the Oranje Leeuwinnen take huge step towards World Cup in Brazil

The Dutch women's national team, under head coach Arjan Veurink, achieved an overwhelming 0‑8 victory over Hungary in Felcsút, giving the Orange Lionesses a crucial step towards the World Cup play‑offs. The match was dominated by attacking flair, with two hat‑tricks and a series of goals in the first half.

Dominant first half and individual brilliance

Lineth Beerensteyn opened the scoring in the 12th minute, followed by a second goal in the 14th minute. Victoria Pelova scored her first strike in the 26th minute, after which Esmee Brugts set the half‑time score at 4‑0 in injury time of the first half (45+1). Damaris Egurrola headed the fifth goal in the 49th minute, and Pelova completed her hat‑trick with goals in the 58th and 62nd minute. Beerensteyn finished with her third strike in the 90th minute.

Beerensteyn, who plays for Real Madrid, scored her second goal via a cross from Lynn Wilms. Pelova later found a rebound after a attempt by Lotte Keukelaar and thus completed her hat‑trick. With these four goals in the second half, the final score of 0‑8 was reached.

Dutch women dominate Hungary, final play‑offs near

Team selection and coach's vision

Head coach Arjan Veurink had to miss Viviane Miedema, Romee Leuchter and Daphne van Domselaar and gave Renee van Asten and Jackie Groenen a rest, leaving him with a ‘luxury position’ of 23 players. Veurink said: “We hope to get through it better on the pitch.” He added: “More chances need to come out of that. This week we focused on which spaces you should attack.”

Tactical approach and atmosphere in Felcsút

In Felcsút, a tiny village outside Boedepast where former prime minister Viktor Orban grew up, there is a stadium that he had built. The Hungarian federation had no trouble filling the 4,000 available seats, leaving the stands empty. The atmosphere was set early by a “Ten, ten, ten!” chant from the orange supporters. Veurink praised the high tempo, the frequent positional changes and the variety in the build‑up, which confused the Hungarian defence – referred to as Hungary HON. The photos of the match were provided by © Pro Shots / Dave Rietbergen. Maarten Teunisse wrote about the match.

Orange Lionesses overwhelm Hungary, Beerensteyn and Pelova score

Upcoming return match and World Cup chances

The return match takes place on Tuesday in Tilburg at 20:45 and is seen by Veurink as a formality. If the Orange do not experience a miracle, a later clash with Turkey or Slovenia for the final World Cup spot follows, after which Rio de Janeiro awaits as host nation next year. The convincing 0‑8 win gives the team confidence for this decisive phase.