In the 1980s, Vasyl (Laszlo) Ratz was the only ethnic Hungarian in Dynamo Kyiv and the USSR national team. He finished his playing career in Ferencvaros and lived in Budapest for many years. The legendary footballer, who celebrates his 63rd birthday today, told us how Ukrainians are currently treated in Hungary and whether the Ukrainian national team will be able to defeat Iceland on Tuesday in the final play-off round of the Euro 2024 qualifying round.
Vasyl Ratz- Mr Vasyl, you have been working as a coordinator at the Munkács Academy in the village of Dertsen in Zakarpattia for six months now. Is this project a 100 per cent Hungarian investment?
- Yes, it is. The academy was built from scratch before the outbreak of the full-scale war. There are 95 ethnic Hungarian residents in Dertsen. Now there is a two-storey building, two artificial pitches, 4 grass pitches, and an arena. The academy trains 130 Ukrainian children born in 2007-2012. They have three meals a day and a school. All conditions are created. I often visit there. It's nice to see how the children are progressing. By the way, they are here from many parts of Ukraine - from Odesa, Dnipro, Lviv, Sumy.
- Is this a public or private Hungarian investment?
- Partly public, partly private investment. A total of 8 academies have been built in countries where ethnic Hungarians live - in Slovakia, Slovenia, Croatia, Romania, Serbia, and Ukraine. The expectation is that the best students of the academy will join the Kisvárda youth team, which plays in the Hungarian elite division, and then the Puskás Academy. And then, if they continue to progress, they can join teams in Western Europe.
- From football, let's move on to politics. Millions of Ukrainians openly despise the pro-Russian Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban. What do you think about this, as an ethnic Hungarian who has spent half his life in Ukraine and the other half in Hungary?
- I did not like it when Orban blocked EU decisions in support of Ukraine. Our relations are still tense. I would really like to see them improve. But we need to take into account that Hungary is dependent on Russian gas. We should not forget about Russia's construction of a nuclear power plant in Hungary. Hungary's desire for ethnic Hungarians in Ukraine to study in Hungarian language in schools also has its impact on our relations. But even with all these nuances, I believe that Hungary should support Ukraine. At least not to interfere. My business partners from Hungary call me and ask about the situation. They tell me to go back to Budapest, it's not safe to be in Ukraine. In fact, ordinary Hungarians are worried about Ukraine. Most Hungarians do not support Russia.
- You once founded a company called Ratz and Sons in Budapest. What are your children doing now?
- The youngest, Attila, works as a tennis coach in Budapest. He is now 33 years old. The eldest, Laszlo, also lives and works in the Hungarian capital in a private company.
- Do you keep in touch with your former Dynamo team-mates?
- Yes, we congratulate each other on our birthdays. I recently spoke to Vanya Yaremchuk. He has been living in Belgium for five months now. He has put on weight - he said he now weighs 102 kilograms. And 5 months ago he was 82 kilograms. In Belgium, he lives in a Ukrainian hotel-camp, and says that there is no football field nearby, so he leads an inactive lifestyle. Vanya is already over 60 and has no wife. And at this age, it is better to have a loved one by your side.
- On Tuesday, Ukraine will play the match of the year against Iceland in Wroclaw. What result do you expect?
- If they play like they did against Bosnia, they're unlikely to pass. To defeat Iceland, we have to create more than two chances per game. Iceland is a better team than Bosnia. Let's see how the game goes. For Ukraine, it is very important that Serhii Rebrov's team makes it to the final stage of Euro 2024. It will be a happiness for both our guys from the Armed Forces and ordinary people. For at least 90 minutes, Ukrainians will forget about the war. I hope the national team will win 2-0.
Maksym Rozenko
