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S.L. Benfica

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Benfica
Logo
Full nameSport Lisboa e Benfica
Nickname(s)As Águias (The Eagles)
O Glorioso (The Glorious One)
Encarnados (The Reds)
Founded28 February1904
GroundEstádio do Sport Lisboa
e Benfica (Estádio da Luz),
Lisbon, Portugal
Capacity65,647
ChairmanPortugal Luís Filipe Vieira
ManagerPortugal Fernando Santos
LeagueBWINLIGA
2006-07Liga, 3rd

Sport Lisboa e Benfica (pron. IPA [spɔɾ liʒ'boɐ i bɐ̃ĩ'fikɐ]; commonly referred to as simply Benfica, S.L. Benfica and in many fan anthems as SLB, pron. IPA [ɛsɨ ɛɫɨ be]) is an eclectic multisports club based in Lisbon, Portugal, best known for its football team.

The club was formed as a result of a merger in 1908 between Sport Lisboa, founded in 1904, and Grupo Sport Benfica. Also known to its fans by the nickname "Glorioso" (Glorious One), Benfica is, along with Sporting Clube de Portugal and F.C. Porto, one of the "big three" football clubs in Portugal.

As a club oriented to multiple sports, Benfica fields teams in basketball, rink hockey, futsal, volleyball, handball, rugby, cycling, athletics, and others. In total, Benfica has won several international titles in these sports, namely: the rink hockey CERS Cup in 1991, three Iberian Cups, one Torneio Ibérico in rugby, five athletics European Cups, one Iberian Cup in Women's Futsal (2007), one World Cup Clubs in Beach Soccer (2007), and one Iberian Cup in Beach Soccer (2003).

SL Benfica has the biggest fan base among Portuguese clubs, having also the largest number of supporters outside of Portugal for a Portuguese club, with a total of 14 million Benfica's supporters worldwide.[1] It is also the biggest club in the world in number of associates (registered paying supporters), with a current (November 2006) number of 160,398, a fact which was attested by the Guinness Book of Records on November 10 2006.[2]

Symbols

The emblem is composed of an eagle, a shield in the club colours of red and white, and the acronym SLB for "Sport Lisboa e Benfica" over a football, all superimposed over a bicycle wheel, which was taken from the Grupo Sport Benfica emblem. The club motto is E Pluribus Unum, "Out of many, one". [3]

Before every home match, an actual eagle named Vitória flies from one side of the Estádio da Luz to the other. [4]

It is said to be the only club in the world whose official anthem is sung by a tenor, Luís Piçarra, and the classic musician Antonio Vitorino d'Almeida has written a symphony to commemorate the club's first 100 years.

History

The emblem of Benfica at the entrance to the stadium

Early years (1904-1960)

Benfica have been a dominant force in Portuguese football since the 1930s and are record holders of the national championship and cup titles.

The Golden Era (1960-1970)

Benfica was the first team to break Real Madrid's dominance in the early European Champions' Cup. Having won two European Cups in a row against FC Barcelona (1961) and Real Madrid (1962).

During this decade Benfica would reach another 3 European Champions' Cup, but the Lisbon club never managed to win a European trophy again. Having lost against A.C. Milan (1963), Internazionale (1965), Manchester United (1968).

In 1968, Benfica was considered the best European team by France Football despite its defeat in the Champions Cup. Many of its successes in the 1960s were achieved with all-time football great Eusébio playing for the Lisbon side. In fact, the 60's were the best period of Benfica history, in which the club won an astonishing 8 Championships, 3 Portuguese Cups and 2 European Champions Cup.

(1970-1994)

During the 1970s, the team faded slightly from the European scene, but remained the main force inside Portuguese football, winning 6 championships and 2 Portuguese cups. The championship of 72/73 was won without a single defeat (30 games, 28 victories and only 2 draws), an unbroken record in Portuguese football history.

The club had some problems in the late 70s, early 80s, but managed to stand up to his standards again, this time under the guidance of Sven-Göran Eriksson. In 2 years (1983 and 1984) the club won 2 championships, 1 Portuguese cup and reached the final of the UEFA Cup in 1983 against Anderlecht.

In 1985 the board decided to close the third level in the Estádio da Luz, which transformed the stadium into one of the biggest in Europe, with a standing room capacity of 120.000 and in 1987 Benfica won another double (championship+Portuguese cup), an achievement done for the 9º time in their history.

During the period 1988-94 Benfica made a huge financial investment in order to win another European cup, but failed to the expectations, although reaching the European cup final for 2 times, Benfica wound once again fail in the final against PSV Eindhoven (1988) and AC Milan (1990). Internally Benfica won 3 more championships (1989, 1991 and 1994) and 1 Portuguese cup (1993).

(1994-present)

But due to this effort, financial problems began undermining the club. This problem, along with a questionable signing policy, which included squads composed of well over 30 players, resulted in the biggest crisis of Benfica History. In the period 1994-2003 Benfica only won one Portuguese cup (96), and finished in embarrassing positions like 6º in 00/01 or 4º in 01/02. The debts were acumulating, and almost every year Benfica had a new coach and a lot of new (but not very good) players.

