UEFA Super Cup. Community Shield of European football.
While there is a certain division in the football debate as to whether or not such silverware is worthy of being considered a trophy, that doesn’t stop the occasion from being a feast for the eyes.
Predict the 2020 #SuperCup in three words? pic.twitter.com/fc9jKR7Dfs
— UEFA #SuperCup (@ChampionsLeague) September 23, 2020
Champions League winners against Europa League winners? It will do well.
The event has taken place since 1973, so in order to rank it without killing everyone, we’ve narrowed it down to when the Super Cup became a one-legged affair in 1998.
115 minutes? That with the front three? / Etsuo Hara/Getty Images
Lionel Messi, Thierry Henry and Zlatan Ibrahimovic started as Barcelona’s front three.
It took them until the 115th minute to score and secure a 1-0 win. Boring.
Shevchenko takes damage / Jamie Macdonald/Getty Images
Andrey Shevchenko’s goal in front of 16,000 fans leveled the contest. Porto will win the Champions League next season.
Check out the highlights of Filippo Inzaghi with short hair.
Poet scores major winner/Ben Redford/Getty Images
In the first edition of the Super Cup where it was permanently turned into a one-legged affair, Gus Poyet’s 83rd-minute goal separated the sides as they secured a surprise win over the Champions League winners.
Barcelona and trophies, a strange sight / Jasper Juinen/Getty Images
In one of those matches that was already over before the ball was kicked, Lionel Messi’s first-half strike was added by Cesc Fabregas in a game that will go down in history as it happened.
Lazio surprised many with their win / Ben Radford/Getty Images
Lazio secured the win they thought they would achieve in the 1999 Super Cup, Marcelo Salas’ 35th-minute goal being enough to defeat a Manchester United side featuring David Beckham, Paul Scholes and Roy Keane. .
A Very Beautiful Team / Alex Livesey / Getty Images
A Steve McManaman-inspired Real Madrid side won the Champions League final, but he played no part in the occasion as his team-mates cruised to a comfortable victory over their Dutch rivals – including Blackburn. The legend was Brett Emerton.
Valencia had a Spanish core with dashes of Italian flair. / Christopher Lee / Getty Images
Porto stunned the continent by securing the Champions League, but fell short on the occasion with Valencia a goal either side of half-time, Ricardo Quaresma’s late strike setting up a tense finale.
Pretty normal for Real/Chris Brunskill Ltd/Getty Images
It wasn’t an easy task for Real in 2014, but a Cristiano Ronaldo did business with a brace to eliminate their fiercest La Liga rivals in Cardiff.
The golden goal was fun / Jamie Macdonald / Getty Images
Golden goal!
Two penalties in regular time? Boring. Golden goal winner for the underdogs in extra time? We can get on board with that. And, of course, it was Mario Jardel who scored it.
Inter emerged after their Champions League triumph / Massimo Cibrelli / Getty Images
Despite having the best strikers in Europe that season, Inter failed to impose themselves on Atletico Madrid in 2010, with Jose Antonio Reyes and Sergio Aguero going to the sword in an all-action encounter.
Zenit School United in Monaco / Etsu Hara / Getty Images
They may have won the final in Moscow, but United were no friend in the Russia Super Cup as Zenit scored either side of half-time to stun the Red Devils, who scored a late consolation through Nemanja Vidic.
Great comeback secures victory for Milan / Jamie MacDonald/Getty Images
Sevilla and their Malian front two had good value for a first-half lead over Milan, but Carlo Ancelotti’s side changed style in the second period.
Inzaghi put them back on terms, with Marek Jankulovski and Kaka adding second and third tries to seal the deal.
Rashford’s late miss was a major blow / Chris Brunskill Limited / Getty Images
A dominant Madrid raced into a two-goal lead through Casemiro and Isco, only for Keylor Navas to save Romelu Lukaku with a blunder to offer United a lifeline.
It was as if they were in the dying stages, only for Marcus Rashford to slurp his lines when one-on-one.
Some game it was! /Michael Steele / Getty Images
Leading 3-0 before half-time, Bayern were broken through by a Michael Owen and Emile Heskey strike force. They regrouped after the break to bring themselves within a goal of extra time, but Liverpool held on for a memorable victory.
Liverpool loved a comeback in 2005 / Sean Botterell/Getty Images
It was an upset with less than ten minutes on the clock, only for substitute Gabriel Cess to pull it back. With Liverpool having the knack of scoring three goals after falling behind in European competition, Cess scored another goal in extra time before Luis Garcia rounded off the comeback win.
Seville stunned everyone watching / Etsuo Hara/Getty Images
More for shock value than anything else, Sevilla’s brilliant display in 2006 stunned everyone watching, as they clinched the title with a comfortable 3-0 win over Barcelona.
Scoring at all the right times, they left a star-studded Blaugrana side looking pretty average.
Atletico steal the derby. / Raigo Pajola / Getty Images
When a goal is scored before 60 seconds are on the clock, it sets the tone. In 2018, consider the tone carefully and set it right.
Madrid fought back to go 2-1 up, but Diego Costa once again dashed their hopes. In extra time Atletico made it two goals to one inside the first 15 to seal a famous victory over their rivals. Return, if you will.
Adrian was the hero on the night /TF-Images/Getty Images
Just the fact that it was the first all-English Super Cup final, people expected a tense affair. Liverpool were, by all accounts, the better team, but their clash came down to two penalties.
With the Reds leading 2-1 in extra time, Jorginho scored the equalizer from the spot. It went to penalties. Nine spot-kicks were converted before Tammy Abraham headed over, but the striker saw his save draw jubilation from Jurgen Klopp’s camp.
Animal/Chris Brunskill/Getty Images
It was not a spectacular clash in which both sides collided with each other. So it was not memorable.
It is loved as the Falcao final, where the Colombian scored a stunning hat-trick to run out Champions League winners. His three first-half goals were of excellent quality. Worth a spot on this list for them alone.
Seville was very close. /Trond Tandberg/Getty Images
Heartbreak for a Sevilla team who were reeling first from victory, then from penalties. With just three shots on target throughout the match, two of those were converted (one from the penalty spot) to put them seconds away from a famous 2-1 victory.
Sergio Ramos popped up – as he does – in the 93rd minute to force extra time, then Dani Carvajal broke Sevillanos’ hearts with the winner in the 119th minute.
Bayern had to end their win / MICHAL CIZEK/Getty Images
For drama, you need look no further. Bayern had thirty-seven shots against Chelsea in that match, a less impressive 14. 19 on target for Die Rotten and no fewer than nine for the Blues.
The fact that it took until the 121st minute for Javi Martinez to pull one back in the penalty shootout after a crazy clash. Eden Hazard had earlier put Chelsea ahead for the second time just three minutes into added time.
Romelu Lukaku missed the all-important penalty which saw the Germans dominate.
Que. A. Game/Vano Shalamov/Getty Images
It just might, right?
Sevilla were 4-1 down in the tie in the 57th minute, where their best-ever comeback was oh-so-almost complete. Somehow finding the energy to get themselves back on level terms, the game went to extra time.
A surprisingly enthralling contest was decided by the pre-match favourites, as Pedro scored the crucial winner five minutes from time.
One for the history books.