The 1957 Latin Cup (Spanish: Copa Latina de 1957) was the eighth and final edition of the annual Latin Cup. It was contested by the domestic league champions the Southwest European nations of France, Italy, Portugal, and Spain. The clubs which competed in the tournament were AS Saint-Étienne, AC Milan, SL Benfica, and Real Madrid CF.

1957 Latin Cup
Copa Latina de 1957
Tournament details
Host country Spain
Dates20–23 June 1957
Teams4 (from 1 confederation)
Venue(s)1 (in 1 host city)
Final positions
Champions Real Madrid CF (2nd title)
Runners-up SL Benfica
Third place AC Milan
Fourth place AS Saint-Étienne
Tournament statistics
Matches played4
Goals scored15 (3.75 per match)
Attendance340,000 (85,000 per match)
Top scorer(s)
1956

The four-match knockout tournament, was hosted in Madrid, Spain at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium. In the semifinals on 20 June, SL Benfica defeated AS Saint-Étienne by a score of 1–0, and Real Madrid CF defeated AC Milan by a score of 5–1. The third place match was held on 23 June, where AC Milan defeated AS Saint-Étienne 4–3. The final, which was held on the same day, saw Real Madrid CF claim its second Latin Cup title in a 1–0 victory. A total of 15 goals were scored in the tournament, and Real Madrid's Francisco Gento was the top goalscorer with 3 goals, all of which were scored against AC Milan in the semifinals.

Real Madrid had won the 1956–57 European Cup less than one month before the 1957 Latin Cup and became one of only three teams, together with FC Barcelona and AC Milan, to win the Latin Cup on two occasions. Additionally, the country of Spain was awarded a trophy for its overall success in the prior four Latin Cups.

Participating teams edit

The Latin Cup was an international club tournament which was contested by the domestic league champions of France, Italy, Portugal, and Spain. The tournament served as a regional championship for Southwestern Europe, similar to the Mitropa Cup for Central Europe and Balkans Cup for the Balkans, prior to the establishment of the European Cup.[1] The following league champions qualified for the 1957 Latin Cup:

Team Method of qualification Previous appearances[2]
  AS Saint-Étienne 1956–57 French Division 1 champions Debut
  AC Milan (defending champions) 1956–57 Serie A champions 1951, 1953, 1955, 1956
  SL Benfica 1956–57 Primeira Divisão champions 1950, 1956
  Real Madrid CF 1956–57 La Liga champions 1955

Venues edit

The host of the tournament was Spain and all matches were played at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium in Madrid.[2]

Madrid
Santiago Bernabéu Stadium
40°27′11″N 3°41′18″W / 40.45306°N 3.68833°W / 40.45306; -3.68833
Capacity: 75,000
 

Tournament edit

Semifinals edit

Lots were drawn to determine the semifinal matches of the 1957 Latin Cup, and both semifinal matches were held on 20 June.[1] The first match was Benfica versus Saint-Étienne. The match was refereed by Daniel Zariquiegui Izco of the Spanish Football Federation and resulted in a 1–0 victory for Benfica; Portuguese midfielder Francisco Calado scored the match's lone goal.[3]

The second match was Real Madrid versus Milan. Not only were both clubs champions of their respective domestic leagues, but Milan was the Latin Cup's defending champion[2] and Real Madrid had just won its second consecutive European Cup title in Madrid on 30 May 1957.[4][5] The match refereed by Marcel Lequesne of the French Football Federation and resulted in a 5–1 victory for Real Madrid. Spanish forward Francisco Gento scored the tournament's only hat-trick during the match, scoring three goals.[6]

SL Benfica  1–0  AS Saint-Étienne
  • Calado   17'
Report
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
SL Benfica
 
 
 
 
 
AS Saint-Étienne
GK   José de Bastos
DF   Ângelo Martins
DF   Manuel Francisco Serra
MF   Zézinho
MF   Alfredo Abrantes
MF   Mário Coluna
MF   Fernando Caiado
MF   Francisco Calado (c)
FW   Domiciano Cavém
FW   Francisco Palmeiro
FW   José Águas
Manager:
  Otto Glória
GK   Claude Abbes
DF   Michel Tylinski
DF   François Wicart
MF   René Domingo
MF   René Ferrier
MF   Yvon Goujon
MF   Rachid Mekhloufi
MF   Jean Oleksiak
FW   Georges Peyroche
FW   Armand Fouillen
FW   Eugène N'Jo Léa
Manager:
  Jean Snella