In 2004 the club regained some of its sporting prowess, with a new president and the manager Jose Antonio Camacho, winning the first title in eight years (the Portuguese cup, won against Mourinho's FCPorto in the final), and in 2004–2005 the first national championship in eleven years, this time with Giovanni Trapattoni as coach. In 2005/2006 Benfica won the Portuguese supercup for the 4º time.

In the 2005-06 Champions League, Benfica managed to reach the quarter-finals, defeating Manchester United by 2-1 in the decisive group stage encounter, and then overcoming the 2005 European champions Liverpool F.C. with a 3-0 aggregate. However, Benfica would be eliminated in the Quarter Finals to the eventual winners F.C. Barcelona by an aggregate of 2-0, both goals coming in the second leg in Camp Nou.

Benfica play their home games in the Estadio da Luz. It is one of Europe's largest sporting stadiums and hosted the many games during the Euro 2004 competition, most notably hosting the final. For that purpose it had been completely rebuilt and as an official capacity of 65.000 seats.

Stadium

A view inside Benfica's stadium
A view outside Benfica's stadium
Main article: Estádio da Luz

The Estádio da Luz (pron. IPA: [(ɨ)ʃ'tadiu dɐ luʃ]), officially named the Estádio do Sport Lisboa e Benfica and commonly mistranslated as "Stadium of Light", is a football stadium in Lisbon, Portugal, the home of SL Benfica. It is also called A Catedral ("The Cathedral") by Benfica's supporters.

Luz is actually the area of Lisbon in which the Estádio da Luz stands and the word luz happens to also mean "light". Hence the misnomer "Stadium of Light" in English usage. The Stadium of Light in Sunderland, England may well have been inspired by this Lisbon incorrect nickname, though it has other well established reasons for bearing the name.

It hosted several matches in the 2004 European Football Championship, including the final. The previous Benfica stadium (also called "Estádio da Luz" and one of the largest stadiums in the world with 120,000 seats) was demolished and the new one was built for the tournament with a capacity of 65,400.

Training center and youth academy

Benfica has state-of-the-art training facilities in Seixal. The complex is called Caixa Futebol Campus, named for sponsoring reasons after Caixa Geral de Depósitos which is the largest banking corporation of Portugal. It is here that the professional team trains daily and also the home of all Benfica's youth academy. [5]

Supporters

In Portugal, a majority of the population who likes competitive football, are said to be Benfica sympathisers. Almost every municipality of Portugal has its own Casa do Benfica (House of Benfica), which can also be found in many cities and towns of countries worldwide (Andorra, Angola, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Cape Verde, England, France, Germany, Guinea-Bissau, Luxembourg, Macao, South Africa, Switzerland, and United States).[6]

Since the 2004-2005 championship, club membership figures have seen a significant increase. In April 2006 the number of club members surpassed 150,000.[1] In July 2006, S.L. Benfica had 153,000 members, 1,000 more than Manchester United. S.L. Benfica is since 2006, the club with the most associates (registered paying supporters) in the world, with over 160,000 members.

Like all major Portuguese football clubs, Benfica have an organized group of supporters (claque, in Portugal), including the Diabos Vermelhos (Red Devils), which is affiliated with the club, and the No Name Boys, which maintains an independent line.

Benfica has also the highest average attendance in Portuguese top league with about 39 thousand supporters in the last season. [7]

Organization and finances

Sport Lisboa e Benfica is organized by sports department and has a number of specific businesses. The holding company for all Sport Lisboa e Benfica's departments and businesses is the Sport Lisboa e Benfica SGPS, S.A. that has participations in all branches and businesses of the club.

Sport Lisboa e Benfica - Futebol, S.A.D., the football department, is the largest by number of athletes, allocated budget, attendance and sponsoring contract's receipts. Portuguese stock market authority CMVM approved in 2007 the Benfica's prospectus for the initial public offering (IPO) for up to 15 mln shares in the Futebol, S.A.D., a 33% free-float. Sport Lisboa e Benfica - Futebol, S.A.D. (ticker: SLBEN) debuted on Euronext Lisbon on 22 May 2007 and is since then a publicly traded company. In June 2007, after the share price has fallen from an initial 5€/share to nearly 2,69€/share, Portuguese businessman Joe Berardo made a takeover offer of 60% of the stock for 3,5€/share. Benfica's president Luís Filipe Vieira refused the offer saying "Benfica will always have the majority of the stock".[8]

During the 2005-06 season, SL Benfica was ranked 20th in the Deloitte Football Money League with an estimated revenue of €85.1 million, being the third in the Iberian Peninsula behind only Spain's Real Madrid and F.C. Barcelona, and becoming the first Portuguese football club to appear in the Money League.

In the last five years Benfica more than double their revenues.

