page_title: FC Porto in international football competitions
section_title: First final – Pedroto years (1977–84)
hierarchical_section_title: FC Porto in international football competitions / History / First final – Pedroto years (1977–84)
caption_attribution_description: English: Photograph of FC Basel's stadium (St. Jakob-Park)
context_page_description: Futebol Clube do Porto, an association football team based in Porto, is the most decorated Portuguese team in international club competitions. They have won two UEFA Champions League titles, two UEFA Europa League titles, one UEFA Super Cup, and two Intercontinental Cups, for a total of seven international trophies. In addition, they were Cup Winners' Cup runners-up in 1984 – their first European final – and lost three other UEFA Super Cup matches, in 2003, 2004, and 2011.
  Porto first participated in international competitions in 1956, when they qualified for the second season of the European Cup as the domestic league winners. They lost their first two European matches against Athletic Bilbao and were eliminated from the competition. Porto then debuted in the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup in 1962–63, in the Cup Winners' Cup in 1964–65, and in the inaugural editions of the UEFA Cup and UEFA Champions League in 1971–72 and 1992–93, respectively. The club has qualified for UEFA competitions every season since 1974–75, and shares the second place in UEFA Champions League group stage appearances with Bayern Munich, one less than Barcelona and Real Madrid.
context_section_description: Head coach José Maria Pedroto oversaw Porto's victory over Braga in the 1977 Portuguese Cup final, which ensured the club's participation in the 1977–78 Cup Winners' Cup. After overcoming Köln in the first round, Porto met Manchester United for the first time in international club competition.  Reactions to the second round draw predicted an easy task for the English team, but Porto stunned its visitors and Europe with a 4–0 win. In Old Trafford, Manchester United pressed hard and even benefited from two own goals, but their 5–2 win was insufficient to prevent a shocking elimination at the hands of Porto. Playing in a quarter-final round for the first time, they were defeated by the eventual competition winners, Anderlecht.
  Porto finished the season at the top of the Primeira Liga, ending a 19-year drought of league titles. In their return to the European Cup, they were eliminated in the first round after suffering their heaviest defeat in European competitions: 6–1 against AEK Athens. Porto secured back-to-back league titles to participate in the 1979–80 European Cup. They eliminated Milan in the first round, with a second-leg 1–0 win at San Siro, and advanced to a second-round contest with Real Madrid. Two goals from Fernando Gomes granted a 2–1 home win for Porto, but Real's goal proved crucial to secure their qualification on the away goals rule, after a 1–0 win in Madrid. Porto spent their following five seasons competing either in the UEFA Cup or Cup Winners' Cup. In the 1980–81 and 1982–83 UEFA Cup editions, Porto was eliminated in the second round by Grasshoppers and Anderlecht, respectively. In between, the club sailed into the 1981–82 Cup Winners' Cup quarter-finals, where they were beaten by the eventual runners-up Standard Liège.
  Porto lost the 1983 Portuguese Cup final to league champions Benfica, which allowed their participation in the 1983–84 Cup Winners' Cup as losing cup finalists. They eliminated Dinamo Zagreb, Rangers, and Shakhtar Donetsk to reach their first European semi-final. The competition draw paired Porto with the holders Aberdeen, managed by Alex Ferguson. Taking a 1–0 lead to Pittodrie, Porto resisted to the attacking pressure of their opponents. In the 76th minute, Vermelhinho scored the only goal of the match, which confirmed Porto's place in their first European final. "We simply were not good enough against Porto", said Ferguson in the aftermath. This feat was met with such enthusiasm that the plane returning the team to Porto could not land because the runway had been invaded by supporters. The final against Juventus was contested at the former St. Jakob Stadium in Basel, where Portuguese supporters were a minority. The Italians were the favourites and started off well, taking the lead through Beniamino Vignola in the 13th minute. Seventeen minutes later, António Sousa equalised for Porto, but the Portuguese side could not prevent Zbigniew Boniek from scoring Juventus's winning goal just before half-time. Despite the defeat, this final was a stepping stone in the growth of the club's international reputation.
caption: The 1984 Cup Winners' Cup final, between Juventus and Porto, was held in Basel's former St. Jakob Stadium, now replaced by the modern St. Jakob-Park (pictured).
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