Histora.org newsletter February 26, 2001 The 2000-2001 European Cups are heading into the latter stages with two matchdays remaining in the Champions League's second group stage and the U.E.F.A. Cup heading into the quarter finals. European club football clearly has a new leader: Spain. After over a decade of domination by Italian clubs, Spanish clubs have clearly established themselves as the best in Europe in the last several seasons. The great Real Madrid have restored their glory from the early days of the Champions' Cup as they have won the trophy two of the last three seasons, and are the favourites to repeat yet again in this edition of the Champions' League. Real Madrid have already assured themselves qualification for the quarter finals while defending Spanish League champions Deportivo La Coruna and 2000 Champions' League runners up Valencia are still very much in contention for a spot themselves (AC Milan and Sturm Graz will have something to say about that, respectively.) Having three clubs in the quarter finals would even fall short of last season's Spanish feat of three clubs in the semi finals, where Barcelona lost to Valencia for a place against Real Madrid. Barcelona themselves are very much alive in Europe, in the U.E.F.A. Cup where they are joined by three other Spanish clubs. Having four of eight quarter finalists in the U.E.F.A. Cup is no small accomplishment, it has not been seen since there were four Italian clubs in the 1991 edition which was eventualy won by Inter Milan. West Germany holds the record, as they had five clubs in the 1980 edition, and went on to have all four semi finalists (Eintracht Frankfurt eventually besting Borussia Monchengladbach in the final.) The draw for the quarter finals assures there can only be two Spanish clubs in this season's semi finals, as Barcelona were drawn against Celta Vigo and Rayo Vallecano against Alaves (tiny Alaves pulled off an amazing upset over Inter Milan at the San Siro to arrive here.) The other quarter finals will see Liverpool take on FC Porto and PSV Eindhoven go up against Kaiserslautern. Let us quantify this Spanish insurgence with some numbers. Using a system by which you assign points to the club who wins a tournament, half those points to the runner up, a quarter to the losing semi finalists, we can see that Spain has indeed surpassed Italy in the last few seasons (let's call these "Tournament Points") Here is the Tournament Points table we shall use: (1 = points for winner, 2 = points for runner up, 3 = points for losing semifinalists, etc.) ================================================= Tournament 1 2 3 4 5 6 ---------- - - - - - - Champion's Cup (1997) 32 16 8 4 2 1 Champion's League (1998-2001) 48 24 12 6 3 1 Cup Winner's Cup (1997-1999) 