FC Porto in international football

FC Porto in international football
Porto lifted the European Champion Clubs' Cup (pictured) in 1987 and 2004.
ClubFC Porto
Seasons played62
First entry1956–57 European Cup
Latest entry2024–25 UEFA Europa League
Titles
Champions League2 (1987, 2004)
Europa League2 (2003, 2011)
Super Cup1 (1987)
Intercontinental Cup2 (1987, 2004)

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 (in 1987, as the European Cup, and 2004), two UEFA Europa League titles (in 2003, as the UEFA Cup, and 2011), one UEFA Super Cup (in 1987), and two Intercontinental Cups (in 1987 and 2004), 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 (not organised by UEFA) in 1962–63, in the Cup Winners' Cup in 1964–65, and in the inaugural editions of the UEFA Cup (Fairs Cup successor) and UEFA Champions League (European Cup successor) 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 (24), one less than Barcelona and Real Madrid.[1]

Until their 1986–87 European Cup success, Porto were the only of Portugal's "Big Three" teams without international silverware – Benfica had won two consecutive European Cup titles in 1961 and 1962, and Sporting CP were Cup Winners' Cup victors in 1964. As European champions, Porto contested the UEFA Super Cup and the Intercontinental Cup, lifting both trophies in their first appearance. To this date, they remain the only Portuguese team to have won either of these trophies or the UEFA Cup/UEFA Europa League. As of the 2020–21 season, Porto occupies the ninth place in the all-time European Cup and UEFA Champions League club rankings,[2][1] and is the best placed Portuguese team in the UEFA club ranking.[3]

Tomislav Ivić and José Mourinho are Porto's most decorated head coaches, each with two international titles. Former Portuguese international goalkeeper and club captain Vítor Baía holds the record for the most appearances in international competitions (99), while Colombian striker Radamel Falcao is the club's top goalscorer, with 22 goals.

  1. ^ a b "UEFA Champions League Statistics Handbook 2019/2020 – 1. Facts & Figures" (PDF). UEFA.org – We care about football. Union of European Football Associations. Retrieved 19 July 2020.
  2. ^ "UEFA Champions League Statistics Handbook 2019/20 – 3. All-time Records 1955–2020" (PDF). UEFA.com – The official website for European football. Union of European Football Associations. Retrieved 19 July 2020.
  3. ^ "UEFA Club coefficients". UEFA.com – The official website for European football. Union of European Football Associations. Retrieved 19 July 2020.

© MMXXIII Rich X Search. We shall prevail. All rights reserved. Rich X Search