Balkans Cup

Former European football tournament

This article is about the defunct regional football competition contested by club teams of Balkan countries. For the national teams version, see Balkan Cup. For the youth version, see Balkan Youth Championship. For the rugby league, see Balkans Cup (rugby league).

Football tournament

Balkans Cup

Balkans Cup trophy in 1968

Founded| 1961; 64 years ago (1961)
Abolished| 1994; 31 years ago (1994)
Region| Southeast Europe
Number of teams| Various
Related competitions| Balkan Cup
Last champions|  Samsunspor
(1st title)
Most successful club(s)|  Beroe Stara Zagora (4 titles)

The Balkans Cup was an international football competition for clubs from Albania, Bulgaria, Greece, Romania, Turkey, and Yugoslavia. It was introduced in 1961 and was very popular in the 1960s (the 1967 final attracted 42,000 spectators),[1] being the second most important international club competition for clubs from the region (after the European Champions' Cup in which the champions could play; the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup originally attracted few teams from the region as many did not organise domestic cups regularly and only Yugoslavia had significant representation in the Fairs Cup).[1]

It later declined after Balkan clubs obtained more representation in the two minor UEFA competitions, in contrast to the (much older but also defunct) Balkan Cup (not Balkans) for national teams.

## Editions

[edit]

Finals on Home and Away basis, except noted otherwise.
a → first leg of the final
Years  | Nr of Clubs
& Format  | Winner
(or Champion in Group Format)  | Results of Finals
(or Points in Group Format)  | Finalist
(Runner-up)

|
|
|
|

001960–6100
Details | 5
Single group  |  Steagul Roşu Braşov |  13 – 8 Points RR |  Levski Sofia
001961–6300
Details | 8
Two groups  |  Olympiacos | a 1–0 / 0–1 / 1–0
Play-off match in Istanbul, Turkey. |  Levski Sofia
001963–6400
Details |  Rapid Bucureşti | 2–0 / 1–1 a |  Spartak Plovdiv
001964–6600
Details |  Rapid Bucureşti | a 3–3 / 2–0 |  Farul Constanţa
001966–6700
Details |  Fenerbahçe | 1–0 / 1–2 a / 3–1
Play-off match in Istanbul, Turkey.[2] |  AEK Athens
001967–6800
Details |  Beroe Stara Zagora | a 3–0 / 3–4 |  Spartak Sofia
1969
Details | 6
Two groups  |  Beroe Stara Zagora | 3–0 / 0–1 a
2nd Leg: Dinamo walked off while losing 0–1. |  Dinamo Tirana
1970
Details |  Partizani Tirana | 3–0 / 1–1 a
2nd Leg: Beroe did not show up. |  Beroe Stara Zagora
1971
Details |  Panionios | a 2–1 / 1–1 |  Besa Kavajë
1972
Details |  Trakia Plovdiv | a 5–0 / 0–4 |  Vardar Skopje
1973
Details |  Lokomotiv Sofia | 2–0 / 1–1 a |  ASA Târgu Mureș
1974
Details |  Akademik Sofia | a 2–1 / 0–0 |  Vardar Skopje
1975
Details |  Radnički Niš | a 1–0 / 2–1 |  Eskişehirspor
1976
Details |  Dinamo Zagreb | a 3–1 / 2–3 |  Sportul Studențesc
1977
Details |  Panathinaikos | 2–1 / 0–0 a |  Slavia Sofia
001977–7800
Details |  NK Rijeka | 4–1 / 0–1 a |  Jiul Petroşani
001979–8000
Details |  Sportul Studențesc | a 2–0 / 1–1 |  NK Rijeka
001980–8100
Details |  Velež Mostar | 6–2 / 6–5 a |  Trakia Plovdiv
001981–8300
Details |  Beroe Stara Zagora | a 3–0 / 3–1 |  17 Nëntori Tirana
001983–8400
Details | 3
Round robin  |  Beroe Stara Zagora |  6 – 4 Points RR |  Argeş Piteşti
001984–8500
Details | 8
Knockout  |  Iraklis | 4–1 / 1–3 a |  Argeş Piteşti
1986
Details |  Slavia Sofia | a 3–0 / 2–3 |  Panionios
001987–8800
Details | 10
Three groups  |  Slavia Sofia | a 5–1 / 1–0 |  Argeş Piteşti
001988–8900
Details | 6
Two groups  |  OFI | 3–1
Final played at neutral venue (Serres, Greece). |  Radnički Niš
001989–9000 | Competition did not take place due to the Romanian Revolution of 1989.00
001990–9100
Details | 6
Knock-out  |  Inter Sibiu | 1–0 (a.e.t) / 0–0 a |  Budućnost Titograd
001991–9200
Details | 5
Knock-out  |  Sarıyer | 1–0 / 0–0 a |  Oţelul Galaţi
001992–9300
Details | 6
Knock-out  |  Edessaikos | 3–1 / 0–1 a |  Etar Veliko Tarnovo
001993–9400
Details | 4
Knock-out  |  Samsunspor | 2–0 / 3–0 a |  PAS Giannina