16 8 4 2 1 0 U.E.F.A. Cup (1997-1999) 24 12 6 3 1 0 U.E.F.A. Cup (2000-2001) 32 16 8 4 2 1 ================================================= The adjustment in 1998 is due to the elimination of the Cup Winners' Cup and the escalation of the Champions' League and the U.E.F.A. Cup. Without further due, here is the ranking for the last five years, 1997 - 2001: ======================================================================= Champion's Cup Winner's U.E.F.A. Totals League Cup Cup ------------ ------------ ------------ ------------ # Nation TPts 1st 2nd TPts 1st 2nd TPts 1st 2nd TPts 1st 2nd - ------ ---- --- --- ---- --- --- ---- --- --- ---- --- --- 1 Spain 239 3 2 158 2 1 26 1 1 55 _ _ 2 Italy 200 3 4 80 _ 2 24 1 _ 96 2 2 3 Germany 170 2 2 111 1 1 8 _ 1 51 1 _ 4 England 149 2 1 89 1 _ 24 1 _ 36 _ 1 5 France 91 _ 2 35 _ _ 10 _ 1 46 _ 1 6 Turkey 51 1 _ 15 _ _ 3 _ _ 33 1 _ 7 The Netherlands 36 _ _ 21 _ _ 4 _ _ 11 _ _ 8 Portugal 28 _ _ 18 _ _ 3 _ _ 7 _ _ 9 Greece 27 _ _ 14 _ _ 6 _ _ 7 _ _ 10 Ukraine 26 _ _ 24 _ _ 1 _ _ 1 _ _ ======================================================================= TPts = Tournament Points 1st = Number of titles 2nd = Number of times finished runner up And, more dramatic, is the difference just in the last 3 seasons, 1999 - 2001: ============================================================= Champion's U.E.F.A. Totals League Cup ------------ ------------ ------------ # Nation TPts 1st 2nd TPts 1st 2nd TPts 1st 2nd - ------ ---- --- --- ---- --- --- ---- --- --- 1 Spain 126 1 1 97 1 1 29 _ _ 2 England 54 _ 1 25 _ _ 29 _ 1 3 Germany 45 _ _ 25 _ _ 20 _ _ 4 Turkey 40 1 _ 8 _ _ 32 1 _ 5 Italy 32 _ _ 17 _ _ 15 _ _ 6 France 29 _ _ 13 _ _ 16 _ _ 7 The Netherlands 13 _ _ 7 _ _ 6 _ _ 8 Portugal 13 _ _ 8 _ _ 5 _ _ 9 Greece 12 _ _ 5 _ _ 7 _ _ 10 Czech Republic 10 _ _ 4 _ _ 6 _ _ ============================================================ All time however, Italy is still on top, but it's relatively close: (The U.E.F.A. Cup was the Inter Cities Fairs Cup from 1959-1971, we shall give the winners 16 points, etc.) ======================================================================= Champion's Cup Winner's U.E.F.A. Totals League Cup Cup ------------ ------------ ------------ ------------ # Nation TPts 1st 2nd TPts 1st 2nd TPts 1st 2nd TPts 1st 2nd - ------ ---- --- --- ---- --- --- ---- --- --- ---- --- --- 1 Italy 1292 26 24 614 9 12 203 7 4 475 10 8 2 Spain 1203 24 20 645 9 8 222 7 7 336 8 5 3 England 1079 26 14 494 9 2 225 8 5 360 9 7 4 Germany 1057 15 16 458 5 6 161 4 4 438 6 6 5 The Netherlands 562 10 5 341 6 2 74 1 1 147 3 2 6 France 434 2 9 238 1 4 77 1 2 119 _ 3 7 Portugal 418 4 7 289 3 5 70 1 1 59 _ 1 8 Belgium 383 4 8 137 _ 1 119 3 4 127 1 3 9 Scotland 327 3 4 176 1 1 86 2 2 65 _ 1 10 Yugoslavia 