Balkans Cup
Former European football tournament
title: "Balkans Cup" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["balkans-cup", "defunct-association-football-club-competitions-in-europe", "football-competitions-in-bulgaria", "men's-football-competitions-in-greece", "football-competitions-in-romania", "football-competitions-in-turkey", "sport-competitions-in-the-balkans", "recurring-sporting-events-established-in-1961", "1961-establishments-in-europe", "recurring-sporting-events-disestablished-in-1994", "1994-disestablishments-in-europe", "football-competitions-in-albania", "football-competitions-in-yugoslavia"] description: "Former European football tournament" topic_path: "sports" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balkans_Cup" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::summary Former European football tournament ::
::data[format=table title="Infobox football tournament"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | Balkans Cup |
| image | 1968BK4-455x700.jpg |
| imagesize | 80px |
| caption | Balkans Cup trophy in 1968 |
| founded | |
| abolished | |
| region | Southeast Europe |
| number of teams | Various |
| related comps | Balkan Cup |
| current champions | TUR Samsunspor |
| (1st title) | |
| most successful club | BUL Beroe Stara Zagora (4 titles) |
| :: |
::callout[type=note] the defunct regional football competition contested by club teams of Balkan countries ::
| name = Balkans Cup | image = 1968BK4-455x700.jpg | imagesize = 80px | alt = | caption = Balkans Cup trophy in 1968 | organiser = | founded = | abolished = | region = Southeast Europe | number of teams = Various | qualifier for = | related comps = Balkan Cup | domestic cup = | confed cup = | current champions = TUR Samsunspor (1st title) | most successful club = BUL Beroe Stara Zagora (4 titles) | broadcasters = | motto = | website = | current =
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), being the second most important international club competition for clubs from the region (after the European 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).
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
: Finals on Home and Away basis, except noted otherwise. : a → first leg of the final ::data[format=table] | Years | Nr of Clubs & Format | Winner (or Champion in Group Format) | Results of Finals (or Points in Group Format) | Finalist (Runner-up) | |---|---|---|---|---| | 1960–61 Details | 5 Single group | ROU Steagul Roşu Braşov | ** 13 – 8 Points RR** | BUL Levski Sofia | | 1961–63 Details | 8 Two groups | GRE Olympiacos | a 1–0 / 0–1 / 1–0 Play-off match in Istanbul, Turkey. | BUL Levski Sofia | | 1963–64 Details | ROU Rapid Bucureşti | 2–0 / 1–1 a | BUL Spartak Plovdiv | | | 1964–66 Details | ROU Rapid Bucureşti | a 3–3 / 2–0 | ROU Farul Constanţa | | | 1966–67 Details | TUR Fenerbahçe | 1–0 / 1–2 a / 3–1 Play-off match in Istanbul, Turkey. | GRE AEK Athens | | | 1967–68 Details | BUL Beroe Stara Zagora | a 3–0 / 3–4 | BUL Spartak Sofia | | | 1969 Details | 6 Two groups | BUL Beroe Stara Zagora | 3–0 / 0–1 a 2nd Leg: Dinamo walked off while losing 0–1. | ALB Dinamo Tirana | | 1970 Details | ALB Partizani Tirana | 3–0 / 1–1 a 2nd Leg: Beroe did not show up. | BUL Beroe Stara Zagora | | | 1971 Details | GRE Panionios | a 2–1 / 1–1 | ALB Besa Kavajë | | | 1972 Details | BUL Trakia Plovdiv | a 5–0 / 0–4 | YUG Vardar Skopje | | | 1973 Details | BUL Lokomotiv Sofia | 2–0 / 1–1 a | ROU ASA Târgu Mureș | | | 1974 Details | BUL Akademik Sofia | a 2–1 / 0–0 | YUG Vardar Skopje | | | 1975 Details | YUG Radnički Niš | a 1–0 / 2–1 | TUR Eskişehirspor | | | 1976 Details | YUG Dinamo Zagreb | a 3–1 / 2–3 | ROM Sportul Studențesc | | | 1977 Details | GRE Panathinaikos | 2–1 / 0–0 a | BUL Slavia Sofia | | | 1977–78 Details | YUG NK Rijeka | 4–1 / 0–1 a | ROU Jiul Petroşani | | | 1979–80 Details | ROU Sportul Studențesc | a 2–0 / 1–1 | YUG NK Rijeka | | | 1980–81 Details | YUG Velež Mostar | 6–2 / 6–5 a | BUL Trakia Plovdiv | | | 1981–83 Details | BUL Beroe Stara Zagora | a 3–0 / 3–1 | ALB 17 Nëntori Tirana | | | 1983–84 Details | 3 Round robin | BUL Beroe Stara Zagora | ** 6 – 4 Points RR** | ROU Argeş Piteşti | | 1984–85 Details | 8 Knockout | GRE Iraklis | 4–1 / 1–3 a | ROU Argeş Piteşti | | 1986 Details | BUL Slavia Sofia | a 3–0 / 2–3 | GRE Panionios | | | 1987–88 Details | 10 Three groups | BUL Slavia Sofia | a 5–1 / 1–0 | ROU Argeş Piteşti | | 1988–89 Details | 6 Two groups | GRE OFI | 3–1 Final played at neutral venue (Serres, Greece). | YUG Radnički Niš | | 1989–90 | Competition did not take place due to the Romanian Revolution of 1989. | | | | | 1990–91 Details | 6 Knock-out | ROU Inter Sibiu | 1–0 (a.e.t) / 0–0 a | YUG Budućnost Titograd | | 1991–92 Details | 5 Knock-out | TUR Sarıyer | 1–0 / 0–0 a | ROU Oţelul Galaţi | | 1992–93 Details | 6 Knock-out | GRE Edessaikos | 3–1 / 0–1 a | BUL Etar Veliko Tarnovo | | 1993–94 Details | 4 Knock-out | TUR Samsunspor | 2–0 / 3–0 a | GRE 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
By club
When sorted by year of winning or losing final(s), the table is sorted by the year of each club's first final. ::data[format=table]
| Club | Winners | Finalists | Finals | Years of Winning | Years of Losing | Entries | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BUL Beroe Stara Zagora | 4 | 1 | 4 | 1968, 1969, 1983, 1984 | 1970 | 7 | 1984 Top Spot in Group |
| BUL Slavia Sofia | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1986, 1988 | 1977 | 5 | |
| ROM Rapid Bucureşti | 2 | - | 2 | 1964, 1966 | — | 2 | Winner in Both Entries |
| GRE Panionios | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1971 | 1986 | 3 | |
| BUL Trakia Plovdiv | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1972 | 1981 | 2 | Reached Final in Both Entries |
| YUG Radnički Niš | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1975 | 1989 | 3 | |
| YUG NK Rijeka | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1978 | 1980 | 2 | Reached Final in Both Entries |
| ROM Sportul Studențesc | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1980 | 1976 | 3 | |
| GRE Olympiacos | 1 | - | 1 | 1963 | — | 3 | |
| TUR Fenerbahçe | 1 | - | 1 | 1967 | — | 4 | |
| ALB Partizani Tirana | 1 | - | 1 | 1970 | — | 5 | |
| BUL Lokomotiv Sofia | 1 | - | 1 | 1973 | — | 4 | |
| BUL Akademik Sofia | 1 | - | 1 | 1974 | — | 2 | |
