Kalmarsund crush Finland's Koovee 12:0 in Champions Cup opener

The International Floorball Federation's Champions Cup tournament has begun in Kalmar, Sweden, featuring eight teams in both the women's and men's competitions — two each from Sweden, Finland, Switzerland and the Czech Republic. As usual, the quarterfinal draw pits the Nordic region (Sweden vs Finland) against the Southern region (Switzerland vs Czech Republic) to save on travel costs.

In the first women's match, Sweden's FBC Kalmarsund faced Finland's Koovee, a club that has previously included Latvian floorball players in its ranks. The hosts secured a commanding 12:0 (6:0; 4:0; 2:0) victory, leaving their opponents with no chance.

The Swedes opened the scoring in the third minute when Elena Rasmusen converted a breakaway against the goalkeeper. Soon after, Czech forward Karolina Klubalova, fresh off a strong home World Championship, scored the tournament's first goal for her. Elena Baksted and fellow Czech Sarka Stankova also found the net in the first period, putting the hosts up 6:0.

In the second period, Rasmusen capped off several team attacking sequences, while Klubalova completed a hat-trick. Dominika Buceka extended the lead into double digits.

Play was briefly halted in the third period when the coaches called a timeout, but the team quickly added two more goals afterward to reach the final 12:0 scoreline.

Klubalova was the top performer with eight points (four goals, four assists), followed by Baksted with six and Rasmusen with four points. The return leg is scheduled for August 29 in Finland.