The Eusébio Cup is a pre-season friendly
football match hosted by Portuguese club
S.L. Benfica since 2008. It has been played mostly at their home stadium,
Estádio da Luz, with the two exceptions being the 2015 and 2018 editions (played at
Estadio BBVA and
Estádio Algarve, respectively).
The two-team competition is named after Portuguese international and former Benfica player
Eusébio,[1][2] who presented the trophy to the winning team until 2013, before his death in January 2014. There were plans to extend the number of participants to four,[3] a move that Eusébio himself was in favor of,[4] but no changes were ever made in that regard.
The invitational match has been played in late July and early August, and it was played annually and without interruption until 2016.[6] Despite two tries,[7][8] there was no edition in 2017. A year later, the Eusébio Cup returned as part of the
2018 International Champions Cup,[6] only to be revived four years later in
Lisbon.[9] There will be no edition in the 2023–24 pre-season.[10][11]
Trophy
The Eusébio Cup trophy is made out of glass and bears the name of the match and its winners. Moreover, it features a figure of
Eusébio, on the top, performing his trademark shooting technique. The figure is similar to Eusébio's statue outside
Estádio da Luz. The trophy is symbolic because it is dedicated to Eusébio, who is considered one of the greatest
footballers of all time, and Benfica's greatest.
Broadcasters
The following is a list of television channels who broadcast the matches for Portugal.
Note: The match was cancelled due to Elite Soccer Entertainment not being able to meet the contractual obligations and the commitments established with both clubs.[15]