1957 European Cup Final


The 1957 European Cup Final was a football match which took place at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium in Madrid, Spain, on 30 May 1957. It was contested between Real Madrid of Spain and Fiorentina of Italy. Real Madrid won 2–0 after goals from Alfredo Di Stéfano and Francisco Gento in the second half. It was the first of four finals where one of the teams played in its home stadium, and also the first final when the winning team played at their home stadium.
Controversy surrounded Real Madrid's first goal after Dutch referee Leo Horn ignored his linesman signalling that Enrique Mateos was offside before awarding a penalty for a foul on Mateos that appeared to have been committed outside the penalty area.

Route to the final

Real Madrid

Real Madrid finished third in the 1955–56 La Liga season. The club qualified for the 1956–57 European Cup as defending champions having won the previous final 4–3 against Stade de Reims at the Parc de Princes in Paris.
In the first round Madrid faced Austrian champions Rapid Wien. Two goals each from Di Stéfano and Marsal gave them a 4–2 win in the first leg held at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium. In the second leg an Ernst Happel hat-trick put Rapid 3–0 ahead but a Di Stéfano goal made the score 3-1. The game finished 5–5 on aggregate. With the away goals rule not existing until 1965 a playoff took place. Madrid won 2–0 at the Bernabéu with goals from Joseíto and Raymond Kopa.
The quarterfinals saw Madrid against French champions Nice. A Joseíto goal and Enrique Mateos double gave Madrid a 3–0 win at home. In the away tie, Madrid won 3–2 for a 6–2 victory on aggregate.
Manchester United were Madrid's opponents in the semifinals. Madrid won 5–3 on aggregate at home with goals from Rial, Di Stéfano and Mateos. They drew 2–2 at Old Trafford with Rial and Kopa scoring. The tie finished 5–3 on aggregate. Madrid qualified for their second successive European Cup final.

Fiorentina

Fiorentina qualified after winning the 1955–56 Serie A. In the first round they faced IFK Norrköping of Sweden. At home Fiorentina drew 1–1 with Claudio Bizzarri scoring. In the second leg they won 1–0.
In the quarterfinals Grasshopper Zurich of Switzerland were beaten 5–3 on aggregate. A 3–1 victory at home was followed by a 2–2 draw away.
Red Star Belgrade, who represented Yugoslavia, were the semifinal opponents. An 88th minute goal in the first leg from Maurilio Prini in Belgrade proved to be crucial as it gave Fiorentina a 1–0 aggregate victory.

Match

The final was held at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium on 30 May 1957. Leo Horn refereed the game. A penalty from Di Stéfano and a goal from Gento gave Madrid a 2–0 victory and retention of the title. This was their second European Cup victory.

Details