The Cupa Ligii (English: League Cup) was Romania's secondary club football tournament. Like the Cupa României, it was played on a knockout (single elimination) basis.
 | |
| Founded | 2014 |
|---|---|
| Abolished | 2017 |
| Region | Romania |
| Number of teams | 14 |
| Last champions | Dinamo București (1st title) |
| Most successful club(s) | FCSB (2 times) |
| Television broadcasters | Look TV Look Plus Digi Sport Dolce Sport |
| Website | Cupa Ligii at lpf.ro |
History
editIt is unclear when the competition was first created, as there are no official recordings. It started in 1994, but there may already have been an edition as early as 1978. Cupa Ligii was meant to shorten the break between the end of the league season and the start of a major international competition.
The competition under the name of Samsung Cup was Gheorghe Copos' idea and was held at the end of the 1993-94 season with the 18 teams of the Romanian first division and Rapid Bucharest being the winner and received a financial reward of $100,000. It had a friendly character and was played in 1998 and 2000 before being dropped.[1]
In April 2014, it was decided to re-establish the competition, this time with official character, starting with the 2014–15 edition.[2] Managed by the Liga Profesionistă de Fotbal (LPF), only teams from the Romanian top division were allowed to take part. FCSB (twice) and Dinamo București were winners of the cup before being abolished again in 2017.[3]
Unofficial finals (1994–2000)
edit| Season | Winner | Score | Runner-up | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | FC Rapid București | 5–1 | UTA Arad | ? |
| 1998 | FCM Bacău | 3–2 (a.e.t.) | Universitatea Cluj | ANEFS Stadium, Bucharest |
| 2000 | Gloria Bistrița | 2–2 (a.e.t.) 3–1 (pen.) | FCM Bacău | Cotroceni Stadium, Bucharest |
Finals (2014-2017)
editThere were three previous friendly cups held in 1994, 1998 and 2000. Those were won by Rapid București, FCM Bacău and Gloria Bistrița.[4][5][6][7]
| Season | Winner | Score | Runner-up | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014–15 | Steaua București | 3–0 | Pandurii Târgu Jiu | Arena Națională, Bucharest |
| 2015–16 | Steaua București | 2–1 (a.e.t.) | Concordia Chiajna | |
| 2016–17 | Dinamo București | 2–0 | ACS Poli Timișoara |
Broadcasters
editFrom the 2014–15 season to the 2018–19 season, sister channels Look TV and Look Plus were meant to broadcast Cupa Ligii.[8] The matches could have also been viewed on Digi Sport and Dolce Sport.
References
edit- ^ "Tot ce trebuie să știi despre finala Cupei Ligii" [All you need to know about the League Cup final.] (in Romanian). ProSport. 19 May 2017.
- ^ "Sponsor de 1.5 mil euro pentru Cupa Ligii, premii mai mari decat in Cupa Romaniei" [1,5 million euro sponsor for Cupa Ligii, better rewards than for Cupa României] (in Romanian). Sport.ro. Retrieved 2 July 2014.
- ^ "Război deschis LPF-FRF! Cupa Ligii s-a desființat! "Burleanu a obținut ce și-a dorit"" [Open war between LPF-FRF! The League Cup was dropped! "Burleanu managed to get what he wanted"] (in Romanian). Digi Sport. 25 May 2017. Retrieved 25 May 2017.
- ^ "Tot ce trebuie să ştii despre finala Cupei Ligii". Pro Sport. 19 May 2017. Retrieved 2017-05-19.
- ^ "Cupa Ligii". Puterea.ro (in Romanian). Archived from the original on 24 June 2015. Retrieved 19 May 2015.
- ^ "Istoria Cupei Ligii". ProSport.ro (in Romanian). Retrieved 19 May 2015.
- ^ "Romania - List of League Cup Finals".
- ^ "Look TV şi Transilvania Live vor transmite meciurile din Liga I şi Cupa Ligii" [Look TV and Transilvania Live will transmit Liga I and Cupa Ligii matches]. exclusivNews (in Romanian). Archived from the original on 13 April 2014. Retrieved 10 April 2014.