Sport Lisboa e Benfica is a Portuguese professional football club based in Lisbon whose involvement in European competition dates back 🤶 to the 1950s. As champions of Portugal, Benfica were supposed to participate in the inaugural edition of the European Cup 🤶 in 1955, but they were not invited by the organizers. Two years later, Benfica made their European debut against Sevilla 🤶 in the European Cup, on 19 September 1957.
Benfica won their first European title in 1961, defeating Barcelona to win the 🤶 European Cup, and successfully retained the title in the following year after defeating Real Madrid. After that, they appeared in 🤶 five more finals (1963, 1965, 1968, 1988 and 1990) but did not reconquer the title. Benfica has also reached three 🤶 UEFA Cup/UEFA Europa League finals (1983, 2013 and 2014).
With two consecutive European Cup titles, a Portuguese feat, Benfica are the 🤶 second most decorated Portuguese team in overall UEFA competitions and hold the Portuguese record for most appearances in finals of 🤶 UEFA competitions, with ten appearances. Additionally, their 42 participations in the Champions League (formerly the European Cup) are only surpassed 🤶 by Real Madrid, and as of December 2024, Benfica occupy the eighth place at the competition's all-time ranking.
Benfica's biggest European 🤶 win is 10–0, which came against Stade Dudelange of Luxembourg for the 1965–66 European Cup, and their 18–0 aggregate win 🤶 (8–0 in the first leg) constitutes a European Cup record. Brazilian defender Luisão holds the club record for most appearances 🤶 in Europe, with 124 matches, while Portuguese striker Eusébio is the club's leading European goalscorer, with 56 goals.
Background [ edit 🤶 ]
The first continental competition organised by UEFA was the European Cup in 1955. Conceived by Gabriel Hanot, the editor of 🤶 L'Équipe, as a competition for winners of the European national football leagues, it is considered the most prestigious European football 🤶 competition.[1] That year, Benfica had won the Primeira Divisão, but the European Cup organizers selected Sporting CP to take part 🤶 in the first edition.[2] Another club competition, the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, was established in 1955 and contested in parallel with 🤶 the European Cup. It eventually came under the auspices of UEFA in 1971, who rebranded it as UEFA Cup. Since 🤶 the 2009–10 season, the competition has been known as the UEFA Europa League.[3]
In 1957, Benfica won the league title and 🤶 assured their European debut in the 1957–58 European Cup. The following years, UEFA created additional club competitions. The first, the 🤶 Cup Winners' Cup, was inaugurated in 1960 for the winners of domestic cup competitions. Established in 1973, the UEFA Super 🤶 Cup was originally a match played between the winners of the European Cup and the Cup Winners' Cup. Since 2000, 🤶 it has been contested by the winners of the Champions League (formerly the European Cup) and the Europa League (formerly 🤶 the UEFA Cup).[4]
The Intercontinental Cup was a competition for the winners of the European Cup (the later UEFA Champions League) 🤶 and its South American equivalent, the Copa Libertadores. Established in 1960, the Intercontinental Cup was jointly organised by UEFA and 🤶 the Confederación Sudamericana de Fútbol (CONMEBOL). It ran until 2004, when it was replaced by the FIFA Club World Cup, 🤶 which includes the winners of all six continental confederations' premier club competitions.[5]
