Ludogorets started the year with a victory

Ludogorets defeated Hungary’s third-placed team Paksi in their first friendly match of 2026, winning 3–2. The game was very entertaining and was played under terrible conditions— a severe storm, hurricane-force winds, and heavy rain. The two new signings of the “Eagles,” Vinicius Nogueira and Ruan Cruz, did not take part in the match. A very strong performance for the team from Razgrad was delivered by winger Erick Marcus, who scored two goals within 13 minutes.

In the 11th minute, the Hungarians hit the crossbar through Zsolt Haraszti, who beat Hendrik Bonmann from a good position, but luck was not on his side and the ball did not go in. Just three minutes later, Ludogorets took the lead. Son passed from the right toward the center, where Petar Stanich produced an elegant through ball to Erick Marcus on the left, and he made no mistake—1:0 for the “Eagles” after a beautiful attacking move. Just 240 seconds later, Ludogorets scored a second goal. Once again the scorer was Erick Marcus, who converted a superb direct free kick, leaving Paksi goalkeeper Kovacsik with no chance—2:0.

Shortly after that, the Hungarians were awarded a penalty for a handball by Erick Bile. Jozsef Windecker stepped up and scored, even though Hendrik Bonmann guessed the right corner—2:1. After the goal, the Hungarian side created three good chances but failed to convert any of them. Thus, in the 40th minute, Paksi were awarded a second penalty. The referee spotted a foul by Son but earlier failed to notice an infringement against Nedyalkov. This time, however, the penalty was saved by Hendrik Bonmann, who denied Jozsef Windecker. Seconds later, Bonmann also saved a powerful shot from a tight angle by Haraszti.

The second half began with a good attempt by substitute Bernard Tekpetey, but his shot missed the target. In the 55th minute, Ludogorets went 3–1 up. Ivan Yordanov made a strong run through the center and found Matheus Machado, who could not miss, scoring his first goal for the “Eagles,” albeit in an unofficial match.

The Hungarians quickly pulled one back again. In the 59th minute, Barna Toth found the net, taking advantage of a collective defensive error by the Bulgarian side.

In the 76th minute, the 39-year-old veteran Bode could have equalized, but he was denied by mere centimeters.