What Oved Kraus accomplished in the Unity World League will require the perspective of time to be fully appreciated—both professionally and historically. The gap between the Israeli national team he led to victory at the Grand Prix and the Masters, and the rest of the competition, is simply astonishing: four matches against the very best teams, four victories, 26 goals scored (an average of nearly seven per game), and only four goals conceded—all against Hungary.

"If there was one thing that slightly spoiled my celebrations after the final, it was the fact that we conceded three goals. That had never happened to us before the Masters final. But I took comfort in the fact that we were facing an outstanding, sporting team with a unique character like Hungary. And besides, the historic scoreline brought back memories of the past…"

That is Oved Kraus—the man known as "the uncompromising coach." A perfectionist who always sees the glass half empty and strives for excellence, even in moments when he has every right to relax.

This time, however, his retirement is final. The coach is moving into a representative role within the organization's leadership and will continue supporting his team from the stands.

"I announced my retirement after the Grand Prix, but everyone in the team insisted that I stay. After a great deal of thought, I agreed to take on the challenge of the Masters, knowing it would be incredibly demanding. Now, after what we achieved in Budapest, I truly feel I've reached the end of the road. I'm moving into a management position alongside our chairman, and for the first time I'll be able to simply enjoy watching our wonderful players from the grandstand."

Kraus explained how a team reaches its peak tournament after tournament, even when opponents arrive better prepared and more determined than ever: "I realized that if we wanted to achieve something special at the Masters, we had to refresh the squad. Several new players came in, bringing fresh energy and raising our attacking level even further. Our training sessions in recent months were extremely demanding—almost unbearable for some players—because we worked meticulously on every detail of the style of football we wanted to bring to Budapest. In the end, I'm happy that almost everything worked exactly as planned."

Speaking about his stars, the coach—who was named Most Outstanding Coach for the second time on the Grand Tour—could not hide his admiration: "Ronen Hanzis has been like winning the lottery for both the team and for me personally. When you have a player like him in your lineup, you become a much less worried coach. Of course, Shahack Ben Shabbat had another outstanding tournament—I never expected anything less. Ben Ben Yair, my captain, is the model upon which our entire team was built throughout my tenure. Rom Anav is a tremendous striker whom I worked incredibly hard to bring into the squad. He was followed by Amit Maor, an incredible warrior; Itay Bobo Ashkenazi, whose creativity is exceptional; Afik Gavish, remarkably efficient; and goalkeeper Adir Levi, whose relationship with Avi Israel—who brought so much calmness and stability to the team—was simply fantastic. If you ask me, the genuine support and selflessness within our squad is one of our greatest secrets to success. David 'Dedi' Yitzhak was the only natural centre-back in the squad, and he anchored our entire defense. Guy Shamir was the only player to complete every single minute of the tournament, and he is an invaluable asset to our team. Benel Edri is overflowing with quality. Paulo Moura is like a coach on the pitch. Guy Nudelman is the kind of person you'd gladly go to war with. And, of course, the contributions of Yahav Guetta, Itay Levi, and Ilay Fischer are forever etched in stone. And I haven't even mentioned those who couldn't make it. Tal Bublil, our centre-back, suffered a last-minute injury and we missed him enormously, as well as our regular central defender, Asael Ben Shabbat. He's my real calming influence. We also missed our founding captains, Joey Demos and Daniel Ben Haim. I sincerely hope they'll be important members of the squad again at the next major tournament."

During the Masters closing ceremony, Kraus invited assistant coach Rafi Molcho and chairman Royi Kariv to stand beside him: "Rafi and I have been together for many years. The synergy between us is perfect precisely because we are so different. I'm deeply grateful for our partnership, and I urged him to stay with the team after my departure because the organization needs him. Royi Kariv gave us every resource we dreamed of—and many we never even imagined—to achieve what we did. It's no coincidence that the trophies are displayed in his own home."

And what comes next? What will become of the world's No. 1 team without him? And what does he think about the major changes coming to the World League beginning with the next Grand Prix?
Coach Kraus: "I believe a change in the head coach's position is necessary. Precisely now—at the very top—is the right time for our national team to experience new ideas, a different spirit, and fresh coaching methods. I have absolutely no doubt that this team should continue to hold onto the No. 1 ranking in the world. The truly difficult part is already behind us. Now that such a solid foundation has been built, maintaining it shouldn't be overly complicated. That's especially true considering the changes to the league format, which will expand the tournaments. That's far more comfortable than having to play just two matches with your back against the wall against the two strongest teams in the world, knowing you cannot afford a single mistake and must perform at your absolute peak on two consecutive days. In a Grand Prix with more teams and games, there's room for mistakes, for adjustments, and for long-term planning. It will be a wonderful opportunity for the coach who succeeds me, and I sincerely hope he enjoys the role and manages to match my achievements."

The decorated coach retires with an extraordinary record: 29 matches. 26 victories.
3 draws. Not a single defeat. "It's an absolutely crazy record. But with all due respect, it belongs just as much to every one of my partners on this journey as it does to me."