World CupAntwerpen (Belgium)

Martin Horn completes World Cup trilogy

10/12/2025

Published by frits bakker

Martin Horn showing his emotions after he won the World Cup in Belgium in a final against Tayfun Tasdemir

LINT/ANTWERP – The German national anthem sounded for only the fourth time in the long history of the World Cups in three-cushion. Martin Horn, the glorious winner in the final against Tayfun Tasdemir in Lint, Antwerp, won his third World Cup in the homeland of the phenomenon Raymond Ceulemans. The German ex-soldier's trilogy completed his impressive race with knockout victories over Glenn Hofman, HaengJik Kim, Quyet Chien Tran, and finally Tayfun Tasdemir with a 50-36 score in 31/30 innings in the final. With three World Cup golds, Martin Horn moves into a tie for 11th place in total victories, sharing the same spot with Tasdemir, Dielis, Kobayashi, and HaengJik Kim. The amiable German, known for his hearty smile and blowing kisses to the camera after a victory, has definitively put three-cushion on the map for Germany. Only Christian Rudolph has also won a World Cup for his country, in 1997.

The 54-year-old Martin Horn isn't a multi winner, but he always has his peak moments, when he's capable of beating the world's elite. He first triumphed in Antalya in 2009 and almost ten years later in 2018 in the French city of La Baule. The multiple German champion made a slight jump on the rankings with his victory in Lint. On the final day, Horn defeated Dutch coming-man Glenn Hofman 50-32 in 22 innings in the semifinal. Tayfun Tasdemir eliminated the last Asian player, Vietnamese Phuong Vinh Bao 50-40 in 26. The final kicked off with two players who had been demonstrating excellent form for days. Martin Horn was also able to do that in the final at times. Tayfun Tasdemir, who had averages of 2.273, 2.778, and 1.923 against Caudron, Legazpi, and Bao, suddenly wasn't a shadow of that star player in the final.

Martin Horn immediately delivered the first blows with 1, 5, and 9 in the first three innings (15-2). That margin remained on the scoreboard for almost the entire match, as Tasdemir had long periods with zero scores. Martin Horn scored another 8 for 38-28, kept Tasdemir in check, and finally won with 2, 2, 6, and 1 in the last four innings: 50-36 in 31 innings: 1.612 and 1.200 average.

Semifinals:

Horn-Hofman 50-32 in 22 innings

Martin Horn is back in his great form. Glenn Hofman, one of the revelations of this World Cup, must also acknowledge this. The Dutchman is nearing the top of the rankings, defeated Myung Woo Cho, the world champion, on Saturday, but couldn't pull off an upset against Horn in the semifinals. The German quickly bounced back from a poor start (15-4 to Hofman in 5 innings) and built a commanding lead. Horn launched the offensive with two 7’s and 8 for a 27-22 lead, staying ahead of Hofman in the final stages, scoring a beautiful 10 and later 7 and 5 for a 50-32 finish in 22 innings. The 54-year-old German seems ready to make a bid for the World Cup and is looking for his third victory. He previously won the World Cups in Antalya in 2009 and La Baule in 2018.

Tasdemir-Bao 50-40 in 26

The elimination of the last Asian player comes tot he name of Tayfun Tasdemir. Phuong Vinh Bao won the award for most sensational match (40 in 4 innings, run 25), but fell short in the semifinal against Tasdemir. The technically skilled, 49-year-old Turkish star needed only one attack to decide the match. The tied score (14-13) was shattered by Tasdemir's powerful run of 18 in the 10th inning. The attack felled Bao, the best of all the Asians. Tasdemir, despite eight misses in the closing stages, initially extended his lead with small runs. Bao stayed close but couldn't close the gap despite a 5 and a 4 shortly before the end. The final score was 50-40 in favor of Tasdemir in 26. Tasdemir will be chasing his fourth World Cup in the final, after 2015 in Ho Chi Minh City, 2019 in Antalya, and 2023 in Las Vegas.

World Cup overview:

The World Cup, in the lead-up to the World Championship at the same location, made its return to Belgian soil. Kurt Ceulemans had created an atmospheric playing area where many, mainly Belgian, spectators enjoyed the matches of the world's top players. The final was between two Europeans, Tayfun Tasdemir and Martin Horn, after the world's top players, such as Dick Jaspers and Myung Woo Cho, had been eliminated in the rounds leading up to the finals. The stands were not full on the final day, what was expected. Around 250 spectators came into the arena for the final. That was mainly because there were no more Belgians playing on the final day. Belgian success was limited to a victory for Peter Ceulemans against Blomdahl, while Frédéric Caudron defeated Eddy Merckx in his group but stumbled in the subsequent knockout rounds. The Belgians had a strong squad in the preliminary rounds, but the survivors were few and far between.

Glenn Hofman upheld the Netherlands' reputation after Dick Jaspers was knocked out in the four-man group of the main tournament. Hofman, from The Hague, reached the semifinals after defeating world champion Myung Woo Cho.

Steven van Acker, Beom Yeol Lee, Pedro Gonzalez, and Torbjörn Blomdahl were the top daily winners in the preliminary rounds leading to the main draw with 32 players. Peter De Backer was the best Belgian. Phuong Vinh Bao played his record-breaking match against David Pennör, winning 40-5 in four innings, equaling Dick Jaspers's best match in the record books. Chang Hoon Seo shone in that round with a run of 20.

The halving of the field to 16 for the knockouts meant an early exit for Dick Jaspers, Torbjörn Blomdahl, Eddy Merckx, Jérémy Bury, and Pedro Gonzalez.

Tayfun Tasdemir with 2,142 and Myung Woo Cho with 2,033 were two of the four winners with six match points. Marco Zanetti reached the round of 16 with three draws in his group with three Turks: Gökhan Salman, Berkay, and Omer Karakurt. Bury was eliminated with 1.905 by Tasdemir and Thai.

With sixteen for the knockouts, Tasdemir won against Caudron with 2.272, Hofman against Ceulemans with 2.173, Cho against Zanetti 50-49, and Horn defeated Vietnamese leader Quyet Chien Tran. Of the remaining eight, Tasdemir defeated Legazpi, Bao against Sidhom, Horn against HJ Kim, and Hofman against Myung Woo Cho. Five of the eight players achieved averages over 2 in that round, with Tasdemir being the best with 2.777.

The podium with Tayfun Tasdemir, Martin Horn, the winner, Phuong Minh Bao and Glenn Hofman