* Competition formats:

Round robin: One group.
Two groups: Two groups, top team in each group qualifies for the final
Knock-out: Straight knockout.
Three groups: Two groups of 3 and one group of 4; top teams in the 3-team groups and the top two teams in the 4-team group qualify for the semi-finals

## Performances

[edit]

### By club

[edit]

When sorted by year of winning or losing final(s), the table is sorted by the year of each club's first final.

Club  | Winners  | Finalists  | Finals  | Years of Winning  | Years of Losing  | Entries  | Notes

|
|
|
|
|
|
|

Beroe Stara Zagora | 4 | 1 | 0 4[3] | 1968, 1969, 1983, 1984 | 1970 | 7 | 1984 Top Spot in Group
Slavia Sofia | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1986, 1988 | 1977 | 5
Rapid Bucureşti | 2 | - | 2 | 1964, 1966 | 0— | 2 | Winner in Both Entries
Panionios | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1971 | 1986 | 3
Trakia Plovdiv | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1972 | 1981 | 2 | Reached Final in Both Entries
Radnički Niš | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1975 | 1989 | 3
NK Rijeka | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1978 | 1980 | 2 | Reached Final in Both Entries
Sportul Studențesc | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1980 | 1976 | 3
Olympiacos | 1 | - | 1 | 1963 | 0— | 3
Fenerbahçe | 1 | - | 1 | 1967 | 0— | 4
Partizani Tirana | 1 | - | 1 | 1970 | 0— | 5
Lokomotiv Sofia | 1 | - | 1 | 1973 | 0— | 4
Akademik Sofia | 1 | - | 1 | 1974 | 0— | 2
Dinamo Zagreb | 1 | - | 1 | 1976 | 0— | 1
Panathinaikos | 1 | - | 1 | 1977 | 0— | 1
Velež Mostar | 1 | - | 1 | 1981 | 0— | 1
Iraklis | 1 | - | 1 | 1985 | 0— | 3
OFI | 1 | - | 1 | 1989 | 0— | 2
Inter Sibiu | 1 | - | 1 | 1991 | 0— | 1
Sarıyer | 1 | - | 1 | 1992 | 0— | 1
Edessaikos | 1 | - | 1 | 1993 | 0— | 1
Samsunspor | 1 | - | 1 | 1994 | 0— | 2
Steagul Roşu Braşov | 1 | - | 0 -[4] | 1961 | 0— | 4 | 1961 Top Spot in Group
Argeş Piteşti | - | 2 | 0 2[3] | 0— | 1984, 1985, 1988 | 3 | 1984 Runner-up in Group
Vardar Skopje | - | 2 | 2 | 0— | 1972, 1974 | 4
Levski Sofia | - | 1 | 0 1[4] | 0— | 1961, 1963 | 3 | 1961 Runner-up in Group
Spartak Plovdiv | - | 1 | 1 | 0— | 1964 | 2
Farul Constanţa | - | 1 | 1 | 0— | 1966 | 4
AEK Athens | - | 1 | 1 | 0— | 1967 | 4
Spartak Sofia | - | 1 | 1 | 0— | 1968 | 1
Dinamo Tirana | - | 1 | 1 | 0— | 1969 | 5
Besa Kavajë | - | 1 | 1 | 0— | 1971 | 2
Târgu Mureș | - | 1 | 1 | 0— | 1973 | 2
Eskişehirspor | - | 1 | 1 | 0— | 1975 | 3
Jiul Petroşani | - | 1 | 1 | 0— | 1978 | 1
17 Nëntori Tirana | - | 1 | 1 | 0— | 1983 | 4
Budućnost Podgorica | - | 1 | 1 | 0— | 1991 | 2
Oţelul Galaţi | - | 1 | 1 | 0— | 1992 | 1
Etar Veliko Tarnovo | - | 1 | 1 | 0— | 1993 | 3
PAS Giannina | - | 1 | 1 | 0— | 1994 | 2
Total | 280 | 260 | 520 | 52 Teams in Finals, since 1961 and 1983–84 editions were contested in Group Format.