Benfica's revenue sources and percentages:

The other sports departments have their own budget policy, sponsoring contracts and government bodies. Although being traditionally referred to as "the amateur sports departments", many of their main competitive teams are composed of full-time professional athletes and coaches. They develop also instructional and youth sport programmes at both men's and women's sports events.

The businesses include a network of Benfica's merchandising shops (Loja do Benfica) across the country, the online shop and Benfica's stadium management. Other projects like a pay per view S.L. Benfica TV channel, a radio station and even a motorsports team have been discussed and are possibilities for the future.

Structure:

  • Sport Lisboa e Benfica (the sports club)
  • Sport Lisboa e Benfica – Futebol, SAD (company for football) - 40% owned by Sport Lisboa e Benfica; 10,04% owned by Sport Lisboa e Benfica, SGPS, SA
  • Sport Lisboa e Benfica, SGPS, SA (holding company)
  • Sport Lisboa e Benfica – Multimédia, SA (multimedia)
  • Benfica Estádio – Construção e Gestão de Estádios, SA (stadium management)
  • Sport Lisboa e Benfica – Comercial – Gestão e Exploração da Marca Benfica, SA (brand management/merchandising)

Notable figures

File:Eusebio.jpg
Eusébio greatest portuguese player

Some notable personalities in S.L. Benfica's football history include:

  • Eusébio: The days of the Portuguese international Eusébio were Benfica's most glory filled years. In 1962, he won the Champions Cup, scoring two goals in the final against Ferenc Puskás and Alfredo Di Stéfano's Real Madrid. Benfica won 5-3. He scored 46 goals for Portugal in 64 appearances, and hit 317 goals in 291 League games for Benfica. He was the leading scorer in the 1966 World Cup where he scored nine goals, four of those against North Korea. He was the 1965 European Footballer of the Year, and in 1968 was the first winner of the Golden Boot Award, as Europe's leading scorer, a feat he repeated five years later. The Portuguese Liga's top scorer seven times from 1964 to 1973, he helped Benfica to 11 league championships and 5 cup wins. He scored an outrageous 727 goals in 715 matches wearing Benfica's jersey. Eusébio was the all-time leading scorer for his country, with 41 goals (in 64 matches), until Pauleta surpassed his record against Latvia on October 12, 2005. His last game for the Selecção was a 2-2 draw with Bulgaria on October 19, 1973 in a World Cup qualifier. There is a statue of Eusebio at the main entrance of the Estádio da Luz.
  • Mário Coluna: was a Mozambican-born Portuguese footballer, perhaps the best midfielder his country has ever had. His footballer nickname is O Monstro Sagrado (The Sacred Monster). In 1999, he was voted 60th in the European Player of the Century election held by the IFFHS ahead of Gunnar Gren. He moved to Benfica in 1954/55, were he played until 1969/70. He won 10 National Championships, and 6 Portuguese Cups. He won the European Cup twice with Benfica, in 1961 and 1962, and also played in the finals of 1963, 1965 and 1968, this last time as the captain. He played 57 times for the Portugal national team, scoring 8 goals.
  • Bela Guttmann: This Hungarian coach arrived at Benfica in 1959 and led the club to the Portuguese title in his very first year. Better then that, in the following two years, with a team that included Eusébio, José Águas, José Augusto, Costa Pereira, António Simões, Germano and Mário Coluna, the club won the European Cup twice in a row. In 1961 they beat Barcelona 3-2 in the final and in 1962 they retained the title, coming from 2-0 and 3-2 down to beat Real Madrid 5-3. But after this game he decided to leave the club, because of monetarial controversy with the Benfica directors and that's when, the legend says, he cursed the club: "Not in a hundred years from now, will Benfica win a European Cup again.". The truth is that despite being finalists on six occasions - 1963 (A.C. Milan, 1-2 in Wembley), 1965 (Inter Milan, 0-1 in San Siro), 1968 (Manchester United, 1-4 AET in Wembley), 1983 (Anderlecht, 0-1 in Belgium, 1-1 in Portugal), 1988 (PSV Eindhoven, in Neckarstadion 0-0 , 5-6 pk) and 1990 (AC Milan 0-1, in Ernst Happel Stadion) - Benfica have never won any European competition again. In fact, before the 1990 final, which was played in Vienna, where Guttmann was buried, Eusébio prayed at his grave to ask for the curse to be broken. It wasn't.
  • Humberto Coelho: Considered by many as the best Portuguese defender of all times, Humberto played for Benfica from 1968/69 to 1974/75, and from 1977/78 to 1984/85. He won 8 National Champion titles and 7 Portuguese Cups and was Portuguese Footballer of the Year in 1974. Unfortunately he never played in a major competition (he had a chance in 84 but had a terrible injury). He was compared by his coaches (Pavic, Baroti, Hagan) to Franz Beckenbauer. Later, he coached Portugal in a spectacular campaign in the Euro 2000.
  • Manuel Bento: Probably the greatest Portuguese keeper ever after Vítor Baía. Since his debut in the Selecção until his last game against England in the World Cup 1986 he played 63 of the 65 games that the national team played since his debut. He played more than 400 games for Benfica. He was considered one of the best keepers of the Euro 84 specially after a spectacular exhibition against France (2-3). He was hired in 1972 and ended his career in 1991.
  • José Torres: The Bom Gigante (Good Giant) made a legacy that no one can forget. He and Eusébio made one of the more lethal duos of the 60's, and scored the goal that granted the bronze medal in 1966. He was the coach of the Portuguese team in the World Cup 1986 and before the miracle of Stuttgart he asked the press to let him dream of an impossible win against the powerful Germany; and eventually, Carlos Manuel, against all odds, scored the goal that made that dream possible.
  • José Augusto: The Portuguese Garrincha, considered in the 60's one of the best right wingers of the world by the European press. He scored the goal in the first Portuguese win against Brazil and was known for his speed and dribbling and for being a good scorer. He was part of the "Fabulous Five" of Benfica (Coluna, José Augusto, António Simões, José Torres and Eusébio)
  • António Simões: One of the greatest left wingers the world has met. With 18 years he was part of the team that beat 5-3 Real Madrid at the 1962 Champions Cup Final and the Portuguese team of "Magriços" in the 1966 World Cup. Known for his perfect assists to Eusébio, even today many say that more than half of the Black Panther goals belong as well to Simões.
  • Diamantino Miranda: Even today Benfica supporters still cry of his absence in the Stuttgart Champions Cup Final of 88, specially because before his injury against Vitória Guimarães he was in a spectacular form. Known for his fantasy, Diamantino was also known for being a rebel but always giving his best for the team.
  • José Águas: The legendary captain that won and had the destiny of rising the most important cup of Benfica history. Known for being a spectacular header and a tireless worker, Águas marked an era and confessed years later that he played football like it was a normal job. His son, Rui Águas, who played for FC Porto in 1988 and return to Benfica in 1990, scored 2 goals against Steaua Bucaresti in the 1988 Champions Cup semi-final to take Benfica to the final after 20 years of absence.
  • António Veloso: One of the few players that surpassed 500 games for Benfica in all competitions. Known for being resourceful, he played in various positions throughout his career. Veloso was the player that was most times team captain and bearer of the "Mística". He was the player who missed the penalty kick in the penalty shootout of the 1988 Champions Cup Final, and he missed the 1990 Final due to seeing a yellow card in the semi-final against Marseille, after fouling a player that was about to score a goal that would prevent Benfica from reaching the final.
  • Shéu Han: The red general, of Mozambican and Chinese heritage, Shéu Han played more than 400 times for Benfica and was known for his finesse in the game. He scored the goal in the 1983 UEFA Cup final that didn't prevent Anderlecht from winning the trophy. Even today he is the team secretary and very popular among the fans.
  • Toni: Known as "The Bearer of the Mística", Toni was known in-game as a force of nature, due to his stamina and strength. Captain and coach, he is the man that represented Benfica more times than anyone else with nearly 400 games as a player and 300 as a coach. He guided the team to great games like Leverkusen(4-4) or Sporting (6-3 in alvalade).His stint in 2001-2002 didn't go well and many said thath was because he didn't evolved in his coaching skills.Even the less he still his considered a legend.
  • Rogério: The Pipi was one of the first legends of Benfica and has the record for more goals in the portuguese cups and was part of the Benfica team that won the first international cup, the Latin Cup. He made with Arsénio a great duo.
  • Otto Glória: The man that brought professionalism to Benfica in the 50's and many said that without his influence in the structure, no Champions Cup would be won. Using the 4-4-2 tactic, imported from Brazil, as well as new training techniques, the Brazilian master shaped Benfica in such a way that he granted the pillars to Portuguese domination and international rising.
  • Jimmy Hagan: Invincible should be his name, after winning the Portuguese Championship in 1972/73 with an unbeaten run (28 wins and 2 draws, with 22 of those victories in a row). He won 3 titles (70-73) and created a team that rivaled with none in Portugal.
  • Borges Coutinho: The most notorious president of Benfica. He led the club from 1969 to 1977 and in that period the club won 6 championships and 3 Portuguese cups, maintaining the club finances in a very good state.
  • Chalana: His first appearance in the senior team was at the age of 17 years old. He played in the club from 1975/76 to 1983/84 and 1987/88 to 1989/90 and won 6 championships and 3 Portuguese cups. The peak of his career was at Euro 84, where he was one the leading figures of the National Team that reached the semi-finals.
  • Sven-Göran Eriksson: Success at other clubs in Sweden got him into a bigger job in Portugal as he took over Benfica. While at Benfica Eriksson had what many considerer a quick impact at the Estádio da Luz when in his first season he won the Portuguese Championship, the Portuguese cup and finished runner-up in the 1983 UEFA Cup. After a second Championship the following year, Eriksson moved to Italy with A.S. Roma where he won the Coppa Italia in 1986. In 1989 Benfica once again was where the Swedish coach began using his managing power. In 1990 Sven led Benfica to the European Cup final with players like prolific striker Mats Magnusson, and where they were runners-up to A.C. Milan, Sven also won another league title in 1991.
  • Michel Preud'homme: was a famous goalkeeper from Belgium known for his great saves. Preud'homme was also at his best while at Benfica. He was the first keeper ever to win the prestigious Yashin Award for his terrific saves in the net, during the 1994 World Cup where he was part of the most valuable players (MVP's). He signed for Benfica after that World Cup, and won the Cup of Portugal in 1996 with the team. He was considered by many people the best goalkeeper at the time, an icon in his native Belgium and Benfica.
  • Rui Costa: Known as The Maestro by Benfica fans, has a life long love affair with the club. He arrived at the club as a 10 year old, and debuted at 20 years old with the senior team in 1991. He spent more 3 years at the club winning one Portuguese league and one Portuguese cup. He then moved to Fiorentina in the biggest transfer of Portuguese football, back then. A famous episode took place when he returned to Estadio da Luz to a friendly between Benfica and Fiorentina, and after he scored a goal for the Italians, he started to cry, as the Benfica fans cheered in applauses. In 2006 he returned to Benfica.