Real Madrid CF  5–1  AC Milan
Report
 
 
 
 
 
 
Real Madrid CF
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
AC Milan
GK   Juan Alonso (c)
DF   Marquitos
DF   Rafael Lesmes
DF   Manuel Torres Pastor
MF   Miguel Muñoz
MF   Antonio Ruiz Cervilla
MF   Joseíto
FW   Héctor Rial
FW   Francisco Gento
FW   Alfredo Di Stéfano
FW   Raymond Kopa
Manager:
  José Villalonga
GK   Lorenzo Buffon
DF   Cesare Maldini
DF   Luigi Radice
MF   Eros Beraldo
MF   Nils Liedholm (c)
MF   Luigi Zannier
MF   Alfio Fontana
FW   Amos Mariani
FW   Eduardo Ricagni
FW   Per Bredesen
FW   Ernesto Cucchiaroni
Manager:
  Giuseppe Viani

Third place match edit

Milan and Saint-Étienne faced each other in the third place match on 23 June. The match was refereed by Joaquim Fernandes de Campos of the Portuguese Football Federation. Saint-Étienne took an early lead with a 9th minute goal from François Wicart, however, consecutive goals from Milan in the 18th minute by Eduardo Ricagni, the 42nd minute by Amos Mariani, and the 70th minute by Nils Liedholm helped give Milan a 3–1 lead. Saint-Étienne responded with goals from Rachid Mekhloufi in the 78th minute and Eugène N'Jo Léa in the 80th minute to level the match at 3–3, but a goal from Nils Liedholm in the 88th minute allowed Milan to defeat Saint-Étienne by a final score of 4–3.[8]

AC Milan  4–3  AS Saint-Étienne
Report
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
AC Milan
 
 
 
 
 
AS Saint-Étienne
GK   Lorenzo Buffon
DF   Cesare Maldini
DF   Luigi Radice
MF   Eros Beraldo
MF   Nils Liedholm (c)
MF   Luigi Zannier
MF   Alfio Fontana
FW   Amos Mariani
FW   Eduardo Ricagni
FW   Per Bredesen
FW   Ernesto Cucchiaroni
Manager:
  Giuseppe Viani
GK   Claude Abbes
DF   Michel Tylinski
DF   François Wicart
MF   René Domingo
MF   René Ferrier
MF   Yvon Goujon
MF   Rachid Mekhloufi
MF   Jean Oleksiak
FW   Georges Peyroche
FW   Armand Fouillen
FW   Eugène N'Jo Léa
Manager:
  Jean Snella

Final edit

The final match was contested by Real Madrid and Benfica on 23 June 1957; Lequesne was the match's referee.[9] Both clubs had previously won the tournament, as Benfica defeated FC Girondins de Bordeaux in 1950 and Real Madrid defeated Stade de Reims in 1955.[2] During the final, Spanish forward Alfredo Di Stéfano scored the match's lone goal at the 50th minute for Real Madrid in a 1–0 victory.[9] Additionally, Portuguese midfielder Zézinho received the only red card of the tournament during the match in the 54th minute.[7] The 1957 Latin Cup was Real Madrid's second Latin Cup title, and Real Madrid was the Latin Cup's last ever champion.[10]

Real Madrid CF  1–0  SL Benfica
Report
 
 
 
 
 
 
Real Madrid CF
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
SL Benfica
GK   Juan Alonso
DF   Marquitos
DF   Rafael Lesmes
DF   Manuel Torres Pastor
MF   Miguel Muñoz (c)
MF   Antonio Ruiz Cervilla
MF   Joseíto
FW   Héctor Rial
FW   Francisco Gento
FW   Alfredo Di Stéfano
FW   Raymond Kopa
Manager:
  José Villalonga
GK   José de Bastos
DF   Ângelo Martins
DF   Manuel Francisco Serra
MF   Zézinho   54'
MF   Alfredo Abrantes
MF   Mário Coluna
MF   Fernando Caiado (c)
MF   Francisco Calado
FW   Domiciano Cavém
FW   Francisco Palmeiro
FW   José Águas
Manager:
  Otto Glória
1957 Latin Cup Champions
 
