1961 European Cup Winners' Cup final

The 1961 European Cup Winners' Cup Final was an association football match contested between Fiorentina of Italy and Rangers of Scotland. It was the final match of the 1960–61 European Cup Winners' Cup and the first European Cup Winners' Cup final. It was the only time that the final was played over two legs. The first leg was played at Ibrox Park, Glasgow and the second leg at the Stadio Comunale in Florence. It was Rangers first European final and in doing so became the first Scottish team to reach the final of a European football competition. It was Fiorentina's second European final having previously reached the 1957 European Cup Final.

1961 European Cup Winners' Cup final
Event1960–61 European Cup Winners' Cup
on aggregate
First leg
Date17 May 1961
VenueIbrox Park, Glasgow
RefereeCarl Erich Steiner (Austria)
Attendance80,000[1]
Second leg
Date27 May 1961
VenueStadio Comunale, Florence
RefereeVilmos Hernádi (Hungary)[2]
Attendance50,000

Fiorentina won the final 4–1 on aggregate.[2]

Route to the final

Rangers

Round Opponents First leg Second leg Aggregate score
Preliminary round Ferencváros 4–2 (h) 1–2 (a) 5–4
Quarter-finals Borussia Mönchengladbach 3–0 (a) 8–0 (h) 11–0
Semi-finals Wolverhampton Wanderers 2–0 (h) 1–1 (a) 3–1

Rangers were required to play a preliminary round in the competition where they beat Ferencváros from Hungary 5-4 on aggregate. They were then drawn against Borussia Mönchengladbach from Germany who they then defeated 11-0 on aggregate. In the semi-final Rangers were then required to play English team Wolverhampton Wanderers. Rangers won the tie 3-1 on aggregate to reach their first ever European final.[3]

Fiorentina

Round Opponents First leg Second leg Aggregate score
Quarter-finals FC Luzern 3–0 (a) 6–2 (h) 9–2
Semi-finals Dinamo Zagreb 3–0 (h) 1–2 (a) Pens 4–2

Fiorentina went straight into the quarter-finals where they played FC Luzern from Switzerland. They subsequently defeated them and Dinamo Zagreb to reach the final.

Background

The 1961 final was the only time that it had been played over two legs until the competition was merged with the UEFA Cup in 1999.[3]

Fiorentina, who were managed by Hungarian Nándor Hidegkuti, were the recent Coppa Italia winners and had reached the final of the European Cup four years earlier. Their team included many Italian internationals including goalkeeper Enrico Albertosi and Swedish star player Kurt Hamrin.[3]

Rangers were managed by Scot Symon and had reached the semi-final of the European Cup the previous year. Since the start of the 1960-61 season , the all-Scottish Rangers team also included Jim Baxter who would go on to become a legendary figure of the club. Rangers top scorer Jimmy Millar missed the first leg through injury but featured in the return match.[3]

Match details

First leg

Rangers Scotland0–2Italy Fiorentina
Report Milan 12', 88'
Attendance: 80,000
Referee: Carl Erich Steiner (Austria)
Rangers
Fiorentina
GK1Scotland Billy Ritchie
DF2Scotland Bobby Shearer
DF3Scotland Eric Caldow
DF4Scotland Harold Davis
DF5Scotland Bill Paterson
MF6Scotland Jim Baxter
MF7Scotland Davie Wilson
MF8Scotland Ian McMillan
FW9Scotland Alex Scott
FW10Scotland Ralph Brand
MF11Scotland Bobby Hume
Manager:
Scotland Scot Symon
GK1Italy Enrico Albertosi
DF2Italy Enzo Robotti
DF3Italy Sergio Castelletti
DF4Italy Piero Gonfiantini
DF5Italy Alberto Orzan
MF6Italy Claudio Rimbaldo
MF7Sweden Kurt Hamrin
MF8Italy Dante Micheli
FW9Brazil Dino da Costa
FW10Italy Luigi Milan
MF11Italy Gianfranco Petris
Manager:
Hungary Nándor Hidegkuti

Second leg

Fiorentina Italy2–1Scotland Rangers
Milan 13'
Hamrin 86'
Report Scott 60'
Attendance: 50,000
Referee: Vilmos Hernádi (Hungary)
Fiorentina
Rangers
GK1Italy Enrico Albertosi
DF2Italy Enzo Robotti
DF3Italy Sergio Castelletti
DF4Italy Piero Gonfiantini
DF5Italy Alberto Orzan
MF6Italy Claudio Rimbaldo
MF7Sweden Kurt Hamrin
MF8Italy Dante Micheli
FW9Brazil Dino da Costa
FW10Italy Luigi Milan
MF11Italy Gianfranco Petris
Manager:
Hungary Nándor Hidegkuti
RANGERS:
GK1Scotland Billy Ritchie
DF2Scotland Bobby Shearer
DF3Scotland Eric Caldow
DF4Scotland Harold Davis
DF5Scotland Bill Paterson
MF6Scotland Jim Baxter
MF7Scotland Alex Scott
MF8Scotland Ian McMillan
FW9Scotland Jimmy Millar
FW10Scotland Ralph Brand
MF11Scotland Davie Wilson
Manager:
Scotland Scot Symon

See also

References

  1. Rangers lose first leg of final, Glasgow Herald, 18 May 1961 (via Google news archive)
  2. Rangers again beaten by Italians, Glasgow Herald, 29 May 1961 (via Google news archive)
  3. Murray, Keir (22 April 2008). "When Rangers met Fiorentina in '61". BBC Sport. Retrieved 18 September 2012.
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