285 2 3 143 1 1 41 _ _ 101 1 2 11 Russia 243 3 1 104 _ _ 105 3 1 34 _ _ 12 Czech Republic 213 1 _ 113 _ _ 53 1 _ 47 _ _ 13 Hungary 208 1 5 92 _ _ 41 _ 2 75 1 3 14 Austria 184 _ 4 98 _ _ 53 _ 3 33 _ 1 15 East Germany 180 1 2 71 _ _ 66 1 2 43 _ _ 16 Sweden 174 2 1 103 _ 1 20 _ _ 51 2 _ 17 Romania 174 1 1 124 1 1 24 _ _ 26 _ _ 18 Switzerland 152 _ _ 89 _ _ 27 _ _ 36 _ _ 19 Greece 146 _ 1 99 _ 1 26 _ _ 21 _ _ 20 Turkey 145 1 _ 82 _ _ 22 _ _ 41 1 _ ======================================================================= With Real Madrid's early dominance in the Champions' Cup, Spain was on top in the beginning. England took over in the 70's and was on top until the early 90's, no doubt they were hurt by the 5 year suspension they had to endure for the 1985 Heysel disaster. Here are the rankings, from 1956 - 1985, Italy made quite a leap from there: ======================================================================= Champion's Cup Winner's U.E.F.A. Totals League Cup Cup ------------ ------------ ------------ ------------ # Nation TPts 1st 2nd TPts 1st 2nd TPts 1st 2nd TPts 1st 2nd - ------ ---- --- --- ---- --- --- ---- --- --- ---- --- --- 1 England 864 22 12 395 8 2 152 5 4 317 9 6 2 Spain 720 17 13 383 6 5 126 4 4 211 7 4 3 West Germany 638 10 10 284 4 4 122 3 3 232 3 3 4 Italy 582 11 11 342 5 7 110 4 2 130 2 2 5 The Netherlands 351 6 3 222 4 1 28 _ _ 101 2 2 6 Scotland 270 3 3 144 1 1 81 2 2 45 _ _ 7 Portugal 257 3 5 175 2 3 52 1 1 30 _ 1 8 Belgium 254 3 6 93 _ 1 70 2 2 91 1 3 9 Yugoslavia 221 1 3 94 _ 1 33 _ _ 94 1 2 10 Hungary 188 1 5 76 _ _ 38 _ 2 74 1 3 11 France 167 _ 4 111 _ 3 22 _ _ 34 _ 1 12 Czechoslovakia 152 1 _ 85 _ _ 41 1 _ 26 _ _ 13 East Germany 150 1 1 60 _ _ 54 1 1 36 _ _ 14 Soviet Union 137 2 1 55 _ _ 66 2 1 16 _ _ 15 Switzerland 116 _ _ 71 _ _ 17 _ _ 28 _ _ 16 Austria 115 _ 2 72 _ _ 34 _ 2 9 _ _ 17 Sweden 100 1 1 64 _ 1 11 _ _ 25 1 _ 18 Poland 96 _ 1 63 _ _ 22 _ 1 11 _ _ 19 Bulgaria 92 _ _ 63 _ _ 20 _ _ 9 _ _ 20 Romania 83 _ _ 51 _ _ 13 _ _ 19 _ _ ======================================================================= So as you can see, through the years, there has been no question about who the powers are in European club football: Italy, Spain, England, and Germany. The Netherlands, Portugal, Scotland, and Belgium have been fairly successful, while France has mysteriously stayed behind in club football, in spite of considerable international accomplishments. As far as individual club rankings go, here is the all time ranking, with Real Madrid firmly on top, and looking to pad their lead even further: ======================================================================= Champs Cup Cup Win U.E.F.A. Totals / League Cup Cup --------- --------- --------- --------- # Club Nat TPs 1 2 TPs 1 2 TPs 1 2 TPs 1 