Historical results

  • Benfica-7 Madrid Football Club-0 in 1913: Still not known by the royal name, the Spanish side traveled to Portugal, after being invited to play against Lisbon clubs. In January 26th, despite being in his dawn of international games, Benfica would achieve one of the heaviest defeats ever of Real Madrid's international historic record.
  • Benfica-12 FC Porto-2 in 1943: in the 5th round of the 1942\43 national championship, FC Porto suffered their biggest defeat ever in the championships. Julinho scored four times, Manuel da Costa, Valadas and Teixeira twice and Francisco Ferreira one. Alfredo scored and own goal. At half time, the score was 4-0. Benfica would eventually win the title in the end.
  • Benfica-7 Sporting-2 in 1946: The longest series of consecutive defeats (5) against the historical rival ended in style, in the 18th round of the 1945\46 championship. Both Arsénio and Mário Rui achieved a hat-trick while Rogério scored one goal. It was the first time in History either team scored more than 5 goals against the other.
  • Benfica-2 Girondins Bordeux-1 in 1950: Breaking an unprecedent four years hiatus by winning the 1949\50 national league championships, the club played the recently formed Latin Cup, held in Portugal, in the national stadium. Surpassing S.S. Lazio in semi-finals, Benfica met the French champions, Bordeux, in the final game. The final 3-3 result after extra time obliged both teams to play another game, one week later. In June 18th, 1950, Benfica won 2-1, with a goal from Julinho, on the 146th minute, after a late tie in the regular time. The game was added 30 minutes scheduled in extra time which didn't produce any goals, followed by a 10-minute extra period until one of the teams scored the winning goal. With 266 minutes in total, this was easily one of the longest finals in Football History. It was the very first international success of Benfica as well as the Portuguese football.
  • Heart Of Midlothian-1 SL Benfica-2 in 1960: The first victory of Benfica in the European Champion Clubs' Cup, and also in UEFA competitions, in the second time that Benfica competed. Considering all Portuguese clubs´ poor behaviour in the first five years, as only once the first round was surpassed, the expectations were not very high at start; however, Guttmann's strong personality made Benfica's directors formally agree to pay money awards if the club won the cup, something no one imagined possible. But in the 29th of September, 1960, in Edinburgh's Tynecastle Park, home of the Scottish champions, goals from José Águas and José Augusto were turning a dream into reality. On the return match (victory by 3-0), the famous third tier of the Stadium of Light was inaugurated, on his first expansion phase, increasing the crowd-capacity to seventy thousand.
  • Benfica-3 Barcelona-2 in 1961: For the first time, Benfica reached an European Cup final in 1960/61. Their opposition was the giant and highly favorited Barcelona. Benfica defeated Barca 3-2, becoming the first club to win the European Cup besides Real Madrid, who had won the previous 5 finals.
  • Benfica-5 Real Madrid-3 in 1962: In 61/62 Benfica reached the European Cup final again, in one of the most anticipated finals of all time: The current champions against the former 5 times winners Real Madrid. With Eusébio on one side and Di Stéfano on the other. The game was a very emotional one, with Benfica coming from 2-0 and 3-2 down to beat Real Madrid 5-3 and becoming European champions for the second time in a row. Eusébio scored 2 goals in this historic victory. As twice European champion, Benfica proved such success wasn't random, but a long-term effort, established since Otto Gloria's arrival at the club in 1954.
  • Benfica-5 Real Madrid-1 in 1965: Game for the 1/4 finals of the 1964/65 Champions Cup's season and Benfica demolished the Spanish giants, with Eusébio scoring 2 goals. It was an attendance record in Portugal, only estimated at seventy thousand, certainly a number incorrectly quantified, because extra seats were mounted, increasing crowd figures near 85-90 thousand. Despite expensive tickets, it has been said that if there were enough seats to 300 thousand people, the Stadium would also be sell-out. Benfica was at top form in Europe, probably the best ever, and the career was promising a happy ending.
  • Internazionale-1 Benfica-0 in 1965 : The fourth European Cup final in five years was a succession of misfortune incidents, and the defeat was considered a "glorious one" by some newspapers. The game was held at Milan Stadium, San Siro, home of |Inter. Furthermore, it rained severely, and in a muddied field, the higher technical skills of Benfica players were conditioned, helping the Italian catenaccio side. In the 42th minute, Benfica's keeper Costa Pereira easily conceded a goal. In the 57th minute, the Benfica's keeper was out of the game, seriously injured (he returned to Lisbon in a wheel-chair), being replaced by the central defenderGermano. Eusébio was also physically down, and received special treatment prior to the game. Despite of the bad luck, Benfica dominated by far the game. Benfica's president conceded later the game's prize to the Portuguese players, as well as a symbolical trophy to the club, considering Benfica the "morally victorious" side of this strange final.
  • Ajax-1 Benfica-3 in 1969: Counting for the first leg of 1968\69 Champion's Cup´ quarter-finals, Benfica won in a heavily snowed field, beating Johan Cruijff ´s side with a great performance. This win is historically significant, as Benfica was the first club in Europe to be able to defeat the Amsterdam team in his homeland for UEFA competitions, and was the only European club to achieve such success for a long time: Ajax wouldn't lose another European match at home until September 1981, in the first round of 1981\82 Cup Winners' Cup edition, when Tottenham Hotspur beat them 2-1. Despite the important victory, Benfica didn't secure the two goals advantage, losing by the same score in the return match in Lisbon, and by 0-3 after extra time in Paris, in the decision match, not managing to follow to the semi-final for the sixth time in nine years.
  • Benfica-5 Feyenoord-1 in 1972: In the first hand, Benfica had lost 0-1 to Feyenoord, but in the return leg, Benfica were able to win 5-1, with 3 goals scored in the last 10 minutes.
  • Benfica-6 FCPorto-0 in 1972: Game for the 1/4 finals of the Portuguese Cup. And it was one of the biggest victories of Benfica over rivals FC Porto.
  • Benfica-5 Sporting-0 in 1978: A very famous victory of Benfica over the all-time-rivals Sporting. At half-time Benfica were already winning 5-0.
  • Benfica-5 Sporting-0 in 1986: Game for the 1/4 finals of the Portuguese Cup and Benfica were able to equal the victory of 1978.
  • Benfica-2 Steaua-0 in 1988: 2ª hand of the semi-finals of the Champions Cup of the 87/88 season. With an astonishing attendance of 120.000, Benfica won 2-0 at Gheorghe Hagi's Steaua and reached the final.
  • Benfica-1 Marseille-0 in 1990: 2ª hand of the semi-finals of the Champions Cup of the 89/90 season. In France, Benfica had lost 1-2 and in this game, Benfica scored the winning goal, only five minutes to the end, in a polemic goal. Vata scored with his hand, which wasn't spotted by the official.
  • Leverkusen-4 Benfica-4 in 1994: One of the most emotional matches of Benfica's History. A total of eight goals in the end of this game, as Benfica got the passport to the semi-finals of the Cup winners Cup.
  • Sporting-3 Benfica-6 in 1994: In the game that decided the 93/94 championship, Benfica made one of the best performances of all times, winning in an astonishing way in the home of their arch-rivals.
  • Sporting-1 Benfica-4 in 1998: Another famous victory of Benfica over Sporting.
  • Benfica-2 Manchester United-1 in 2005: For the first time, Benfica were able to defeat Man Utd, gaining the right to play the next round of the Champions League, and even more impressive: leaving Man Utd out of European competitions for the season.
  • Liverpool-0 Benfica-2 in 2006: Benfica is one of the few European clubs that can proudly say that were able to defeat Liverpool at Anfield. A historical victory, against then, the current Champions League holders.

