European/South American Cup

The European/South American Cup, commonly referred to as the Intercontinental Cup, and also known as the World Club Championship or Toyota Cup, was a football competition endorsed by UEFA and CONMEBOL, contested between the winners of the European Champions League and the South American Copa Libertadores in a match played each December at the Yokohama International Stadium, Japan.

History

The Intercontinental Cup was created by Henri Delauney as a way of determining who is the top club in the world (Europe and South America being the football world's top continents).

Related Topics:
Henri Delauney - Europe - South America

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Europe already had its European Champions Club Cup, but South America did not have a similar competition. Thus, South American Confederación (CONMEBOL's predecessor) created a similar competition, and named it after the heroes of South American independence. The Copa Libertadores made the Intercontinental Cup viable.

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The first match-up was in 1960, between Spanish side Real Madrid and the Uruguayan club Peñarol.

Related Topics:
1960 - Real Madrid - Peñarol

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Ever since the 1950s (and especially since the 1970s) many talented South Americans crossed the Atlantic to play for European teams, who also tend to be richer. Perhaps as a consequence, South American fans have always attached more importance to the Intercontinental Cup than their European counterparts.

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European teams often suffered from the eagerness of South American competitors, which could degenerate into aggressive playing. An especially traumatic event was the 1969 series between Estudiantes and Milan, which resulted in extremely harsh suspensions for many Estudiantes players.

Related Topics:
1969 - Estudiantes - Milan

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Out of concern for the integrity of players, and also because of the lack of financial incentive, several European champions declined to participate; in all cases, their runners-up took their place. The 1975 and 1978 editions were not disputed at all.

Related Topics:
1975 - 1978

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The very viability of the competition came under fire until Toyota assumed the role of sponsor for the 1980 edition; for the remainder of the competition's history, no club declined playing the Intercontinental Cup.

Related Topics:
Toyota - 1980

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