2 - ---- --- --- - - --- - - --- - - --- - - 1 Real Madrid Esp 514 10 5 433 8 3 20 _ 2 61 2 _ 2 Juventus Turin Ita 328 6 7 183 2 4 24 1 _ 121 3 3 3 Barcelona Esp 298 8 6 117 1 3 89 4 2 92 3 1 4 Bayern Munich Ger 297 5 3 225 3 3 30 1 _ 42 1 _ 5 AC Milan Ita 291 7 4 235 5 3 40 2 1 16 _ _ 6 Ajax Amsterdam Ned 263 6 3 198 4 2 27 1 1 38 1 _ 7 Internazionale Milan Ita 242 5 3 119 2 2 4 _ _ 119 3 1 8 Liverpool Eng 242 6 2 166 4 1 15 _ 1 61 2 _ 9 Benfica Lisbon Por 231 2 6 197 2 5 16 _ _ 18 _ 1 10 Manchester United Eng 173 3 _ 142 2 _ 24 1 _ 7 _ _ 11 RSC Anderlecht Bel 167 3 4 64 _ _ 50 2 2 53 1 2 12 Red Star Belgrade Yug 127 1 1 89 1 _ 10 _ _ 28 _ 1 13 Bor. Monchengladbach Ger 119 2 3 32 _ 1 8 _ _ 79 2 2 14 SV Hamburg Ger 118 2 3 59 1 1 28 1 1 31 _ 1 15 PSV Eindhoven Ned 113 2 _ 71 1 _ 10 _ _ 32 1 _ 16 Dinamo Kiev Rus 109 2 _ 70 _ _ 36 2 _ 3 _ _ 17 Atletico Madrid Esp 107 1 3 42 _ 1 46 1 2 19 _ _ 18 Borussia Dortmund Ger 106 2 1 63 1 _ 18 1 _ 25 _ 1 19 Feyenoord Rotterdam Ned 105 2 _ 57 1 _ 16 _ _ 32 1 _ 20 Celtic Glasgow Sco 102 1 1 89 1 1 12 _ _ 1 _ _ 21 Tottenham Hotspur Eng 102 3 1 8 _ _ 25 1 _ 69 2 1 22 Valencia Esp 100 3 2 29 _ 1 19 1 _ 52 2 1 23 Glasgow Rangers Sco 99 1 2 52 _ _ 37 1 2 10 _ _ 24 FC Porto Por 97 1 1 73 1 _ 17 _ 1 7 _ _ 25 Leeds United Eng 92 2 3 29 _ 1 8 _ 1 55 2 1 26 IFK Goteborg Swe 91 2 _ 41 _ _ 2 _ _ 48 2 _ 27 Steaua Bucharest Rom 86 1 1 74 1 1 9 _ _ 3 _ _ 28 Parma Ita 81 3 1 3 _ _ 26 1 1 52 2 _ 29 Olympique Marseille Fra 81 1 2 64 1 1 5 _ _ 12 _ 1 30 AS Roma Ita 81 1 2 16 _ 1 9 _ _ 56 1 1 31 Galatasaray Istanbul Tur 80 1 _ 40 _ _ 7 _ _ 33 1 _ 32 Arsenal Eng 79 2 3 11 _ _ 32 1 2 36 1 1 33 Nottingham Forest Eng 74 2 _ 65 2 _ _ _ _ 9 _ _ 34 FC Cologne Ger 71 _ 1 13 _ _ 5 _ _ 53 _ 1 35 Eintracht Frankfurt Ger 66 1 1 16 _ 1 9 _ _ 41 1 _ 36 Fiorentina Ita 65 1 3 23 _ 1 29 1 1 13 _ 1 37 FC Brugge Bel 63 _ 2 33 _ 1 9 _ _ 21 _ 1 38 CSKA Sofia Bul 63 _ _ 56 _ _ 7 _ _ _ _ _ 39 Ferencvaros Budapest Hun 63 1 2 14 _ _ 14 _ 1 35 1 1 40 Rapid Vienna Aut 63 _ 2 34 _ _ 24 _ 2 5 _ _ 41 Panathinaikos Athens Gre 63 _ 1 55 _ 1 4 _ _ 4 _ _ 42 Chelsea Eng 61 2 1 6 _ _ 41 2 _ 14 _ 1 43 Real Zaragoza Esp 56 2 1 _ _ _ 28 1 _ 28 1 1 44 Sporting Lisbon Por 55 1 _ 18 _ _ 25 1 _ 12 _ _ 45 Austria Vienna Aut 54 _ 1 33 _ _ 18 _ 1 3 _ _ 46 AS Monaco Fra 53 _ 1 30 _ _ 13 _ 1 10 _ _ 47 Spartak Moscow Rus 52 _ _ 30 _ _ 7 _ _ 15 _ _ 48 Paris Saint-Germain Fra 52 1 1 15 _ _ 31 1 1 6 _ _ 49 Standard Liege Bel 50 _ 1 27 _ _ 16 _ 1 7 _ _ 50 Sparta Prague Cze 49 _ _ 35 _ _ 9 _ _ 5 _ _ 51 Ujpesti Dozsa Hun 49 _ 1 26 _ _ 8 _ _ 15 _ 1 52 Werder Bremen Ger 49 1 _ 10 _ _ 20 1 _ 19 _ _ 53 Sampdoria Genoa Ita 48 1 2 16 _ 1 31 1 1 1 _ _ 54 Dinamo Zagreb Yug 46 1 1 7 _ _ 9 _ _ 30 1 1 55 AS Saint-Etienne Fra 43 _ 1 36 _ 1 1 _ _ 6 _ _ 56 Bayer Leverkusen