Team honours

From 1922-1938 the Portuguese Championship was carried out as a knock-out competition. In 1934, an experimental and unofficial League Championship (Campeonato da I Liga) was introduced. This tournament was the precursor of the Portuguese League which started with the 1938-1939 season. The previous format continued in renamed form as the cup competition.

National

Fans invade in downtown Lisbon
Invasion of the field for the commemorations of the 2004/05 championship
  • Portuguese League (I Divisão, I Liga, Superliga, Liga): 31
    • Winners: 1935/36 1936/37 1937/38 1941/42 1942/43 1944/45 1949/50 1954/55 1956/57 1959/60 1960/61 1962/63 1963/64 1964/65 1966/67 1967/68 1968/69 1970/71 1971/72 1972/73 1974/75 1975/76 1976/77 1980/81 1982/83 1983/84 1986/87 1988/89 1990/91 1993/94 2004/05;
    • Runners-up (24):
  • Portuguese Cup: 24
    • Winners: 1939/40 1942/43 1943/44 1948/49 1950/51 1951/52 1952/53 1954/55 1956/57 1958/59 1961/62 1963/64 1964/65 1968/69 1969/70 1971/72 1979/80 1980/81 1982/83 1984/85 1985/86 1986/87 1992/93 1995/96 2003/04
    • Runners-up (9):
  • Cup Ribeiro dos Reis: (between 1961-1962 and 1970-1971): 3
    • Winners: 1963/64, 1965/66, 1970/71
    • Runners-up (-):

European

  • Latin Cup: 1
    • Winners: 1950
    • Runners-up (1): 1957

Retired numbers

S.L. Benfica has retired the number of Hungarian player Miklós Fehér, who died of cardiac arrhythmia in January 2004 after falling unconscious during a match for the Portuguese Liga.