* All 24 Clubs (out of 89 in total) that appeared in the Balkans Cup for 3 times or more, eventually Reached the Final with the exception of: Galatasaray (5 entries) and Beşiktaş (3) of Turkey, Vllaznia Shkodër (3) of Albania and Universitatea Craiova (3) of Romania.
* Beroe Stara Zagora of Bulgaria is competition's Record Holder concerning participation (7 entries), finals reached (4, plus one top spot in group) and wins (4), while in their single lost final against Partizani for 1970 edition, they opted not showing up in Tirana for the return leg of a 1–1 draw at home.
* Next to Beroe's 4, their compatriots Slavia Sofia reached 3 Finals (2 wins), while Romanian Argeş Piteşti had 2 (no win), plus one runner-up spot in group (each time they entered the competition, ended up in the losing side).
* 6 clubs won Balkans Cup in their Single Entry: Dinamo Zagreb (Yugoslavia, now Croatia) in 1976, Panathinaikos Athens (Greece) in 1977, Velež Mostar (Yugoslavia, now Bosnia and Herzegovina) in 1980–81, Inter Sibiu (Romania) in 1990–91, Sarıyer İstanbul (Turkey) in 1991–92 and Edessaikos Edessa (Greece) in 1992–93 edition.

### By country

[edit]

Clubs from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, North Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia competed as part of SFR Yugoslavia.

Country  | 00Winners  | 0Finalists  | Finals  | Clubs won in final(s)  | Clubs did not win in final(s)

|
|
|
|
|

Bulgaria | 9  | 0 7[4] | 0 15[5] | Beroe Stara Zagora (4)
Slavia Sofia (2)
Trakia Plovdiv (1)
Lokomotiv Sofia (1)
Akademik Sofia (1)  | Levski Sofia (1 \+ Runner-up spot in 1961.)
Spartak Plovdiv (1) Spartak Sofia (1)
Beroe Stara Zagora (1)
Slavia Sofia (1) Trakia Plovdiv (1)
Etar Veliko Tarnovo (1)
Greece | 6  | 3  | 09  | Olympiacos (1)
Panionios (1)
Panathinaikos (1)
Iraklis (1)
OFI (1)
Edessaikos (1)  | AEK Athens (1)
Panionios (1)
PAS Giannina (1)
Romania | 5  | 0 7[3] | 0 11[5] | Rapid Bucureşti (2)
Steagul Roşu Braşov (1)
Sportul Studențesc Bucureşti (1)
Inter Sibiu (1)  | Argeş Piteşti (2 \+ Runner-up spot in 1983–84.)
Farul Constanţa (1) ASA 1962 Târgu Mureș (1)
Sportul Studențesc Bucureşti (1)
Jiul Petroşani (1) Oţelul Galaţi (1)
Yugoslavia | 4  | 5  | 09  |
Dinamo Zagreb (1) NK Rijeka (1)
Radnički Niš (1)
Velež Mostar (1)
___
___  |
NK Rijeka (1)
Radnički Niš (1)

