, Austro-Hungarian skyscrapers, and Ottoman baths betray a turbulent past.
If the Pancho Arena is close to his heart, the national stadium of Budapest is the biggest example of his and the government’s adoption of football.
Similar to Bayern Munich’s Allianz Arena in size and design, but built at three times the cost, it is located on the former site of the dilapidated, historic Nepstadion.
In a unique 1-0 friendly win over Estonia in March 2023, the most dramatic moment came as a single phrase echoed over the public address system.
The stadium tannoy announced: “Down with Trianon, down with Trianon.”
The Treaty of Trianon was the agreement which reduced the size of Hungary by two-thirds in 1920.
Millions of ethnic Hungarians still live in pre-Trianon Hungary – the former imperial territory that existed before Austria-Hungary’s defeat in World War I.
The stadium announcer was just following Orban’s lead. Four months earlier, the prime minister had posted a video of himself congratulating winger Balazs Dzsudzsak on his retirement from international duty.
Around Orban’s neck was a scarf with a picture of Great Hungary.
Ukraine, invaded by Russia earlier that year, summoned the Hungarian ambassador to explain another open claim on its territory. Romania, which annexed Transylvania in 1920 and is still home to 1.2 million ethnic Hungarians, expressed “total disapproval” of Orban’s gesture.
For many Hungarian fans, it touched a deep sense of historical injustice.
While the speech system condemned the loss of Hungary’s former territories, as the war continued on the Ukrainian border where 200,000 ethnic Hungarians live, there was no surprise among the crowd, such were the lines between football and politics. patriotism is getting narrower. Orban’s Hungary.
“The essence of football is like the essence of politics,” said Orban, who has become the most prominent pro-Russian voice in the European Union.
“Because the question is not where the ball is now – everyone can see where the ball is now – but the question is where the ball will be…
“If you understand before others what is going to happen, you can react first and you can win.”