| YUG Dinamo Zagreb | 1 | - | 1 | 1976 | — | 1 | |
| GRE Panathinaikos | 1 | - | 1 | 1977 | — | 1 | |
| YUG Velež Mostar | 1 | - | 1 | 1981 | — | 1 | |
| GRE Iraklis | 1 | - | 1 | 1985 | — | 3 | |
| GRE OFI | 1 | - | 1 | 1989 | — | 2 | |
| ROM Inter Sibiu | 1 | - | 1 | 1991 | — | 1 | |
| TUR Sarıyer | 1 | - | 1 | 1992 | — | 1 | |
| GRE Edessaikos | 1 | - | 1 | 1993 | — | 1 | |
| TUR Samsunspor | 1 | - | 1 | 1994 | — | 2 | |
| ROM Steagul Roşu Braşov | 1 | - | - | 1961 | — | 4 | 1961 Top Spot in Group |
| ROM Argeş Piteşti | - | 2 | 2 | — | 1984, 1985, 1988 | 3 | 1984 Runner-up in Group |
| YUG Vardar Skopje | - | 2 | 2 | — | 1972, 1974 | 4 | |
| BUL Levski Sofia | - | 1 | 1 | — | 1961, 1963 | 3 | 1961 Runner-up in Group |
| BUL Spartak Plovdiv | - | 1 | 1 | — | 1964 | 2 | |
| ROM Farul Constanţa | - | 1 | 1 | — | 1966 | 4 | |
| GRE AEK Athens | - | 1 | 1 | — | 1967 | 4 | |
| BUL Spartak Sofia | - | 1 | 1 | — | 1968 | 1 | |
| ALB Dinamo Tirana | - | 1 | 1 | — | 1969 | 5 | |
| ALB Besa Kavajë | - | 1 | 1 | — | 1971 | 2 | |
| ROM Târgu Mureș | - | 1 | 1 | — | 1973 | 2 | |
| TUR Eskişehirspor | - | 1 | 1 | — | 1975 | 3 | |
| ROM Jiul Petroşani | - | 1 | 1 | — | 1978 | 1 | |
| ALB 17 Nëntori Tirana | - | 1 | 1 | — | 1983 | 4 | |
| YUG Budućnost Podgorica | - | 1 | 1 | — | 1991 | 2 | |
| ROM Oţelul Galaţi | - | 1 | 1 | — | 1992 | 1 | |
| BUL Etar Veliko Tarnovo | - | 1 | 1 | — | 1993 | 3 | |
| GRE PAS Giannina | - | 1 | 1 | — | 1994 | 2 | |
| Total | 28 | 26 | 52 | 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
Clubs from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, North Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia competed as part of SFR Yugoslavia. ::data[format=table]
| Country | Winners | Finalists | Finals | Clubs won in final(s) | Clubs did not win in final(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BUL Bulgaria | 9 | 7 | 15 | 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) | |||||
| GRE Greece | 6 | 3 | 9 | Olympiacos (1) | |
| Panionios (1) | |||||
| Panathinaikos (1) | |||||
| Iraklis (1) | |||||
| OFI (1) | |||||
| Edessaikos (1) | AEK Athens (1) | ||||
| Panionios (1) | |||||
| PAS Giannina (1) | |||||
| ROM Romania | 5 | 7 | 11 | 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) | |||||
| YUG Yugoslavia | 4 | 5 | 9 | ||
| 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 | | | | TUR Turkey | 3 | 1 | 4 | Fenerbahçe İstanbul (1) Sarıyer İstanbul (1) Samsunspor (Samsun) (1) | Eskişehirspor (Eskişehir) (1) | | ALB Albania | 1 | 3 | 4 | Partizani Tirana (1) | Dinamo Tirana (1) Besa Kavajë (1) 17 Nëntori Tirana (1) | | Total | 28 | 26 | 52 | 52 Teams in Finals, since 1961 and 1983–84 editions were contested in Group Format. | | ::
Top performer by country: ::data[format=table]
| Country | Club | Winners | Finalists | Finals | Entries | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BUL BUL | Beroe Stara Zagora | 4 | 1 | 4 | 7 | Balkans Cup record holder in wins, finals reached and entries. |
| ROU ROU | Rapid Bucureşti | 2 | - | 2 | 2 | |
| YUG YUG | NK Rijeka | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | Radnički Niš YUG same performance in 3 entries. |
