MŠK Žilina on the hunt for records

While the Bundesliga title race is all but decided, things remain tightly contested in the Slovak league, making it relatively exciting too. After all, at the end of the season, it is not just a question of who wins the championship, but potentially also of crowning a new record champion. For now, two clubs share that title. The capital’s SK Slovan Bratislava and MŠK Žilina have each won five titles. It is an exciting head-to-head contest, especially considering that other teams are also in the running for the title—and with it, the coveted places in international competitions.

A total of 12 teams compete in Slovakia’s top division. Senica currently leads the table, but is only one point ahead of MŠK Žilina. Slovan Bratislava sits some way behind in mid-table. The current standings reflect 21 matchdays, but the final tally will only be calculated once every team has played 33 matches. So anything is still possible, but the trend clearly favors MŠK Žilina.

Date: 30/09/2026

Žilina is located in the mountainous north of the country. The city of 85,000 inhabitants relies mainly on the automotive industry. The KIA Group opened its new plant near the city a few years ago. Football brings real excitement, especially at weekends—and particularly when MŠK Žilina are getting good results, as they have done increasingly often in recent years. The team also made a strong showing in the Czechoslovak league. It became the first and so far only Slovak team to qualify for the UEFA Cup group stage. This season, the side even reached the Champions League group stage. In Group F, however, they finished without a point and were unceremoniously knocked out after six matches. At least the Slovaks narrowly lost 2–1 to favorites Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in London. The players are already setting their sights on a return to Europe’s premier competition. First, though, they want to win the championship again.

Andreas Janßen