SL Benfica
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- "Benfica" redirects here. For , see .
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), Benfica is, along with Sporting and Porto, one of the "Big Three" clubs in Portugal.
As a club oriented to multiple sports, Benfica fields teams in basketball, rink hockey, indoor football (futsal), volleyball, handball, water polo, rugby, cycling, and athletics. In total, Benfica have won ten international titles in these sports: the rink hockey-CERS Cup in 1991, three Iberian Cups, one Torneio Ibérico in rugby, and five athletic European Cups.
Sport Lisboa e Benfica has the biggest fan base among Portuguese clubs, having also the biggest number of supporters outside of Portugal. Almost every municipality of Portugal has its own "Casa do Benfica" (House of Benfica), which can also be found in many cities of countries worldwide (eg. England, Angola, South Africa, United States, Canada, France, Switzerland, Luxembourg Norway, Sweden, Poland, Brazil, Finland,Denmark and Germany). It is also the biggest club in number of associates, with over 150 000.
- 1 Football
- 1.1 The Days of Eusébio
- 1.2 European Glory
- 1.3 The Michael Manniche years
- 1.4 Karel Poborský: The Birth of a Legend
- 1.5 Fans
- 1.6 Team honours
- 1.7 Noted former players
- 1.8 Former coaches
- 1.9 Current squad
- 1.10 Starting line-up and formation
- 1.11 Squad Changes for 2006/07 season
- 2 Basketball
- 3 Rink hockey
- 4 Futsal
- 5 Volleyball
- 6 Handball
- 7 Water polo
- 8 Rugby
- 9 Cycling
- 10 Athletics
- 11 External links
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".
The Benfica Eagle flies from one side of the Estádio da Luz to the other before every game.
It is said to be the only Club in the world whose official anthem is sung by a tenor, Luis Piçarra, and the classic musician Antonio Vitorino d'Almeida has written a symphony to commemorate the club's first 100 years.
Football
Benfica have been a dominant force in Portuguese football since the 1930s and are record holders of the national championship and cup titles. Major rivals are FC Porto and Sporting Clube de Portugal.
In 1950 Benfica won the Taca Latina, a precursor of the Champions League, under an English coach Edward "Ted" Smith, formerly of Millwall. 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 1961 and 1962, the Lisbon club never managed to win a European trophy again, despite reaching a number of finals. In the Champions Cup deciders against A.C. Milan (1963 and 1990), Internazionale (1965), Manchester United (1968) and PSV (1988), as well as the UEFA Cup in 1982 Anderlecht were lost. This constitutes also a record of sorts. In the 1991-1992 European Cup, SL Benfica beat Arsenal FC 4-2 on aggregate in the round of 32 but lost narrowly in the last 16. In the 2005-2006 European Cup, SL Benfica made to achieve the Quarter-Final, passing through Liverpool (2005 European Champion) with a 3-0 Aggregate but losing in next round with F.C. Barcelona (Who becomes the 2006 European Champion) in a away defeat of 2-0.
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 in the side.
During the 1970s, the team faded slightly from the European scene, but remained the main force inside the Portuguese football scene. However, financial problems began undermining the club. In the 1980s 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 a questionable signing policy, which included squads composed of well over 30 players, signing players for hefty sums without any sporting or financial return, such as fading Portuguese star Futre in the early 1990s, resulted in several problems.
Recently, the club has regained some of its sporting prowess, and in 2004–2005 won their first national championship in eleven years.
Benfica play their home games in the Estádio S.L. Benfica, also known unofficially as Estádio da Luz. It is one of Europe's largest sporting stadiums and hosted the Euro 2004 final. For that purpose it had been completely rebuilt.
The Days of Eusébio
The Days of the Portuguese international Eusébio were Benfica's most glory filled years. Eusébio led Benfica to two consecutive UEFA European cups after breaking the five year winning streak of Spanish giants and Iberian arch-rivals Real Madrid. Eusébio became an instant superstar in 1966 after he led Portugal to third place in the 1966 world cup where Eusébio was the top scorer with nine goals to his name. He is considered one of Benfica's and Portugal's biggest names. In 1962, he won the European Cup, scoring two goals in the final against Puskás' and Di Stéfano's Real Madrid CF. Benfica won 5-3. He scored 46 goals for Portugal in 64 appearances, and hit 317 goals in 291 League games for Benfica. Overall, his career record was 727 goals in 715 games.European Glory
During the first five years the European Cup was won by Real Madrid, but Benfica was keen to stop this when they won the 1961 and 1962 European cup putting a halt to Real Madrid's dominance. The legendary team was lead by Eusébio, José Águas, Costa Pereira,and Mário Coluna. At the time one player at Real Madrid made more then the entire Benfica squad but the legendary Eusébio was not about to let this one slip as Eusébio scored three goals in the Final against FC Barcelona, which Benfica won 3-2. In 1962 Benfica beat FC Nürnberg 6-0 and Benfica also won Tottenham Hotspur 3-1 they then beat Real Madrid in the final. In their latest run in the Champions League SL Benfica made it to the Quarter-Finals in 2006 after they knocked out 2005 European Champions Liverpool FC with a 3-0 overall score in the two legs, they also managed to knock out Manchester United in the group stages.The Michael Manniche years
Michael Manniche was the root in helping Benfica regain its glory. The Danish international scored 75 goals in 3 seasons for SL Benfica. Many Benfica fans call him a living legend as he helped them regain their European status.Karel Poborský: The Birth of a Legend
Karel Poborský is considered to be one of the World's best players at the time many Czech and Benfica fans alike went fanatic for the Czech Superstar. He once scored a very decisive goal that sent Benfica into the Champions leaguefor yet another appearance in the tournament. The 120,000 fans in the Estadio da Luz roared on as Poborsky worked his way to became the Czech Republic's biggest name in football during the mid and late 90's.Fans
The fans of SL Benfica, Benfiquistas, are also often referred by other teams' supporters as Lampiões (lamps - a derrogatory nickname used by rivals, stemming from the name of the club's stadium). In Portugal, over 40% of the population are said to be Benfica sympathisers. Benfica also has large support abroad, especially in the former Portuguese colonies of Angola and Mozambique, as well as Portuguese expatriates living in Canada and the United States. Since the 2004-2005 championship, club membership figures have seen a significant increase. In April 2006 the number of club members surpassed 150,000.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.SL Benfica thrived in the new environment and soon not only became the most successful club in the history of the game in Portugal, but also one of the world's leading teams in the 1960s. In the 2005-2006 European Champions League season, SL Benfica made it to the quarter-finals for the first time since 1994.