Benfica's first European silverware came in 1950 when, managed 🤶 by Ted Smith, they beat French side Bordeaux at the Estádio Nacional in Oeiras, Portugal, to win the Latin Cup. 🤶 Seven years later, the team reached their second and last Latin Cup final, but lost to Alfredo Di Stéfano's Real 🤶 Madrid. After an unsuccessful UEFA competition debut in the 1957–58 European Cup, where they lost to Sevilla in the initial 🤶 round,[8] Benfica hired Hungarian manager Béla Guttmann, who led the team to their first ever European Cup final on 31 🤶 May 1961. Having overcome Hearts, Újpest Dózsa, AGF Aarhus and Rapid Wien, Benfica faced Barcelona in the final, where goals 🤶 from José Águas, Mário Coluna and an own goal from Antoni Ramallets helped the club lift its first European Cup.[10] 🤶 The following year, Guttmann guided the team to back-to-back European Cup successes. After defeating Austria Wien, 1. FC Nürnberg and 🤶 Tottenham Hotspur,[12] Benfica met Real Madrid in the final on 2 May 1962. A hat-trick from Ferenc Puskás put the 🤶 Spanish champions ahead before half-time, but a double from Coluna and rising star Eusébio overturned the score to 5–3.[13][14]
After consecutive 🤶 European Cup wins, Guttmann reportedly approached the club's board of directors asking for a pay rise. As his demand was 🤶 turned down, he left the club and reportedly professed his alleged curse.[15] Benfica replaced him with Fernando Riera, and while 🤶 the Chilean manager led the team to a third-straight European Cup final, he was unable to emulate Guttmann's success. On 🤶 25 May 1963, against Milan, Benfica's chances were slim after a harsh tackle from Gino Pivatelli severely debilitated Coluna.[16] In 🤶 a time when substitutions did not exist, Benfica played the rest of the match crippled, and two second-half goals from 🤶 José Altafini sent the trophy to Italy.[17][18][19] After a poor performance in the 1963–64 European Cup, Benfica returned to the 🤶 final in the following season. Led by Romanian manager Elek Schwartz, Benfica eliminated Real Madrid 5–1 in the quarter-finals on 🤶 their way to meet the holders Inter Milan in the final, played at Inter's home ground, San Siro, in a 🤶 muddy and waterlogged pitch. A mistake from Alberto da Costa Pereira, allowing a shot from Jair to pass between his 🤶 legs, cost Benfica their second attempt at a European Cup treble.[21]
The following season, Benfica defeated Stade Dudelange 18–0 on aggregate, 🤶 establishing a European record for biggest win on aggregate.[22] However, at a later stage of the competition, they conceded a 🤶 record home defeat to Manchester United and were eliminated. After one year competing in the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, Benfica returned 🤶 to the European Cup and reached their fifth final in 1968. After eliminating Juventus 3–0 in the semi-finals, Benfica faced 🤶 Manchester United at Wembley Stadium on 29 May 1968. Bobby Charlton opened the score, but Jaime Graça equalised on the 🤶 79th minute. Near the end of regular time, Eusébio squandered a one-on-one chance against Alex Stepney and the match went 🤶 to extra time, where three goals in eight minutes gave the English side their first European title.[25] The following season, 🤶 Benfica were stopped in the quarter-finals by Ajax after a replay in Paris. As in the previous season's final, Benfica 🤶 conceded three goals during extra time and were eliminated.[27] In 1969–70, Benfica fell in the second round against Scottish team 🤶 and eventual finalists Celtic in a coin toss decision.[28]
After a mildly successful period in the 1960s, where they stood among 🤶 the top contenders, Benfica lost influence in the European stage in the following decade, as Dutch, German and English teams 🤶 appeared stronger over the Southern European ones. In the 1971–72 European Cup, Benfica lost in the semi-finals to a Johan 🤶 Cruyff-led Ajax on their way to a second consecutive win.[30] They reached the quarter-finals of the 1974–75 European Cup Winners' 🤶 Cup before being eliminated by another Dutch team, PSV Eindhoven. As historic players like Eusébio and Simões left the club, 🤶 Benfica only secured two European Cup quarter-final presences in the late 1970s: in 1975–76 they lost 5–1 to the holders 🤶 Bayern Munich;[32] and in 1977–78 they were knocked out by the defending champions Liverpool with a 6–2 aggregate score.[33]
Competitive record 🤶 [ edit ]
Note: Benfica score is always listed first.
