1958–59 European Cup

1958–59 European Cup
The 1958–59 European Cup was the fourth season of the European Cup, Europe's premier club football tournament. The competition was won by Real Madrid, who beat Reims 2–0 in the final at Neckarstadion, Stuttgart, on 3 June 1959. This was Real Madrid's fourth European Cup title in a row. The two finalists also competed in the final of the first European Cup in 1956.
It was the first time that a team from Finland participated. Olympiacos, Greece's first ever entrants, withdrew for political reasons before playing their first tie. Also, Manchester United were invited to the competition following Munich air disaster in the previous season, but were not allowed to participate by the Football League, meaning that first ever walkovers took place in the UEFA organised competition.
Teams
A total of 28 teams were placed in the competition bracket, but finally only 26 participated.
Spain continued to be represented by its runners-up, as its champions Real Madrid had already qualified as holders. This is the first time that Rapid Wien and AGF Aarhus failed to qualify for the tournament, while Standard Liége, Heart of Midlothian, Beșiktaș, NK Dinamo Zagreb, Jeunesse Esch, IFK Göteborg, Ards, Petrolul Ploiești, Atlético Madrid, Drumcondra, Polonia Bytom, KB, Schalke 04, Juventus Turin, Wiener Sportclub, Helsingin Palloseura, Wolverhampton Wanderers and DOS made their debut in competition.
Preliminary round
The draw for the preliminary round took place in Cannes, France, on Wednesday, 2 July 1958. As title holders, Real Madrid received a bye, and the remaining 27 teams were grouped geographically into three pots. The first drawn team in each pot also received byes, while the remaining clubs would play the preliminary round in September.
The calendar was decided by the involved teams, with all matches to be played by 30 September.
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First leg
Second leg
Standard Liège won 6–3 on aggregate.
KB 5–5 Schalke 04 on aggregate.
Wismut Karl-Marx-Stadt 4–4 Petrolul Ploiești on aggregate.
Jeunesse Esch 2–2 IFK Göteborg on aggregate.
Wiener Sport-Club won 8–3 on aggregate.
Dukla Prague won 4–3 on aggregate.
Atlético Madrid won 13–1 on aggregate.
MTK Budapest won 6–0 on aggregate.
Sporting CP won 6–4 on aggregate.
Stade Reims won 10–3 on aggregate.
Play-off
Schalke 04 won play-off 3–1.
Wismut Karl-Marx-Stadt won play-off 4–0.
IFK Göteborg won play-off 5–1.
First round
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1 Atlético Madrid beat CSKA Sofia 3–1 in a playoff to qualify for the quarter-finals.
First leg
Second leg
Standard Liège won 6–2 on aggregate
Wismut Karl-Marx-Stadt won 6–2 on aggregate
Schalke 04 won 4–3 on aggregate
Wiener Sport-Club won 3–2 on aggregate
Young Boys won 6–2 on aggregate
2–2 on aggregate
Play-off
Atlético Madrid won play-off 3–1.
Real Madrid won 3–1 on aggregate
Reims won 7–0 on aggregate
Quarter-finals
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1 Young Boys beat Wismut Karl-Marx-Stadt 2–1 in a playoff to qualify for the semi-finals.
First leg
Second leg
Reims won 3–2 on aggregate
Atlético Madrid won 4–1 on aggregate
Real Madrid won 7–1 on aggregate
2–2 on aggregate
Play-off
Young Boys won play-off 2–1.
Semi-finals
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1 Real Madrid beat Atlético Madrid 2–1 in a playoff.
First leg
Second leg
2–2 on aggregate
Play-off
Real Madrid won play-off 2–1.
Reims won 3–1 on aggregate
Final
The 1959 European Cup final was played on 3 June 1959 at the Neckarstadion in Stuttgart, West Germany. Real Madrid's victory was their fourth consecutive title, maintaining their status as the only team to have won the competition. Reims were runners-up for a second time, having already lost to Real in the inaugural final in 1956.
Top scorers
The top scorers from the 1958–59 European Cup were as follows:
Notes
References
External links
1958–59 All matches – season at UEFA website
European Cup results at Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation
All scorers 1958–59 European Cup (excluding preliminary round) according to protocols UEFA + all scorers preliminary round
1958-59 European Cup - results and line-ups (archive)
1958–59 in European football
European Champion Clubs' Cup seasons