Ger 43 1 _ 8 _ _ 2 _ _ 33 1 _ 57 Marila Pribram Cze 42 _ _ 30 _ _ 7 _ _ 5 _ _ 58 Aston Villa Eng 42 1 _ 36 1 _ _ _ _ 6 _ _ 59 Girondins Bordeaux Fra 41 _ 1 16 _ _ 4 _ _ 21 _ 1 60 VfB Stuttgart Ger 40 _ 2 2 _ _ 9 _ 1 29 _ 1 61 Lazio Rome Ita 40 1 1 9 _ _ 16 1 _ 15 _ 1 62 Dinamo Bucharest Rom 39 _ _ 31 _ _ 7 _ _ 1 _ _ 63 Napoli Ita 38 1 _ 3 _ _ 6 _ _ 29 1 _ 64 Stade de Reims Fra 38 _ 2 38 _ 2 _ _ _ _ _ _ ======================================================================= And for references' sake, here are all the previous winners of the European Cups: ======================================================================= Year Champion's League Cup Winner's Cup U.E.F.A. Cup ---- ----------------- ---------------- ------------ 1956 Real Madrid _ _ 1957 Real Madrid _ _ 1958 Real Madrid _ _ 1959 Real Madrid _ Barcelona 1960 Real Madrid _ Barcelona 1961 Benfica Lisbon Fiorentina AS Roma 1962 Benfica Lisbon Atletico Madrid Valencia 1963 AC Milan Tottenham Hotspur Valencia 1964 Internazionale Milan Sporting Lisbon Real Zaragoza 1965 Internazionale Milan West Ham United Ferencvaros Budapest 1966 Real Madrid Borussia Dortmund Barcelona 1967 Celtic Glasgow Bayern Munich Dinamo Zagreb 1968 Manchester United AC Milan Leeds United 1969 AC Milan Slovan Bratislava Newcastle United 1970 Feyenoord Rotterdam Manchester City Arsenal 1971 Ajax Amsterdam Chelsea Leeds United 1972 Ajax Amsterdam Glasgow Rangers Tottenham Hotspur 1973 Ajax Amsterdam AC Milan Liverpool 1974 Bayern Munich FC Magdeburg Feyenoord Rotterdam 1975 Bayern Munich Dinamo Kiev Bor. Monchengladbach 1976 Bayern Munich RSC Anderlecht Liverpool 1977 Liverpool SV Hamburg Juventus Turin 1978 Liverpool RSC Anderlecht PSV Eindhoven 1979 Nottingham Forest Barcelona Bor. Monchengladbach 1980 Nottingham Forest Valencia Eintracht Frankfurt 1981 Liverpool Dinamo Tbilisi Ipswich Town 1982 Aston Villa Barcelona IFK Goteborg 1983 SV Hamburg Aberdeen RSC Anderlecht 1984 Liverpool Juventus Turin Tottenham Hotspur 1985 Juventus Turin Everton Real Madrid 1986 Steaua Bucharest Dinamo Kiev Real Madrid 1987 FC Porto Ajax Amsterdam IFK Goteborg 1988 PSV Eindhoven KV Mechelen Bayer Leverkusen 1989 AC Milan Barcelona Napoli 1990 AC Milan Sampdoria Genoa Juventus Turin 1991 Red Star Belgrade Manchester United Internazionale Milan 1992 Barcelona Werder Bremen Ajax Amsterdam 1993 Olympique Marseille Parma Juventus Turin 1994 AC Milan Arsenal Internazionale Milan 1995 Ajax Amsterdam Real Zaragoza Parma 1996 Juventus Turin Paris Saint-Germain Bayern Munich 1997 Borussia Dortmund Barcelona Schalke 04 Gelsenk. 1998 Real Madrid Chelsea Internazionale Milan 1999 Manchester United Lazio Rome Parma 2000 Real Madrid _ Galatasaray Istanbul =======================================================================