In the beginning of the 1980s, Benfica's domestic dominance had dwindled, leaving 🤶 the team to play in second-level competitions, namely the Cup Winners' Cup and the UEFA Cup. In 1980–81, the team 🤶 reached the Cup Winners' Cup semi-finals but lost to Carl Zeiss Jena from East Germany. This performance was bested two 🤶 seasons later, as Benfica reached the 1983 UEFA Cup Final after overcoming a quarter-final bout against a Roma side featuring 🤶 Falcão and Bruno Conti. In the two-legged final, Benfica faced Belgium's Anderlecht. In the first leg, on 4 May 1983, 🤶 Benfica lost in Brussels with a sole goal from Kenneth Brylle. In the second leg, fourteen days later, Benfica manager 🤶 Sven-Göran Eriksson chose not to start Zoran Filipović and João Alves, both undisputed starters, and the team drew 1–1, losing 🤶 another European final.[36] Benfica returned to the European Cup in the following two seasons, but defeats against Liverpool in both 🤶 participations showed that the team was not yet ready to compete with Europe's best teams.[37]
After four seasons, Benfica proved ready 🤶 to challenge for the European Cup in 1987–88. After eliminating teams like Anderlecht and Steaua București, they reached their sixth 🤶 final in the competition, where they met PSV in a match played at Stuttgart's Neckarstadion on 25 May 1988. Following 🤶 a goalless draw at the end of extra time, the match was decided by a penalty shoot-out. The Dutch side 🤶 – fielding five Netherlands national team players that would go on to conquer the UEFA Euro 1988 a month later 🤶 – converted all of their penalty kicks, whereas António Veloso allowed goalkeeper Hans van Breukelen to defend his penalty kick, 🤶 and sealed Benfica's fourth consecutive European Cup final loss.[39] Benfica did not wait long to make another appearance in the 🤶 European Cup's showpiece match, as two years later – and with Swedish manager Eriksson again in charge – a team 🤶 including Brazil's starting centre-backs Ricardo Gomes and Aldair, together with midfielders Valdo and Jonas Thern, eliminated Marseille with a controversial 🤶 handled goal from Vata to reach their seventh European Cup final. Before the final, Eusébio visited Béla Guttmann's grave, asking 🤶 for forgiveness in hope of ending the curse.[41] On 23 May 1990, Benfica faced title holders Milan at Vienna's Praterstadion 🤶 and were unable to prevent Frank Rijkaard to score the winning goal and give the Italian side its fourth and 🤶 second consecutive European Cup title.[42]
In the early 1990s, Benfica took part in the last edition of the European Cup before 🤶 being reformulated and converted into the UEFA Champions League. They reached the tournament's group stage after a successful performance at 🤶 Highbury against Arsenal, with Isaías and Vasili Kulkov scoring in extra time.[43] In the group stage, Benfica ended in third 🤶 place, behind Barcelona and Sparta Prague.[44] In 1992–93, Benfica reached the quarter-finals of the UEFA Cup, beating eventual winners Juventus 🤶 at home (their only loss in the competition), but losing 3–1 in Turin.[45] The following season, Benfica returned to the 🤶 Cup Winners' Cup and reached the semi-finals after a 5–5 aggregate draw against Bayer Leverkusen in the quarter-finals was decided 🤶 on away goals. In Lisbon, Benfica beat Parma 2–1 for the first leg of the semi-finals, with Vítor Paneira even 🤶 missing a penalty. However, in the return leg, centre-back Carlos Mozer was sent off on the 20th minute and the 🤶 team resisted for 55 minutes before Roberto Sensini scored the only goal of the match, which put the Italians through. 🤶 In their debut in the Champions League in 1994–95, Benfica won their group but succumbed to Milan in the knockout 🤶 phase.[47]
In the late 1990s, the club's European performances did not match Benfica's historic record, with only a quarter-final presence in 🤶 the 1996–97 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup as a highlight. The team's performances were subpar, with their lowest peak coming in 🤶 the form of a 7–0 loss against Celta Vigo, Benfica's heaviest European defeat.[49]
Competitive record [ edit ]
Note: Benfica score is 🤶 always listed first.
