BUDAPEST — The Armenian national football team faced Hungary in the third round of Group F of the European qualifying stage for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. In the match held at the Puskás Aréna, Marco Rossi’s Hungarian side claimed a 2–0 victory. In the 56th minute, Daniel Lukács scored off a pass from Bendegúz Bolla, sending the ball past Armenian goalkeeper Henri Avagyan. The second goal came in the 94th minute of added time, when Zsombor Gruber sealed Hungary’s win. Following the match, Armenia’s head coach Yeghishe Melikyan spoke to the press: “I can say I deeply regret the result. We had chances to earn points, but unfortunately, we failed to capitalize on them. We created enough scoring opportunities. At the same time, I cannot say the opponent didn’t deserve the victory—they played quality football. It was an exciting match, and I congratulate them. We will analyze this game, put the loss behind us, and prepare for the upcoming match against Ireland. Of course, losing 2–0 means there are issues we need to identify and fix. Overall, though, the team clearly understood what it had to do. Many things worked well, and for those that didn’t, we’ll work to improve them. That’s foot- ball—we accept the result. Our team lacks a classic number 9 striker capable of consistently scoring at the European level, like our opponents have. Nevertheless, through tactics, determination, and discipline, we are creating chances. One of our main problems today was our inability to convert those chances. If we had scored even once, we might have taken a point. We’ll analyze that issue. On the positive side, I want to highlight our team’s unity, great atmosphere, the tremendous support from our fans, and our faith, dedication, organization, and fighting spirit. There are many positives we can build on as we move forward toward success.” Armenia’s next match will be against Ireland in Dublin on October 14, with kickoff at 10:45 p.m. Yerevan time.