| GRE GRE | Panionios | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| TUR TUR | Sarıyer İstanbul | 1 | - | 1 | 1 | Samsunspor and Fenerbahçe TUR 1 win in 2 and 4 entries respectively. |
| ALB ALB | Partizani Tirana | 1 | - | 1 | 5 | |
| :: |
Participation
By club
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: ::data[format=table]
| Club | Country | Entries | Winners | Finalists | Finals | First Edition | Last Edition | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beroe Stara Zagora | BUL BUL | 7 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 1967–68 | 1992–93 | |
| Slavia Sofia | BUL BUL | 5 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1977 | 1987–88 | |
| Partizani | ALB ALB | 5 | 1 | - | 1 | 1961 | 1979–80 | |
| Dinamo Tirana | ALB ALB | 5 | - | 1 | 1 | 1961–63 | 1987–88 | |
| Galatasaray | TUR TUR | 5 | - | - | - | 1961–63 | 1990–91 | Also Withdrew in 1977–78 and 1979–80. |
| Steagul Roşu Braşov | ROU ROU | 4 | 1 | - | - | 1961 | 1972 | |
| Fenerbahçe | TUR TUR | 4 | 1 | - | 1 | 1961 | 1967–68 | Also Withdrew in 1963–64. |
| Lokomotiv Sofia | BUL BUL | 4 | 1 | - | 1 | 1966–67 | 1988–89 | |
| Vardar Skopje | YUG YUG | 4 | - | 2 | 2 | 1964–66 | 1974 | |
| Farul Constanţa | ROM ROU | 4 | - | 1 | 1 | 1964–66 | 1975 | |
| AEK Athens | GRE GRE | 4 | - | 1 | 1 | 1961 | 1980–81 | |
| 17 Nëntori Tirana | ALB ALB | 4 | - | 1 | 1 | 1964–66 | 1990–91 | |
| :: |
By country
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. ::data[format=table]
| Bulgaria | Turkey | Romania | Greece | Albania | Yugoslavia |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of different sides that entered | 15 | 17 | 18 | 15 | 12 |
| Editions of Balkans Cup that | |||||
| [1] | Country was represented by at least one club | 28 | 28 | 27 | 27 |
| [2] | Country's club withdrew before playing a match | — | 5 | — | 1 |
| [3] | Country was still represented by another club | — | 1 | — | 1 |
| [4] | Country's clubs competed (=[1]-[2]+[3]) | 28 | 24 | 27 | 27 |
| Country's clubs were absent (=28 total editions-[4]) | — | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Years/editions that country's clubs were absent | — | 1977 to 1981 | |||
| 1986 | 1993–94 | ||||
| (Last Cup) | 1983–84 | 1983 to 1985 | |||
| [5] | Editions a club quit after playing at least one match | 1 | 5 | 1 | 4 |
| Editions a club withdrew or quit (=[2]+[5]) | 1 | 10 | 1 | 5 | — |
| [6] | Editions with double entry | 8 | 5 | 6 | 3 |
| [7] | Total entries (=[4]-[3]+[6]) | 36 | 28 | 33 | 29 |
| [8] | Cups won | 9 | 3 | 5 | 6 |
| % success in winning the Cup (=[8]÷[7]×100) | 25% | 11% | 15% | 21% | 4% |
| [9] | Finals reached | ** 15** | 4 | 11 | 9 |
| % success in reaching the final ''(=[9]÷[7]×100)''' | 42% | 14% | 33% | 31% | 15% |
| :: |
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.
References
References
- "Balkans Cup". rsssf.com.
- Draw for the venue was held by [[FIFA]] President [[Stanley Rous. Sir Stanley Rous]].
- 1983–84 edition not included, since contested in Group Format.
- 1961 edition not included, since contested in Group Format.
- 1961 and 1983–84 editions not included, since contested in Group Format.
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