Few collegiate teams can say they’ve had the privilege of facing the best in the world — and this week, No. 10 Princeton men’s water polo team (0–0 overall, 0–0 Northeast Water Polo Conference) will do it twice. As part of their USA tours, A.S.D. Pro Recco, the most decorated club in men’s water polo history, and Ferencvárosi Torna Club (FTC), the reigning back-to-back European Champions League winners, will play a series of exhibition matches against each other and various American teams — including the Tigers. The best part? They are playing here at DeNunzio pool.
“You can’t write this, it’s unmatched,” Princeton men’s water polo head coach Dustin Litvak said about the events. “We are just thrilled to have them and excited for the opportunity to play the best players, the best teams in the world.”
“It literally is as if the [Oklahoma City] Thunder and the [Boston] Celtics came down to practice here and played against our basketball team next week,” Litvak added. “It’s kind of unprecedented.”
Widely regarded as the best men’s water polo club in history, Pro Recco is a northern Italian club that has won a record 20 European trophies and a record 55 domestic trophies. Meanwhile, FTC hails from Budapest and has won the last two European Aquatic Champions League titles, the most prestigious competition in international water polo. Together, these clubs have won the last five straight European Champions Leagues and are arguably the current best two in the world.
In addition to being popular in many European countries, water polo has become one of the fastest-growing sports in America. Sandro Sukno, Pro Recco head coach, told The Daily Princetonian he is excited to use the tournament to “help promote water polo in the United States and inspire young athletes to reach their goals.”
Although Princeton has hosted international competition before, a matchup of this pedigree is unprecedented. The planning for this event goes back months, when the Hammarskjold family joined the Behring family as co-owners of Pro Recco in November 2024. Philip Hammarskjold ’87, a former University Trustee, was a crucial player in bringing the tour together. Hammarskjold’s son, Luke, a member of the Class of 2025, played four years for Princeton’s men’s water polo team.
Philip Hammarskjold told the ‘Prince’ he first thought of the tournament when he watched Pro Recco play in California five years ago.
“I was just really struck by the excellence and the professionalism of the team and the caliber of water polo of the top level of the international game,” he said.
The team’s leadership wanted the tournament to take place on the East Coast, rather than the West Coast, a more conventional location for water polo.
Indeed, the West Coast dominates collegiate water polo, with the NCAA men’s championship having been won exclusively by California schools, the latest one being 13-time victor UCLA. Meanwhile, no East Coast team has ever even reached the final, with Princeton having reached the semifinals the most times (five) from the East, most recently in 2023.
“I’d say the goals for the trip and what our objective is are twofold,” Hammarskjold said. “On the one hand, we want to help showcase the game of water polo at the highest international level on the East Coast, to try to build the exposure of the sport ... The second thing we wanted to also do is promote the rising excellence of East Coast water polo in the United States onto the global stage.”
The Princeton crowd will be in for a treat.
“Even if people are casual fans or have never heard of water polo, it’s not often you ever get to see the best two teams compete in anything,” Litvak said. “So I would highly encourage as many students to come out and watch.”
Apart from just showcasing the best teams in the world, these matches will also feature some global stars. Among them is FTC’s Dušan Mandić, one of the best water polo players of all time. Coming off a third gold medal for his home nation of Serbia in the 2024 Summer Olympics and the MVP of the tournament, Mandić is looking forward to these preseason matchups as practice for FTC’s upcoming season.
“I’m excited to see how the American college teams are playing, which level they are, and to feel their level in person,” Mandić told the ‘Prince.’
Among the new roster of Pro Recco players is the team’s only American, national captain and 2024 Summer Olympic Bronze medalist Max Irving, who will play against his alma mater UCLA in Wednesday’s event in New York City.
“It’s a privilege and an honor, first and foremost, for me to be able to wear the Pro Recco water polo cap,” Irving told the ‘Prince.’ “I think what’s so cool about what Pro Recco is doing right now is, they are committed to bringing and exposing high-level water polo to the United States.”
Irving was also part of a successful Pro Recco clinic hosted at DeNunzio Pool on Sunday afternoon, where aspiring water polo athletes aged 11–18 enjoyed the opportunity to meet and train with Pro Recco players and coaches.
“As successful as [the clinic] was today, I think that this is something that we’re going to be continuing to do in the future,” Irving added. “To really inspire, to encourage, and to connect with the next generation of water polo players, especially in the U.S. as we approach the LA 2028 Olympic Games — I think that’s something really, really close to what we aspire to do as water polo players.”
As for the next generation, the Tigers themselves boast one of the best goalkeepers in collegiate water polo, two-time All-American and co-captain junior Kristóf Kovács, who is excited about facing some familiar faces as a Hungarian himself.
“It is very exciting, especially that a team from Hungary is here,” Kovács told the ‘Prince.’ “I played against some of the guys already, and some of the players were also my teammates on the U19 Hungarian national team, so it’s special for that as well.”
“It’s a privilege to play against those teams and to be able to guard them, so we can learn from them,” he added.
The two clubs will stop in New York on Wednesday, where Pro Recco will take on reigning national collegiate champions No. 1 UCLA, and FTC will match up against the Tigers. The two European giants will then face off against each other the following day, marking a historic event for the sport in American waters. All New York matches have sold out but will be live-streamed on Overnight.
However, for the Orange and Black faithful, the Princeton Invitational is the event to watch. On Saturday in DeNunzio Pool, Princeton will play Pro Recco at 5:00 p.m. while FTC will play No. 3 Fordham afterwards at 6:30 p.m. On Sunday afternoon at 2:00 p.m., the European clubs will clash with each other once again, this time at DeNunzio.
Until the highly anticipated matchup, Princeton continues to train and work towards the goal of a national championship — with no better practice than the best two teams in the world.
“We want to make sure that we’re battle tested and ready,” said Litvak about this season’s schedule. “So on top of [playing top-ten collegiate teams], to play two of the best clubs in the world, I don’t know how much more battle-tested you can be.”
Bryant Figueroa is an assistant Sports editor for the ‘Prince.’
Please send any corrections to corrections@dailyprincetonian.com.
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