Current squad

As of July 16, 2007.

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK Portugal POR José Moreira
3 DF Brazil BRA Anderson
4 DF Brazil BRA Luisão
5 DF Brazil BRA Léo
6 MF Portugal POR Petit
7 FW Paraguay PAR Oscar Cardozo
8 MF Greece GRE Konstantinos Katsouranis
9 FW Angola ANG Pedro Mantorras
10 MF Portugal POR Rui Costa
11 DF Portugal POR Miguelito
12 GK Portugal POR Quim
13 DF Serbia SRB Sreten Sretenović
No. Pos. Nation Player
16 FW Portugal POR Fábio Coentrão
17 DF Ivory Coast CIV Marco Zoro
18 FW Portugal POR Manú
19 FW Argentina ARG Gonzalo Bergessio
20 MF Portugal POR Simão Sabrosa (captain)
21 FW Portugal POR Nuno Gomes (vice-captain)
22 DF Portugal POR Nélson
23 DF Brazil BRA David Luiz
24 GK Germany GER Hans-Jörg Butt
25 MF Portugal POR Nuno Assis
27 FW China CHN Yu Dabao
37 MF Portugal POR Manuel Fernandes

Squad changes 2007/08 season

In:

Out:

Out on loan:

Out - end of loan:

Junior Team "A"

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
- GK Portugal POR Daniel Casaleiro
- GK Portugal POR João Ribeiro
- GK Portugal POR Rui Santos
- DF Portugal POR André Magalhães
- DF Portugal POR Edgar Martins
- DF Portugal POR Miguel Vítor
- DF Portugal POR Flávio Silva
- DF Portugal POR André Casaca
- DF Slovenia SVN Gregor Balazic
- DF Portugal POR Nuno Ferreira
- DF Portugal POR Ruben Lima
- DF Ghana GHA Jerry Akaminko
No. Pos. Nation Player
- MF Slovenia SVN Dalibor Stojanovic
- MF Cameroon CMR Lassana Camara
- MF Brazil BRA João Alberto
- MF Portugal POR João Ferreira
- MF Australia AUS Kaz Patafta
- MF Portugal POR Miguel Rosa
- MF Portugal POR Romeu Ribeiro
- MF Guinea-Bissau GNB Leocísio Sami
- FW Portugal POR Sérgio Oliveira
- FW Portugal POR André Carvalhas
- FW Portugal POR Bruno Parreira
- FW Portugal POR Carlitos
- FW Serbia SRB Milan Jeremic
- FW Guinea-Bissau GNB Pedro Danilson

Notable former players

The legendary Eusébio, whose statue stands near Benfica's stadium is a symbol of the club and of Portuguese football.

List of notable football players of Benfica's history:

Former coaches

Other sports

Athletics

Main article: SL Benfica (athletics)

Athletics is a sport with a great tradition in Benfica's history. Nowadays, Carlos Calado specialised in the long jump, Vanessa Fernandes specialised in the Triathlon and Nélson Évora with a national record in triple jump, are among Benfica's athletics biggest names. By the number of regional, national and international titles, it is the most successful sport of the club.

Basketball

Main article: SL Benfica (basketball)

S.L. Benfica are a top club in Portugal. One of its most memorable moments was when Benfica's basketball team won an European Cup clash against Italian giants Buckler Bologna, beating the Italians 102-90, in 4 December 1993 at Pavilhão da Luz in Lisbon. However, due to Portugal's popularity in football, basketball is not nearly as popular with the population as football. Just as in football, Benfica has a major rivalry with F.C. Porto's basketball team and it usually leads to arguments between the fans and players. S.L. Benfica have won in his basketball history 20 Portuguese championships, 18 Portuguese cups, 5 League Cups and 7 Portuguese Supercups and are currently one of the best teams in the league.

Billiards

The club has a billiards department whose players compete in the main national and international competitions.

Cycling

Main article: SL Benfica (cycling team)

Cycling was the second modality established within the club, and along with football, is one of only two sports referenced in the club logo. The sport was in activity from 1906 to 1941, 1947 to 1978, and once again for two seasons in 1999 and 2000. Benfica last won the Volta a Portugal in 1999, with Spanish cyclist David Plaza capturing the leader's yellow jersey. Historically, the club has had great national successes in cycling, and after some interruptions and delays, approved in 2006 the re-introduction of a cycling department to start in 2007. The team will join the UCI Professional Continental Division. The Head of this department is the former cyclist Orlando Rodrigues.

