To the outsider, the Pancho Arena, a massive soccer stadium built to seat 4,000 fans, seems out of place in the tiny Hungarian village of Felcsút.
The village, nearly an hour drive from Budapest, Hungary's capital, has a population that would only fill half the stadium. But the open-air architectural gem, made of curved wooden beams that jut dramatically upwards and resemble a cathedral, wasn't built in just any village. Felcsút is the hometown of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, and his family's weekend home sits across the street from the stadium, which carries the nickname of Ferenc Puskás, Hungary's most famous soccer player from the 1950s.
As Hungarians head into a national election on Sunday, Orbán is facing a double-digit deficit in the polls, despite a last-minute rally in Budapest on Tuesday with U.S. Vice President JD Vance. The vote might bring an end to Orbán's 16-year hold on power and could reshape the country's role in Europe.
The leader of the opposition, Péter Magyar, a former insider from Orbán's Fidesz Party, has shone a light on the Orbán government's corruption and the country's poverty in his speeches. Hungary is the most corrupt state in the European Union, according to Transparency International, an organization that aims to combat corruption. The EU has blocked billions in funding to Orbán's government for its alleged assault on the bloc's principles of democracy and equality.
NPR reached out to Orbán's spokesman for comment about the corruption allegations, but he did not respond. In the past, Orban has denied accusations of corruption.
At a rally this week, Magyar told supporters the country is, "destined for much more than for those in power to ruin, steal, and turn it into the poorest and most corrupt country in Europe."
The stadium in Felcsút, alongside an adjoining soccer academy, cost more than an estimated $200 million to build, and for political observers like Sándor Léderer, it is a prime example of that corruption.
Léderer runs a group called K-Monitor, an anti-corruption watchdog that maintains public databases of government spending. His work has been used by the European Union and has earned him a fellowship from the Obama Foundation.
He regularly takes people to see the stadium as a demonstration of how Orbán's leadership has drained the country of critical investment.
"The taxpayers' money was money that didn't go into the national budget because it's a tax break," Léderer told journalists at the site, explaining that money for these projects often goes to Orbán's family and friends, who have become very wealthy.
"They were all getting tax breaks on this, and that's money that would have ended up in the national budget and could have gone to hospitals, schools and things that have a little more benefit to Hungarian society."
"You can clearly see where money is missing," Léderer said.
A short walk from the stadium is a train station for a 3-mile narrow-gauge railway that connects Felcsút to a nearby village where Orbán has built his family's estate: Puskás Akadémia stop on the The Vál Valley Light Railway.
It cost $3 million to build and included $2 million in funding from the EU. The proposed ridership for the line was 2,000 people per day, but the annual use has barely reached that level. Now trains only run on the weekends.
In Alcsút, a nearby village, Ákos Hadházy led another tour.
Hadházy, a member of parliament, rented a bus and brought more than 60 residents from Budapest here to see what he calls "Orbán-land."
Hatvanpuszta Castle, once the property of Archduke Joseph of Habsburg 150 years ago, is a manor owned by Orbán's family in Alcsút. It was a protected monument, but then Orbán's father purchased and demolished the structure. He later built a multi-story mansion and complex in its place.
There is also a golf course, which is owned and run by the richest man in Hungary, Lőrinc Mészáros, who grew up with Orbán in Felcsút.
Some of those who were with Hadházy climbed up a ladder to see above the wall that encircles the Orbán family palace.
One by one, they peered into the landscaped and pool-filled grounds and beyond that — the Neoclassical mansion of their prime minister.
Júlia Molnár, 27 years old, stepped down from the ladder and shook her head. Her voice trembled with anger as she spoke about what she saw.
"It's infuriating, and I'm very glad that people are finally brave enough and conscious enough to come here and actually put in the effort to show up and see for themselves and not let the media give them the perspective that they should have on this," Molnár said.
She lamented the opulence of her prime minister's residence when so many in her country are so poor.
Hadházy explained that the Orbán family mansion, the rail line, and the soccer stadium have now become part of Hungarian discourse and public opinion. He calls it a gift for those who want to unseat Orbán.
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