- Latin Cup: 1
- *1950.
- European Champions' Cup: 2
- *1962, 1961.
- Portuguese Championship (I Divisão, I Liga, Superliga): 28
- *2005, 1994, 1991, 1989, 1987, 1984, 1983, 1981, 1977, 1976, 1975, 1973, 1972, 1971, 1969, 1968, 1967, 1965, 1964, 1963, 1961, 1960, 1957, 1955, 1950, 1945, 1943, 1942, 1938, 1937, 1936
- Portuguese Championship (between 1921–1922 and 1937–1938): 3
- *1935, 1931, 1930
- League Championship (1934–1938, unofficial)
- *1938, 1937, 1936
- Portuguese Cup: 24
- *2004, 1996, 1993, 1987, 1986, 1985, 1983, 1981, 1980, 1972, 1970, 1969, 1964, 1962, 1959, 1957, 1955, 1953, 1952, 1951, 1949, 1944, 1943, 1940.
- Portuguese Supercup: 4
- *2005, 1989, 1985, 1981
Noted former players
The legendary Eusébio, whose statue stands near Benfica's stadium is a symbol of the club and of Portuguese football.
Other important or famous players in Benfica's history include:
Former coaches
Former Benfica coaches include:
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Current squad
(Benfica B team) (Benfica B team)
(Benfica B team) (Benfica B team) (Benfica B team)
Starting line-up and formation
- 4-1-2-1-2 formation
- July 12, 2006 vs. Shakhtar Donetsk
# 1
# 22
# 3
# 33
# 13
# 16
# 26
# 23
# 10
# 35
# 19
Squad Changes for 2006/07 season
In:- Rui Costa - Signed from AC Milan
- Diego Souza- Back from loan to CR Flamengo
- Manu -Back from loan to CF Estrela da Amadora
- Kostas Katsouranis - Signed from AEK Athens FC
- Paulo Jorge- Signed from Boavista FC
- Nicolas Canales - Signed from Benfica B
- Bijou Davidson - Signed from Benfica B
- Geovanni - Signed to Cruzeiro EC
- Azar Karadas-Signed to Brann
- Laurent Robert-Signed to UD Levante
Basketball
SL Benfica are a top club in Portugal and are considered one of the best basketball teams in Europe. 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 FC Porto's basketball team and it usually leads to arguments between the fans and players. SL 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.Rink hockey
SL Benfica 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 alongside rivals FC Porto, Oliveirense, and Óquei Clube de Barcelos rink hockey teams.Futsal
Benfica have a professional futsal team since 2002. Since then Benfica won 2 Portuguese championships, 2 Portuguese cups and one Portuguese supercup. Benfica also reached the final of the UEFA Cup in the 2003/04 season.Volleyball
Benfica have an important history in the Portuguese volleyball. The club won 3 Portuguese championships (the last one in 2004/05) and 11 Portuguese cups.Handball
The Handball honours of Benfica include 6 Portuguese championships, 3 Portuguese cups and 3 Portuguese supercups. The club dominated Portuguese handball in the 80's, but since 1994 Benfica have won nothing in this sport. In fact, this section had been inactive between 1997 and 2004.Water polo
Benfica's Waterpolo team is considered one of the best in the Iberian penisula along side rivals Real Madrid, FC Porto and Velencia CF.Rugby
Benfica have won many Portuguese championships in this sport, with Associação Académica de Coimbra, CDUP, GD Direito and Belenenses being other powerful competitors. Benfica have also won the Iberian Cup against RCD Espanyol, a team from Barcelona, Spain.Cycling
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.Athletics
Athletics is a sport with a great tradition in Benfica's history. Nowadays, Vanessa Fernandes in women's triathlon, and Carlos Calado specialised in the long jump, are among Benfica's Athletics biggest names.External links
- [Unofficial - SL Benfica Website in Portuguese]
- [Unofficial - SL Benfica Website in English]
- [Unofficial - SL Benfica Website in German]
| Portuguese football by seasons | ||
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1996-97 1997-98 | 1998-99 | 1999-00 | 2000-01 | 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-04 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 [http://encycl.opentopia.com/ edit] | ||
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