Polish Champions Humbled on Opening Day as Underdogs Shine

The opening round of the new Polish Ekstraklasa season delivered two major upsets — and set the tone for what could be an unpredictable campaign.

The biggest surprise came in Poznań, where reigning champions Lech Poznań suffered a stunning 1-4 home defeat at the hands of Cracovia. Despite dominating possession and creating numerous chances, Lech were left exposed at the back, as Cracovia executed a near-perfect counter-attacking game plan and were ruthlessly clinical in front of goal. By the 60th minute, the match was effectively over, with Lech’s defense in disarray and their title defense off to a nightmare start.

But that wasn’t the only upset on Friday night. Last season’s bronze medalists, Jagiellonia Białystok, were expected to cruise past top-flight newcomers Bruk-Bet Termalica Nieciecza. Instead, the visitors stunned the crowd by scoring four times in a statement-making debut. Bartosz Kubica opened the scoring in the 17th minute, bundling the ball over the line from a corner. Two more goals followed before halftime, and Kubica sealed his brace with a powerful long-range strike in the second half.

2025-26, Poland - Ekstraklasa

Day : 2025-07-18

"Lech" - "Cracovia" 1:4 (1:2)
Goals : Stojilkovic, 2 (0:1); Hasic, 26 (0:2); Ishak, 45 (penalty) (1:2); Hasic, 52 (1:3); Minchev M., 60 (1:4)
Yellow Cards : Skrzypczak 78 - Ólafsson D-K. 24; Atanasov 74

"Jagiellonia" - "Termalica" 0:4 (0:3)
Goals : Kubica, 17 (0:1); Zapolnik, 42 (penalty) (0:2); Faßbender, 45 (0:3); Kubica, 75 (0:4)
Yellow Cards : Imaz 62 -