MZT Skopje, 30 Years After Beating Real Madrid: Five EuroCup Losses and an ABA2 Defeat
Thirty years after the victory over Real Madrid, MZT Skopje is struggling in Europe with five EuroCup defeats and an ABA2 loss.
On 6 November 2026 MZT Skopje marks thirty years since the club stunned Real Madrid at the so‑called "Limenka" arena — a game remembered for Pero Blaževski's calm free throws and the immortal words of commentator Ljubomir Nikolovski: "Silence is needed..."
From historic night to a difficult European season
That triumph remains a high point in the club's history, but the present picture is very different. The current Macedonian champion has struggled badly on continental stage: this season MZT Skopje has lost five games in as many outings in the FIBA EuroCup, and opened its ABA2 campaign with another defeat.
Put together, the team now carries six losses on the international scene — a run that has turned a once‑proud representative of Macedonian basketball into, in blunt terms, a punching bag abroad.
Players and coaches from the 1996 side — including Željko Obradović and Dejan Bodiroga — left the arena with bowed heads after that unforgettable night. Today, the comparison between then and now is stark: the club that once beat European giants is fighting simply to stop the negative trend.
Within the club and among supporters there is a sense that participation has become an objective in itself: "it seems the unpopular rule applies — it's important to participate, not to win." Critics warn that MZT's results on the continental stage reflect more than the club's fortunes; they shape perceptions of Macedonian basketball as a whole.
For a team whose name still evokes a legendary upset, reversing the slide in both the EuroCup and ABA2 will be essential if MZT Skopje wants to reclaim the credibility earned three decades ago.
Photo: press material from the event