Vardar Skopje (2)
Budućnost Podgorica (1)
| 2 | 1 | 3
| 1 | 1 | 2
| 1 | - | 1
| - | 2 | 2
| - | 1 | 1
Turkey | 3  | 1  | 04  | Fenerbahçe İstanbul (1)
Sarıyer İstanbul (1)
Samsunspor (Samsun) (1)  | Eskişehirspor (Eskişehir) (1)
Albania | 1  | 3  | 04  | Partizani Tirana (1)  | Dinamo Tirana (1) Besa Kavajë (1)
17 Nëntori Tirana (1)
Total | 280 | 260 | 52 | 52 Teams in Finals, since 1961 and 1983–84 editions were contested in Group Format.

Top performer by country:

Country  | Club  | 0Winners  | Finalists  | 0Finals  | Entries  | Notes

|
|
|
|
|
|

BUL | Beroe Stara Zagora | 4 | 1 | 0 4[3] | 7 | Balkans Cup record holder in wins, finals reached and entries.
ROU | Rapid Bucureşti | 2 | - | 2 | 2 |
YUG | NK Rijeka | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | Radnički Niš same performance in 3 entries.
GRE | Panionios | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
TUR | Sarıyer İstanbul | 1 | - | 1 | 1 | Samsunspor and Fenerbahçe 1 win in 2 and 4 entries respectively.
ALB | Partizani Tirana | 1 | - | 1 | 5 |

## Participation

[edit]

### By club

[edit]

In the 33 years of its existence, a total of 89 clubs from 6 countries appeared in the 28 Balkans Cup editions. Two of them, both Turkish, withdrawn their participation before playing a single match: Zonguldakspor in 1980–81 and Trabzonspor in 1986. Sides with 4 entries or more:

Club  | Country  | Entries  | Winners  | Finalists  | Finals  | First Edition  | Last Edition  | Notes

|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|

Beroe Stara Zagora |  BUL | 7 | 4 | 1 | 0 4[3] | 1967–68 | 1992–93
Slavia Sofia |  BUL | 5 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1977 | 1987–88
Partizani |  ALB | 5 | 1 | - | 1 | 1961 | 1979–80
Dinamo Tirana |  ALB | 5 | - | 1 | 1 | 1961–63 | 1987–88
Galatasaray |  TUR | 5 | - | - | - | 1961–63 | 1990–91 | Also Withdrew in 1977–78 and 1979–80.
Steagul Roşu Braşov |  ROU | 4 | 1 | - | 0 -[4] | 1961 | 1972
Fenerbahçe |  TUR | 4 | 1 | - | 1 | 1961 | 1967–68 | Also Withdrew in 1963–64.
Lokomotiv Sofia |  BUL | 4 | 1 | - | 1 | 1966–67 | 1988–89
Vardar Skopje |  YUG | 4 | - | 2 | 2 | 1964–66 | 1974
Farul Constanţa |  ROU | 4 | - | 1 | 1 | 1964–66 | 1975
AEK Athens |  GRE | 4 | - | 1 | 1 | 1961 | 1980–81
17 Nëntori Tirana |  ALB | 4 | - | 1 | 1 | 1964–66 | 1990–91

### By country

[edit]

Bulgarian and Turkish sides were present at each one of the 28 Balkans Cup editions, while Yugoslavian were absent 9 times in total, entering just twice during its last decade of existence (ironically, reaching both finals). Generally, South Slavs (both Football Association and clubs) were never keen supporters of the competition, as they had neither been enthusiastic about the national teams' Balkan Cup, too.

