2016–17 Taça de Portugal
The 2016–17 Taça de Portugal was the 77th season of the Taça de Portugal, the premier knockout competition in Portuguese football. It was also known as Taça de Portugal Placard due to sponsorship by sports betting game Placard. The competition was contested by a total of 155 clubs, including teams from the top-three tiers of the Portuguese football league system and representatives of the fourth-tier District leagues and cups. It began with the first-round matches on 3 September 2016 and concluded on 28 May 2017, with the final at the Estádio Nacional in  Oeiras. The title holders were Braga, who won the competition for the second time after beating Porto in the previous final, but were eliminated in the fifth round by Sporting da Covilhã. Format. As in the previous season, the competition format is organised in a knockout system consisting of seven rounds before the final match. The concept of repechage introduced in the previous edition was kept, meaning that teams eliminated in one round could still compete in later rounds, to provide an even number of teams necessary to avoid byes. A total of 120 teams entered the tournament in the  first round, 79 competing in the third-tier Campeonato de Portugal and 41 representatives from the District Football Associations. In the second round, the previous round winners will be joined by the 17 teams competing in the second-tier LigaPro. In the third round, the 18 top-tier Primeira Liga teams will enter the competition for the first time, playing against the 46 winners of the second round. In both second and third rounds, teams from higher tiers will play away against teams from lower tiers; after the third round, the draw will have no restrictions. Unlike the earlier one -legged rounds, the semi-finals will be played as two-legged ties, with home and away matches. The final will be played as a one-off match at a neutral venue, traditionally the Estádio Nacional in Oeiras. Teams. A total of 155 teams competing in the top-four tiers of Portuguese football plus the winners (or losing finalists) of the District Football Association Cups were considered eligible by the Portuguese Football Federation to participate in the competition: Schedule. All draws are held at the FPF headquarters at Cidade do Futebol, in Oeiras. Match kick-off times are in WET (UTC+0 ) from the fourth round to the semi-finals, and in WEST (UTC+1) during the rest of the competition. First round. A total of 120 teams from the Campeonato de Portugal (CP) and the District Football Associations (D) entered the first round. The draw took place on Wednesday, 10 August 2016, at 15:00 WEST. The teams were divided into eight groups of 14 or 16 teams according to geographic criteria. Matches were played on 3 and 4 September 2016. Series A Series B Series C Series D Series E Series F Series G Series H Second round. A total of 92  teams participated in the second round, comprising the 60 winners of the previous round, the 17 non-reserve teams competing in the 2016–17 LigaPro (II), and 15 teams randomly drawn from among the first-round losers (repechage). The draw took place on Thursday, 8 September 2016, at 15:30 WEST. Matches were played on 24 and 25 September 2016. LigaPro sides played their matches away against lower division opponents. The following 15 first-round losing teams were selected to compete in the second round: Third round. A total of 64 teams participated in the third round, which included the 46 winners  of the previous round and the 18 teams competing in the 2016–17 Primeira Liga (I). The draw took place on Thursday, 29 September 2016, at 17:30 WEST. Matches were played on 13, 14, 15 and 16 October 2016. Similarly to what occurred with LigaPro teams in the previous round, Primeira Liga sides played their matches away against lower division teams. Fourth round. A total of 32 teams participate in the fourth round, all of which advanced from the previous round. The draw took place on Friday, 21 October 2016, at 12:00 WEST, and unlike previous rounds, was free of restrictions . Matches were played on 13, 17, 18, 19 and 20 November 2016. Fifth round. A total of 16 teams participated in the fifth round, all of which advanced from the previous round. The draw took place on Thursday, 24 November 2016, at 15:00 WET. Matches were played on 14–15 December 2016. Quarter-finals. A total of eight teams participated in the quarter-finals, all of which advanced from the previous round. The draw took place on Tuesday, 20 December 2016, at 15:00 WET. Matches were played on 17–18 January 2017. Semi-finals. The semi-final pairings were determined on Tuesday , 20 December 2016, at 15:00 WET, following the draw for the quarter-finals. This round was contested over two legs in a home-and-away system; the first legs were played on 1 March and the second legs were played on 5 April 2017. "Benfica won 5–4 on aggregate." "3–3 on aggregate. Vitória de Guimarães won on away goals."