After missing two seasons of European football for the first time since 1960, Benfica returned to UEFA competition 🤶 in 2003–04. They entered that season's Champions League in the third qualifying round, but defeats against Lazio demoted them to 🤶 the UEFA Cup. There, the team played their first European match at the new Estádio da Luz (3–1 win against 🤶 Molde) and reached the fourth round, where they were eliminated by Inter Milan with a 4–3 away loss.[51] After another 🤶 season without playing in the Champions League, Benfica returned to UEFA's main competition in 2005–06, where they achieved their best 🤶 performance in eleven years. Benfica knocked Manchester United out of the competition in the group stage and eliminated title holders 🤶 Liverpool in the subsequent round, grabbing the club's first-ever win at Anfield. In the quarter-finals, Benfica were eliminated by Barcelona 🤶 after a 2–0 loss at Camp Nou.[53] The next two seasons were fairly similar; in 2006–07 and 2007–08, Benfica finished 🤶 third in the group stage and were demoted to the UEFA Cup, where they reached the quarter-finals.
In 2009–10, Benfica had 🤶 a noteworthy run in the newly created UEFA Europa League, progressing all the way from the play-off round to the 🤶 quarter-finals. Their campaign featured a 5–0 thrashing of English side Everton in the group stage and an aggregate 3–2 defeat 🤶 of Marseille in the round of 16 The following season, Benfica returned to the Champions League, but as in 2006–07 🤶 and 2007–08, they were demoted to the Europa League. This time, however, the team overcame the quarter-final stage to reach 🤶 their first European semi-final in 17 years. In the first ever European match between Portuguese teams, Benfica were surprised by 🤶 Braga and missed the chance to qualify to the final.[56] Benfica improved their European performance in the 2011–12 Champions League, 🤶 progressing all the way to the quarter-finals. In the group stage, Benfica topped their group – knocking Manchester United out 🤶 of European competitions once again – and defeated Zenit Saint Petersbourg in the last 16 before losing 3–1 on aggregate 🤶 to Chelsea.[58]
In the 2012–13 and 2013–14 seasons, Benfica's run in the Champions League was not so successful, but the club 🤶 managed to reach two Europa League finals, the first of them 23 years after their last appearance in a European 🤶 final. Benfica lost the first final on 17 May 2013 to then Champions League holders Chelsea, with a 2–1 injury-time 🤶 header from Branislav Ivanović,[59] and drew 0–0 against Sevilla on 15 May 2014, losing the match penalty shoot-out 4–2.[60] This 🤶 extended the club's run of European final unsuccesses to eight,[61] in a total of ten finals – a domestic record 🤶 that ranked seventh all-time among UEFA clubs in 2014.[62]
In the mid 2010s, Benfica reached the Champions League knockout stage twice 🤶 in a row for the first time. They qualified to the quarter-finals for a 18th time in 2024–16, where they 🤶 lost 3–2 on aggregate to Bayern Munich,[63][64] and were eliminated by Borussia Dortmund in the round of 16 in 2024–17.[65] 🤶 The following season, Benfica did not advance to the later stages of UEFA's prime tournament, setting the worst ever performance 🤶 by a Portuguese team in the competition's group stage, with 6 losses and a negative goal difference of 13.[66][67] Moreoever, 🤶 by losing 5–0 to Basel, they equalled their previous biggest loss in the competition, against Borussia Dortmund in 1963–64.[68]
Competitive record 🤶 [ edit ]
Last updated: 12 December 2024
Note: Benfica score is always listed first.
Records [ edit ]
Eusébio is the Benfica player 🤶 with the highest goal tally in international competitions, with 56 scored.