| 00Bulgaria00 | Turkey | 0Romania0 | 00Greece00 | Albania | Yugoslavia

|
|
|
|
|
|

000Number of different sides that entered | 15 | 17 | 18 | 15 | 12 | 12
000Editions of Balkans Cup that
[1] | Country was represented by at least one club | 28 | 28 | 27 | 27 | 26 | 20
[2] | Country's club withdrew before playing a match | 0— | 05 | 0— | 01 | 0— | 01
[3] | Country was still represented by another club | 0— | 01 | 0— | 01 | 0— | 0—
[4] | Country's clubs competed (=[1]-[2]+[3]) | 28 | 24 | 27 | 27 | 26 | 19
000Country's clubs were absent (=28 total editions-[4]) | 0— | 04 | 01 | 01 | 02 | 09
000Years/editions that country's clubs were absent | — | 1977 to 1981
1986 | 1993–94
(Last Cup) | 1983–84 | 1983 to 1985 | 1961 (First Cup)
1983 to 1988
1991–end
[5] | Editions a club quit after playing at least one match | 01 | 05 | 01 | 04 | 0— | 01
000Editions a club withdrew or quit (=[2]+[5]) | 01 | 10 | 01 | 05 | 0— | 02
[6] | Editions with double entry | 08 | 05 | 06 | 03 | 01 | 0—
[7] | Total entries (=[4]-[3]+[6]) | 36 | 28 | 33 | 29 | 27 | 19
[8] | Cups won | 09 | 03 | 05 | 06 | 01 | 04
000% success in winning the Cup (=[8]÷[7]×100) | 25% | 11% | 15% | 21% | 04% | 21%
[9] | Finals reached | 0 15 | 04 | 0 11 [5] | 09 | 04 | 09
000% success in reaching the final (=[9]÷[7]×100)' | 42% | 14% | 33% | 31% | 15% | 47%

Despite the fact that in each edition there was at least one Turkish side initially entering, in no less than 5 occasions it withdrew before playing a single match and in 5 more quit during group stage, after unsuccessful results. Greeks followed with 1 withdrawal and 4 quits, while clubs from all countries had sporadically terminated their participation in some early stage of the competition, except for Albanian. Multiple winner and several other records holder Beroe Stara Zagora, became the only Bulgarian side ever to withdraw or quit a Balkans Cup match and the single one to do so in a final, by not showing up for 1970 edition's return leg against Partizani Tirana of Albania, following a 1-1 draw at home.

## See also

[edit]

* Balkan Cup
* Challenge Cup
* European Railways Cup
* Latin Cup
* Mitropa Cup

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b "Balkans Cup". rsssf.com. Retrieved 5 January 2015.
2. ^ Draw for the venue was held by FIFA President Sir Stanley Rous.
3. ^ a b c d e 1983–84 edition not included, since contested in Group Format.
4. ^ a b c d 1961 edition not included, since contested in Group Format.
5. ^ a b c 1961 and 1983–84 editions not included, since contested in Group Format.

## External links

[edit]

* Balkans Cup Archive, Romeo Ionescu, RSSSF (Recreation & Sports Soccer Statistics Foundation)
* Balkans Cup, Mehmet Çelik, Turkish Soccer

* v
* t
* e

Balkans Cup

* 1960–61
* 1961–63
* 1963–64
* 1964–66
* 1966–67
* 1967–68
* 1969
* 1970
* 1971
* 1972
* 1973
* 1974
* 1975
* 1976
* 1977
* 1977–78
* 1978–79
* 1979–80
* 1980–81
* 1981–83
* 1983–84
* 1984–85
* 1986
* 1987–88
* 1988–89
* 1989–90
* 1990–91
* 1991–92
* 1992–93
* 1993–94

* v
* t
* e

International friendly association football tournaments in Bulgaria

Clubs|

* Albena Cup
* Balkans Cup
* Kaliakra Kavarna Albena Cup

National teams|

* Balkan Cup

* v
* t
* e

International friendly association football tournaments in Romania

Clubs|

* Balkans Cup
* Mitropa Cup

National teams|

* Balkan Cup

* v
* t
* e

International friendly association football tournaments in Yugoslavia

Clubs|

* Balkans Cup
* Mitropa Cup

National teams|

* Balkan Cup
* Central European International Cup

*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template