Budapest hosted, for the 1st time, a pre-competition towards the Buenos Aires Tango World Championship 2025
From April 25 to 27, 2025, the city of Budapest swung to the beat of tango as it became, for the first time in its history, an official venue for a preparatory competition for the Buenos Aires Tango Festival and World Championship.
Hungarians crowned winners
The Hungarian couple Endre Szeghalmi and Andrea Serbán were crowned winners of the official Tango de Pista category and will represent Hungary at the World Championship to be held in Buenos Aires in August 2025. Organized by Tango Temptation, under the direction of Zsolt Szénási and with the sponsorship of the Embassy of the Argentine Republic in Hungary, the event was part of the international network of preparatory competitions that each year pay tribute to tango as a living and ever-evolving cultural expression.
This initiative is part of the efforts by the Embassy of Argentina in Hungary to promote inbound tourism linked to Argentine culture, in coordination with the National Secretariat of Tourism, thereby contributing to strengthening Argentina’s Country Brand in Central and Eastern Europe.
The official competition included in the Tango de Pista (social tango) category, as well as non-official categories such as Milonga and Vals, and featured participants from Hungary, Spain, Italy, and other European countries.
International jury
The prestigious international jury at the competition was composed of Antonella Terrazas, Neri Piliu, Julián Sánchez, Emmanuel Casal, Yanina Quiñones, Bruna Estellita, and Yanina Muzyka, all renowned figures from the global tango scene.
The director of the Buenos Aires Tango World Championship, Laura Mazzei, traveled specially from Argentina to attend this first edition in Budapest,to further strengthen cultural ties between the two countries.
Beyond the competition, the event became a true cultural festival. Milongas, masterclasses, exhibitions, concerts, and public activities filled the weekend with celebrations of tango as a shared cultural language and a bridge between cultures.
The excitement of the contest culminated in a spectacular Budapest Aires Tango Show, followed by an intense marathon of over 30 hours of tango dancing in the traditional formats of Café Milonga and Gran Milonga, where music, dance, and passion intertwined in an unforgettable embrace.
During the closing ceremony, the Ambassador of the Argentine Republic to Hungary, Ms. Lorena Capra, expressed her deep gratitude to all those who made this event possible: to Lidia Demján, OTP Travel, and the Crowne Plaza Hotel for their support from the beginning; To Zsolt Szénási and the Tango Temptation team for their impeccable organization; to the Buenos Aires Tango World Championship Directorate for their collaboration; to the international jury for their professionalism; and especially to all the couples who were the true protagonists of this tango and friendship story.
Successful event
The Ambassador also emphasized that this is only the beginning of a path that has just started and expressed her hope that next year Budapest will once again host a new edition of the preparatory competition for the Buenos Aires Tango World Championship, further strengthening the bonds between Argentine culture and the Hungarian tango community.
The success of this competition in Budapest not only reflects the growth of Argentine tango in Central and Eastern Europe but also marks a new chapter in the cultural relationship between Hungary and Argentina, reaffirming tango as a universal heritage that transcends borders.
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