As of 12 December 2024
Benfica were the first Portuguese side 🤶 to reach the final of the European Cup, the first to win it and the only one to this day 🤶 to win the trophy in consecutive years. In the 1960s, they reached the final five times, more than any other 🤶 team, surpassing Real Madrid and Milan, who reached three finals each.[73] Their ten European finals are also a domestic record,[74] 🤶 and with 42 participations in the Champions League (formerly the European Cup), only Real Madrid has played more seasons in 🤶 the competition.[75]
Most appearances in European competition: Luisão, 127 [49]
Most goals in European competition: Eusébio, 56 [49]
First European match: Sevilla 3–1 🤶 Benfica in the European Cup, on 19 September 1957 [76]
Biggest win: Benfica 10–0 Stade Dudelange in the European Cup, on 🤶 5 October 1965 [49]
First goal in European competition: Francisco Palmeiro, in the 40th minute against Sevilla, on 19 September 1957 🤶 [77]
Biggest defeat: Celta Vigo 7–0 Benfica in the UEFA Cup, on 25 November 1999 [49]
Highest European home attendance: 110,000, against 🤶 Marseille in the European Cup, on 18 April 1990
By competition [ edit ]
By country [ edit ]
S.L. Benfica record in 🤶 continental football by country[80] Country Win%[h] Albania 2 2 0 0 7 0 +7 100.00 Austria 10 6 3 1 🤶 24 8 +16 0 60.00 Belarus 2 2 0 0 4 1 +3 100.00 Belgium 23 14 5 4 41 🤶 20 +21 0 60.87 Brazil 2 0 0 2 4 8 −4 00 0.00 Bulgaria 6 4 2 0 13 🤶 8 +5 0 66.67 Croatia 7 4 2 1 9 2 +7 0 57.14 Cyprus 2 2 0 0 4 🤶 0 +4 100.00 Czech Republic 6 2 3 1 6 5 +1 0 33.33 Denmark 16 14 2 0 36 🤶 9 +27 0 87.50 England 40 11 8 21 55 72 −17 0 27.50 Finland 2 0 1 1 2 🤶 4 −2 00 0.00 France 32 15 9 8 40 31 +9 0 46.88 Germany 51 14 14 23 56 🤶 88 −32 0 27.45 Greece 20 11 2 7 29 23 +6 0 55.00 Hungary 14 9 2 3 37 🤶 13 +24 0 64.29 Iceland 2 1 1 0 8 1 +7 0 50.00 Israel 6 4 0 2 17 🤶 7 +10 0 66.67 Italy 37 11 7 19 41 53 −12 0 29.73 Kazakhstan 2 1 1 0 4 🤶 2 +2 0 50.00 Luxembourg 4 4 0 0 28 2 +26 100.00 Malta 2 2 0 0 10 0 🤶 +10 100.00 Netherlands 29 12 11 6 44 31 +13 0 41.38 Northern Ireland 8 5 3 0 21 7 🤶 +14 0 62.50 Norway 6 5 0 1 11 4 +7 0 83.33 Poland 6 4 2 0 15 4 🤶 +11 0 66.67 Portugal 2 1 0 1 2 2 +0 0 50.00 Republic of Ireland 2 2 0 0 🤶 6 1 +5 100.00 Romania 12 7 4 1 13 5 +8 0 58.33 Russia 21 9 4 8 25 🤶 23 +2 0 42.86 Scotland 12 6 3 3 19 14 +5 0 50.00 Serbia 2 1 0 1 4 🤶 3 +1 0 50.00 Slovakia 2 2 0 0 5 0 +5 100.00 Slovenia 4 3 1 0 17 2 🤶 +15 0 75.00 Spain 29 7 9 13 32 42 −10 0 24.14 Sweden 8 3 2 3 15 9 🤶 +6 0 37.50 Switzerland 7 3 3 1 14 8 +6 0 42.86 Turkey 17 7 6 4 28 15 🤶 +13 0 41.18 Ukraine 16 10 2 4 29 9 +20 0 62.50 Uruguay 3 1 0 2 2 7 🤶 −5 0 33.33
Finals [ edit ]
UEFA competitions [ edit ]
Other international competitions [ edit ]
UEFA competitions [ edit ]
Other international 🤶 competitions [ edit ]
See also [ edit ]
Notes [ edit ]
References [ edit ]
Bibliography
