The first trophy in Spain | OneFootball

With Spain and Austria facing off for a place in the round of 16 of the 2026 World Cup, the São Paulo Historical Archive dug into the story behind the club’s first title won on Spanish soil.

On August 24, 1969, Tricolor beat Real Madrid 2-1, with goals by Benê and Babá, and was crowned champion of the Troféu Colombino, a traditional European preseason tournament. The most curious part, however, was that in this match São Paulo played in an all-blue kit, loaned by a local team.

The short-format tournament began a day earlier, on August 23, in Huelva, Spain. In the opener (the semifinal), São Paulo beat Las Palmas 3-2, with goals by Zé Roberto, Babá, and Nelsinho. The final, on the following night, was against the team from the Spanish capital, which had defeated Belgium’s Anderlecht 2-1 in the opening round.

Tricolor took the field wearing blue shirts, shorts, and socks: a tribute to the city of Huelva and Recreativo de Huelva, the host of the event and the oldest football club in Spain. According to the newspaper El Mundo Deportivo, the gesture was a request and a promise made by São Paulo’s directors if the team reached the final.

The game began in the opponents’ favor. Just seven minutes into the first half, the referee awarded a penalty against São Paulo. Gento put it in the net and opened the scoring. Tricolor, in blue, however, did not back down and went on the attack, pressing the Spaniards deep in their own half. The reward came still in the first half, in the 32nd minute: after a defensive clearance, the ball fell to Benê outside the box, and he struck the loose ball hard and low into the net to level the match.

From that point on, it was all São Paulo. In the second half, in the 15th minute, Paraná was brought down in the penalty area in a move similar to the penalty given at the start of the match, but this time the referee waved play on. Despite São Paulo’s repeated attacks, the winning goal only came in the 41st minute. Paraná, from the left, crossed into the box, and Babá, who had already missed two great chances, headed it accurately into the back of the net.

In stoppage time, Tricolor even scored a third goal, through Téia, but the referee had already “ended” the match moments earlier. It did not matter: with the result, São Paulo were crowned champions of the Troféu Colombino and received a magnificent and famous trophy representing one of Christopher Columbus’s caravels.

SÃO PAULO 2 X 1 REAL MADRID24.08.1969. 1969 Troféu Colombino – FinalHuelva (Spain), Huelva Stadium

SPFC: Picasso; Cláudio Deodato, Jurandir, Roberto Dias and Édson Cegonha (Tenente); Nenê and Benê; Miruca, Nelsinho, Babá (Téia) and Paraná. Coach: Diede Lameiro. Goals: Benê, 32/1; Babá (header), 41/2

Opponent: Antonio Betancort; Antonio Calpe (Gregório Benito), Pedro De Felipe and Manuel Sanchís; Sánchez Pirri (José Luis) and Ignacio Zoco; Fleitas, Amancio Varela, Ramón Grosso, Manuel Velázquez and Francisco Gento. Coach: Miguel Muñoz Mozún. Goal: Francisco Gento (penalty), 7/1

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.