Real Madrid CF
2nd title

Bracket edit

 
SemifinalsFinal
 
      
 
20 June – Madrid
 
 
  Real Madrid CF5
 
23 June – Madrid
 
  AC Milan1
 
  Real Madrid CF1
 
20 June – Madrid
 
  SL Benfica0
 
  SL Benfica1
 
 
  AS Saint-Étienne0
 
Third place match
 
 
23 June – Madrid
 
 
  AC Milan4
 
 
  AS Saint-Étienne3

Statistics edit

Goalscorers edit

 
Francisco Gento was the leading goalscorer, scoring 3 goals in a hat-trick against Milan in the semifinals.

A total of 15 goals were scored during the tournament: 6 by Real Madrid, 5 by Milan, 3 by Saint-Étienne, and 1 by Benfica. Gento was the tournament's top scorer, scoring 3 goals in a hat-trick against Milan in the semifinals.[6] Di Stéfano scored the tournament's final goal—the lone goal in the final match against Benfica.[9]

Rank Player Team Goals
1   Francisco Gento   Real Madrid 3
2   Alfredo Di Stéfano   Real Madrid 2
3   Joseíto   Real Madrid 1
  François Wicart   Saint-Étienne
  Rachid Mekhloufi   Saint-Étienne
  Eugène N'Jo Léa   Saint-Étienne
  Eduardo Ricagni   Milan
  Amos Mariani   Milan
  Ernesto Cucchiaroni   Milan
  Per Bredesen   Milan
  Nils Liedholm   Milan
  Francisco Calado   Benfica
Source:[11]

Aftermath edit

The 1957 Latin Cup was the final edition of the tournament ever hosted. As happened in 1954, the 1958 edition of the tournament was canceled due to the conflicting schedule of the 1958 FIFA World Cup. Due to the rising popularity of the European Cup, however, the tournament was not hosted again.[7] After the tournament, the four nations which participated in the 1953, 1955, 1956, and 1957 editions of the tournament were allocated points based on their clubs' performances. Spain, which won the 1955 and 1957 editions, was awarded a trophy for topping the other three nations in point totals.[2]

R Nation 1st 2nd 3rd 4th Pts.
1.   Spain 2 1 1 12
2.   Italy 1 1 2 11
3.   France 1 1 2 9
4.   Portugal 1 2 1 8

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b Williams, Adam (17 June 2020). "The Copa Latina: A False Dawn for Continental Football in Europe". Breaking the Lines. Retrieved 8 June 2022.
  2. ^ a b c d e Stokkermans, Karel; Gorgazzi, Osvaldo José (20 August 2015). "Latin Cup". RSSSF. Retrieved 6 June 2022.
  3. ^ "Benfica 1–0 Saint-Étienne". ceroacero.es (in Spanish). Retrieved 7 June 2022.
  4. ^ "Sixty-Third Anniversary of Club's Second European Cup Triumph". RealMadrid.com. 30 May 2020. Retrieved 8 June 2022.
  5. ^ Relaño, Alfredo (26 September 2016). "La Curiosa Aventura de la Copa Latina" [The Curious Adventure of the Latin Cup]. El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 8 June 2022.
  6. ^ a b "Real Madrid 5–1 Milan". ceroacero.es (in Spanish). Retrieved 7 June 2022.
  7. ^ a b c d e f "Latin Cup 1957 – Real Madrid CF Winner". International Federation of Football History & Statistics. 5 March 2021. Retrieved 4 October 2022.
  8. ^ "Milan 4–3 Saint-Étienne". ceroacero.es (in Spanish). Retrieved 7 June 2022.
  9. ^ a b c "Real Madrid 1–0 Benfica". ceroacero.es (in Spanish). Retrieved 7 June 2022.
  10. ^ "On 23 June 1957, Madrid Overcame Benfica in the Final Following a 1–0 Win". RealMadrid.com. 23 June 2020. Retrieved 8 June 2022.
  11. ^ "Taça Latina 1957 | Máximo Goleador" [1957 Latin Cup | Top Goalscorers]. ceroacero.es (in Spanish). 1 February 2017. Retrieved 8 June 2022.

External links edit