Futsal

Main article: SL Benfica (futsal)

Benfica have a professional futsal team since 2002. After spending amounts that could not be spent by other teams except Sporting CP,hiring almost all the best players in Portugal who were not playing in Sporting, the club won, in 5 years, 3 Portuguese championships, 3 Portuguese cups and 2 Portuguese Supercups. Benfica also reached the final of the UEFA Cup in the 2003/04 season.

Women's Futsal:

  • Taça Nacional winner: 2004/2005, 2005/2006
  • Taça Distrital AFL winner: 2004/2005, 2005/2006
  • Campeão Distrital (District of Lisbon Champion): 2004/2005, 2005/2006, 2006/2007
  • Taça Ibérica winner: 2007

Gymnastics

The club has a gymnastics department.

Handball

Main article: SL Benfica (handball)

The Men's Handball honours of Benfica include 6 Portuguese championships, 3 Portuguese cups and 3 Portuguese supercups. The club gave up of the sport between 1997 and 2004. Until the 1992/93 season, the club's variant of seven achieved the 100th trophy mark. 30 of them were conquered by seniors teams.

Judo

European champion in the women's under-52 kg category, Telma Monteiro, has joined Benfica.[9]

Rink hockey

Main article: SL Benfica (rink hockey)

S.L. Benfica is the club in the world who practice this sport for the longest time without interruptions. The team are currently playing in the Primeira Divisão (First Division). The club has won many domestic competitions (20 Portuguese championships, 11 Portuguese Cups and 6 Portuguese Supercups), and European competitions (1 CERS Cup). The club's rink hockey team is considered one of the best in Portugal and rivalizes at national level with F.C. Porto and Óquei Clube de Barcelos rink hockey teams, in Europe they are also a title disputing team although they have only won the second most important cup once, CERS Cup.

Rugby

Benfica have won many Portuguese championships in this sport, with Associação Académica de Coimbra, C.D.U.P., G.D. Direito and C.F. Os Belenenses being other powerful competitors. Benfica have also won the Iberian Cup.

Women's Rugby Champion in 2006/2007.

Skating

In 1917, Sport Lisboa e Benfica increased his sporting conditions with a popular skating rink, after moving to new infrastructures located in Benfica area. The incentive of president Bento Mântua was fundamental for the creation of a rink hockey team and a regular skating team. The rink hockey section would became central, as far as team sports is concern; the skating section also became regular - except between late 1920's and mid 1930's - achieving major records at national level. Speed skating events were also common, and would have later on a section on his own (although ending in 1996, several national track records are still standing today). A figure skating section was also introduced in the club, closing in 1982.

The most remarkable and medalled skater in Benfica's History is Edite Cruz, a sportswoman that is undeniably a symbol of the club. Known in Portugal as "the Queen of Skating", she achieved international recognition, taking part in several events at Europe as well in South America.

Until the closing in 1996, Benfica's skating department won more than one thousand titles, placing this formerly popular sport still in third position in terms of titles won by the club.

Swimming

S.L. Benfica's swimming department is among the best in the world. Benfica's swimmer Alexandre Yokochi is considered the best Portuguese swimmer of all-time. In trophies ranking terms, it is the second most successful sport of the club.[citation needed]

Table tennis

The club has a table tennis department.

Triathlon

World champion Vanessa Fernandes in women's triathlon is currently the most notable athlete of this department.

Volleyball

Main article: SL Benfica (volleyball)

Benfica has gain a certain importance in the Portuguese volleyball in the last years when the club invested amounts to hire a winning team. The club won 3 Portuguese championships (the last one in 2004/05) and 10 Portuguese cups.

Water polo

Benfica's waterpolo only appeared in a few years and as no relevance in Portuguese competitive waterpolo as they have only waterpolo school, for children, and no senior team.

References

  1. ^ http://www.maisfutebol.iol.pt/noticia.php?id=530426 14 million supporters worldwide
  2. ^ http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/gwrday/portugal_teameffort.aspx Benfica's guinness world record
  3. ^ http://www.slbenfica.pt/English/theclub_logo.asp Logo History
  4. ^ http://www.slbenfica.pt/Adeptos/Fotos/adeptos_galeriaimagens_aguiavitoria.asp Eagle Vitória flying in the Estádio da Luz
  5. ^ http://www.slbenfica.pt/Info/Clube/CentroEstagio/centrodeestagio_home.asp Caixa Futebol Campus
  6. ^ Casas e Filiais, Sport Lisboa e Benfica, accessed December 2006
  7. ^ http://www.european-football-statistics.co.uk/attn/current/avepor.htm Benfica's average attendance
  8. ^ http://www.record.pt/noticia.asp?id=748329&idCanal=11 Luís Filipe Vieira about the IPO
  9. ^ http://www.abola.pt/nnh/index.asp?op=ver&noticia=125382&tema=3 Telma Monteiro joins Benfica

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