As we reported, ARAGO-SPORT Kft. has become the new owner of Budapest Honvéd FC, and the group’s aim is to develop Honvéd gradually into a stable and successful club.
The arrival of the new owner has also brought changes to the club’s management: Gergely Kun is leaving (we thank the executive, who joined in November 2022, for his work for Honvéd), and Árpád Séllei is the new managing director of Honvéd FC Kft. Árpád Séllei has worked in Hungarian football for nearly two decades, 18 years; he was previously both owner and managing director of Haladás and left the Szombathely club in January 2024.
“I know that Honvéd and Haladás supporters have a good relationship, so perhaps I can say that I am arriving in Kispest from a sister club. I am fully aware that I have joined a club with great traditions, one of Hungary’s most successful teams, with a huge number of supporters at home and abroad, and given the previous results and the fan base, understandably the expectations are high – Árpád Séllei began. – We are taking over Budapest Honvéd in a difficult situation, but more importantly, we have serious ambitions and want to achieve success with both the men’s and women’s sections. At the same time, we will continue to place particular emphasis on our own youth development, because the Magyar Futball Akadémia is a well-functioning academy that has been operating for a decade and a half. It is important to build a club that is financially stable as well. We have a secure ownership background for that, as well as experience gained in football. We know the supporters want to see a much better Honvéd; believe us, that is exactly our goal too. Although we know that in sport time is the scarcest resource, we would like the fans to show us trust and patience.“
Alongside Árpád Séllei, Sándor Fórizs is also joining the club’s management and will become Budapest Honvéd’s sporting director. The two professionals already worked together in Szombathely in 2021, while Sándor Fórizs previously led DVTK’s women’s team for five years, during which he guided them to promotion to NB I, where the side won three league bronze medals and finished runners-up in the Hungarian Cup twice.
“We have plans; we need to build gradually and keep improving. Our most important aim this season is to achieve a better result than last season’s ninth place, and within three years we want to return Honvéd to the top flight – said Sándor Fórizs, who also addressed the coaching change. – Aurél Csertői and we did not share the same professional ideas, and we reached a very correct mutual agreement to part ways. We thank him for his work so far. In the future I want to see a hard-running, combative team where, after every match, every player comes off the pitch knowing they have done everything for victory, even if it does not always work out. I believe in hard work; that is what gives the team the opportunity to be successful.“
