The Most Popular Sports in Hungary (Top 18 Ranked)

Soccer leads Hungary, ahead of Water polo and Swimming. Ranking of 18 sports.

This page ranks the sports of Hungary by the evidence behind each one, because no single measured participation or membership statistic covering the same basis was obtained this run, so the order below reflects assessed organizational scale, domestic league presence and international standing rather than one comparable figure.

Soccer is on top, followed by Water polo and Swimming. The full table below covers 18 sports, and every section further down names the source for the figure it uses.

The Most Popular Sports in Hungary

The table counts evidence, not people who say they like a sport. It is the figure that is published the same way for every sport in the list, which is what makes the rows comparable. The reference year is 2026.

#	Sport	Basis for the placing
1	Soccer	The federation governs a nationwide pyramid of leagues down to amateur level and the men’s top division draws the largest regular domestic attendance of any Hungarian sport.
2	Water polo	The men’s national team is among the most decorated Olympic sides in the sport’s history and the domestic top division has run continuously for decades.
3	Swimming	The association oversees a national club and competition structure that has produced a sustained run of Olympic and World Championship medalists across individual events.
4	Handball	Both the men’s and women’s top divisions operate as full home and away leagues, and the women’s national team has reached multiple European Championship podiums.
5	Fencing	Fencing is one of the sports in which Hungarian competitors have the longest unbroken record of Olympic success, particularly in sabre.
6	Athletics	The federation runs the national championship program across track and field disciplines, with the hammer throw a particular area of sustained international success.
7	Wrestling	Greco Roman wrestling has been a consistent Hungarian Olympic discipline across multiple generations of competitors trained within a small number of specialized clubs.
8	Canoe and kayak sprint	Hungary’s flatwater sprint program, based around training centers on the Danube, has produced a run of Olympic champions in individual and team boats.
9	Judo	Judo has an established national club network with regular domestic and international competition, feeding Hungary’s Olympic judo program.
10	Table tennis	Table tennis has a long organized history in Hungary, with a national league structure and youth programs run through the federation.
11	Basketball	The federation runs men’s and women’s national top divisions along with age group national teams and a domestic club competition calendar.
12	Volleyball	Volleyball runs both indoor and beach programs nationally through the federation, with domestic top divisions for men and women.
13	Ice hockey	The national men’s team has moved between international divisions in recent years as the domestic rink infrastructure and club base have expanded.
14	Tennis	Tennis is organized through a national club and ranking system feeding both amateur competition and the country’s touring professionals.
15	Boxing	Amateur boxing has a long standing club tradition in Hungary tied to its Olympic program.
16	Gymnastics	Gymnastics is organized nationally through club programs that feed both artistic and rhythmic disciplines.
17	Equestrian sports	Hungary has a long horse riding tradition and an organized national federation covering show jumping, dressage and eventing.
18	Cycling	Competitive road and track cycling is organized nationally through the federation, separate from cycling as everyday transportation.

#1 Soccer

• Governing body: Hungarian Football Federation (MLSZ)
• Top national league: Nemzeti Bajnokság I (NB I)
• Best known athlete: Dominik Szoboszlai. Captain of the Hungarian national team and a regular starter for Liverpool FC in the Premier League, he is the most internationally prominent Hungarian footballer of the current generation

Soccer is organized nationally under the Hungarian Football Federation, with a men’s top division, a women’s league and youth structures running through every county. The sport has the widest club network of any team sport in the country.

The national team’s most recognized modern figure is Dominik Szoboszlai, who captains the side and plays in the Premier League. His visibility has renewed domestic interest in the men’s team after decades outside the top international tournaments.

#2 Water polo

• Governing body: Hungarian Water Polo Federation
• Top national league: OB I
• Best known athlete: Dezső Gyarmati. Olympic champion with the men’s team in 1952, 1956 and 1964, he later coached the national team and is widely regarded as one of the sport’s greatest players

Water polo carries a level of prestige in Hungary that goes beyond its participation numbers. The men’s national team has been a fixture at the top of Olympic and World Championship podiums for generations, and the sport is closely tied to swimming pools and clubs built for competitive training.

Dezső Gyarmati’s career in the 1950s and 1960s set the standard the sport is still measured against domestically. Later generations of players, coached within the same club system, have kept the national team among the world’s leading sides.

#3 Swimming

• Governing body: Hungarian Swimming Association
• Best known athlete: Katinka Hosszú. Known as “the Iron Lady,” she won three individual gold medals at the 2016 Rio Olympics and set multiple world records in medley events during her career

Swimming in Hungary is built around a dense network of competitive clubs rather than a single spectator league, with pools doubling as training bases for both swimming and water polo. The sport has produced individual Olympic champions across several decades.

Katinka Hosszú became the sport’s best known recent name after her performance at the 2016 Rio Games, where her medley victories drew national attention to a discipline that had already been a consistent source of Hungarian medals.

#4 Handball

• Governing body: Hungarian Handball Federation
• Top national league: NB I
• Best known athlete: Anita Görbicz. Long time captain of the women’s national team with more than 300 international caps, she won multiple European Championship medals over a career spanning nearly two decades

Handball has a large domestic following built on club rivalries in the top men’s and women’s divisions, several of which regularly compete in European club competitions. Arenas built specifically for the sport host both league and international matches.

Anita Görbicz’s long international career made the women’s national team one of the country’s most consistently followed sides, and her generation’s success helped sustain interest in the sport through multiple Olympic cycles.

#5 Fencing

• Governing body: Hungarian Fencing Federation
• Best known athlete: Aladár Gerevich. He won team sabre gold at six consecutive Olympic Games between 1932 and 1960, a span unmatched by any other Olympian in any sport

Fencing occupies a historic place in Hungarian sport, with sabre in particular treated as a national specialty passed down through established clubs in Budapest and other cities.

