#1 When Bela Guttman cursed Benfica
“Not in a hundred years from now, will Benfica ever be European champions”
The curse of Bela Guttman. Football’s answer to the Illuminati and the Bermuda Triangle. Sacked after winning the 1962 European Cup, because he asked for a pay rise, Guttman’s curse has been the albatross around the Lisbon outfit’s neck for more than half a century now. The team has gone on to lose an unbelievable five European Cup finals, in addition to three in the Europa League.
In fact, the great Eusebio even went to the grave of the Austrian and prayed for forgiveness, prior to the 1990 European Cup final, which was played in Vienna. However, none of them has been to any avail, as Guttman’s curse has gone on to achieve mythical proportions. The club even unveiled a statue of the man outside the Stadium of Light, but as far as his terrible curse is concerned, there seems to be no light at the end of the tunnel.