České Budějovice and Slovan Bratislava met in a club friendly on Wednesday evening, with the visitors claiming a 4:5 victory at their home ground. The match took place on 20 August 2026, offering both sides a chance to test themselves ahead of the new campaign. By then, both teams had already been through a series of recent fixtures, though the results had been mixed.
České Budějovice arrived having opened their summer preparations with a 5:1 win over Salzburg, though that was followed by a 2:3 defeat to Jihlava and a 4:0 victory against Tábor. Their recent form had been uneven, with two losses to Brno's Kometa in March suggesting they still had work to do. To be fair, they had found some rhythm before this encounter.
Slovan Bratislava came from a busy spell against Nitra, winning four of five matches but also suffering two defeats in that stretch. Their most recent outing saw them edge past Tršinec 6:5 in another high-scoring affair. The away end never stopped, and the visitors carried that energy into the final minutes.
The clean-sheet run came to an end for both sides in this one, which is hardly surprising given the attacking intent on display. The history between them adds an edge, even if this was only a friendly. The result suggests both managers were willing to take risks and let their players express themselves.
What the scoreline tells us is that neither side could hold on when the other pushed forward. The bookmakers are pricing a low-scoring game for competitive fixtures, but friendlies operate under different rules. Both teams leave with five points on the board from this encounter, though only one can claim the win.