Aladár Gerevich’s six consecutive Olympic titles remain a reference point for the sport in Hungary, and the sabre tradition he represented continues to produce competitive fencers at international level.

#6 Athletics

• Governing body: Hungarian Athletics Federation
• Best known athlete: Krisztián Pars. Olympic champion in the hammer throw at the 2012 London Games, he also won multiple European and World Championship medals in the event

Athletics in Hungary is organized around club based training centers rather than a single professional league, with national championships held annually across the full range of track and field events.

The hammer throw has been an especially strong discipline for Hungarian athletes, and Krisztián Pars’s Olympic title in 2012 continued a line of success in the event that predates his own career.

#7 Wrestling

• Governing body: Hungarian Wrestling Federation
• Best known athlete: Tamás Lőrincz. Olympic and World Championship medalist in Greco Roman wrestling, he represented Hungary at several consecutive Olympic Games

Wrestling in Hungary is concentrated in a smaller number of dedicated clubs than sports like soccer or handball, but has kept a steady presence at Olympic and World Championship level in the Greco Roman style.

Tamás Lőrincz’s career across several Olympic cycles reflects that continuity, with each generation of wrestlers training within the same long standing club structure.

#8 Canoe and kayak sprint

• Governing body: Hungarian Canoe Federation
• Best known athlete: Danuta Kozák. Multiple Olympic champion in sprint kayak events across the 2012, 2016 and 2020 Games, making her one of the most decorated Hungarian Olympians of her era

Canoe and kayak sprint racing is trained heavily along the Danube, with national training centers feeding both the Olympic program and a domestic competition calendar.

Danuta Kozák’s run of Olympic titles across three Games kept the discipline in the national spotlight and reinforced its place as one of Hungary’s most successful Olympic sports.

#9 Judo

• Governing body: Hungarian Judo Federation

Judo is taught and competed through a national network of dojos affiliated with the federation, with a competition calendar that runs from junior grades through to the senior national championships.

The sport is one of several combat disciplines in Hungary with an unbroken Olympic qualification history, supported by dedicated training centers rather than a single high profile league.

#10 Table tennis

• Governing body: Hungarian Table Tennis Federation
• Top national league: NB I

Table tennis has one of the longer organized histories among Hungarian sports, with clubs affiliated to a national federation running leagues at several levels.

The sport is played widely at recreational and school level in addition to its competitive league, giving it a broad participation base even without the spectator profile of team sports like soccer or handball.

#11 Basketball

• Governing body: Hungarian Basketball Federation (MKOSZ)
• Top national league: NB I/A

Basketball is organized nationally under MKOSZ, with men’s and women’s top divisions and a structured path from youth clubs to the senior national teams.

The women’s game in particular has a strong club tradition in Hungary, with several domestic teams having competed in European club competitions over the years.

#12 Volleyball

• Governing body: Hungarian Volleyball Federation
• Top national league: NB I

Volleyball is played through a national club league system covering both the indoor and beach disciplines, organized under the national federation.

While it does not draw the crowds of soccer or handball, the sport maintains a steady base of school and club level participation across the country.

#13 Ice hockey

• Governing body: Hungarian Ice Hockey Federation
• Top national league: Erste Liga

Ice hockey is a smaller but growing sport in Hungary, concentrated around a limited number of cities with indoor rinks capable of hosting league play.

Investment in rink infrastructure over the past two decades has expanded the domestic club base and allowed the national team to compete more regularly at international level.

#14 Tennis

• Governing body: Hungarian Tennis Federation
• Best known athlete: Márton Fucsovics. The country’s highest ranked men’s singles player in the ATP era, he reached the quarterfinals of the Australian Open in 2018

Tennis in Hungary is organized through club membership and a national ranking system rather than a single professional league, with facilities concentrated in Budapest and other larger cities.

Márton Fucsovics has been the sport’s most visible recent representative on tour, and his results have kept the sport in the national conversation alongside the more heavily attended team sports.

#15 Boxing

• Governing body: Hungarian Boxing Federation

Boxing in Hungary is organized primarily as an amateur, club based sport feeding the national Olympic program rather than around a professional domestic circuit.

Clubs affiliated with the national federation run regular competitions that serve as the main path into the national team setup.

#16 Gymnastics

• Governing body: Hungarian Gymnastics Federation

Gymnastics in Hungary is taught through a national club system covering both artistic and rhythmic disciplines, with competitions organized by age group up to the senior national championships.

The sport’s participation base is built mainly around youth training programs rather than a spectator league, similar to other individual Olympic disciplines in the country.

#17 Equestrian sports

• Governing body: Hungarian Equestrian Federation

Equestrian sport draws on Hungary’s long historical association with horse breeding and riding, organized today through a national federation covering show jumping, dressage and eventing.

Competition is centered on regional riding clubs and stables rather than a single national league, with the federation coordinating the national championship calendar.

#18 Cycling

• Governing body: Hungarian Cycling Federation

Competitive cycling in Hungary covers road racing, track and mountain biking through clubs affiliated with the national federation, distinct from the country’s separate everyday cycling culture.

The sport’s domestic race calendar is smaller than in some neighboring countries, but the federation maintains a structured path from junior racing to national team selection.

Sources

• Hungarian Football Federation (MLSZ)
• Hungarian Water Polo Federation
• Hungarian Swimming Association
• Hungarian Handball Federation
• Hungarian Athletics Federation
• Hungarian Judo Federation
• Hungarian Basketball Federation (MKOSZ)

Figures on this page come from national federations and statistics offices and are only as current as their latest published report. Last reviewed: August 2026.

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