Vasas-ASI | |||
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Short name | Vasas | ||
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Founded | 1926 | ||
Arena | Vasas Sportcsarnok, Budapest | ||
Capacity | 1,500 | ||
President | Éva Muts | ||
Head coach | Márta Varga | ||
League | Nemzeti Bajnokság I/B | ||
2009–10 | Nemzeti Bajnokság I/B – Western Group, 6th | ||
Colours | |||
Club colours | |||
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Website Official site |
Vasas-Angyalföldi Sportiskola (English: Vasas-Sports School of Angyalföld, abbreviated Vasas-ASI) is a Hungarian women's handball team. It is part of the Budapest-based multi-sports club Vasas SC. One of the most successful teams in the country, they have won the Hungarian championship a record 15 times and in 1982 they were also crowned as the European Champions Cup winners.
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Hazena, the early form of the modern handball, had been played across Europe for years, when, in 1926, based on the players who were fired by MTE for political reasons, Vas- és Fémmunkások Sport Clubja was founded. Until 1928 there was not an organized national championship and the hazena team participated only in several invitational tournaments. Due to financial reasons the club suspended its operations in 1931.
After a financial consolidation the handball department of Vasas was reborn and entered the championship in 1938. The brightest year of this era was 1945, when Vasas won the second division title and gained promotion to the top level championship. However, just after a few years, due growing troubles the club decided to withdraw from the competitive handball once again.
On 7 March 1956 the Sport School of Angyalföld (Angyalföldi Sportiskola) was founded. Under head coach József Ferenczy the Sport School performed brilliantly, having won several youth and junior titles. They also wanted to enter the adult competition, but the permit was not granted. Instead of that, they got the chance from Hungarian Handball Federation to join either Csavargyár or Vasas. They have chosen Vasas and the team has risen from its ashes in 1960. With the ASI-girls on the board, under the new, team handball rules, Vasas entered the Budapest II championship and won it in their inaugural year and gained promotion. In 1962 they celebrated another promotion, this time from the Budapest I division to the NB II. In 1964 Vasas climbed to the NB I, the top-level league in Hungary. Although they suffered a surprise relegation in 1965, they spent only one season in the NB II. With the comeback in 1967 the brightest period in the club's life began.
In 1969 the Vasas lifted the Hungarian Cup trophy, followed by another Cup title in 1971. From 1972 they have won the Hungarian Championship an exceptional eleven times in a row – in 1977 and 1981 they did not even drop a single point throughout the season. Adding to this, they also won the Hungarian Cup eight times in this period. Their most successful year came in 1982, when Vasas did the treble: beside the Hungarian Championship and Hungarian Cup they took the European Champions Cup title as well.
From the second part of the eighties the key players of the golden era either retired or moved abroad and the Hungarian Championship got more balanced as well, which led to Vasas slowly lost their dominant role.
In the nineties, after the transition, private companies took over the club and became their main sponsor. In short term Vasas benefited from it, they managed to put together a strong squad and the team was shining in the old glory. However, after these financials grown narrow, a disintegration process started. To save from cessation, in 2004 Vasas Sport Club took the team under control. Vasas-ASI is currently competing in the NB I/B.
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