1936–37 S.L. Benfica season

The 1936–37 season was Sport Lisboa e Benfica's 33th season in existence and the club's 3rd consecutive season in the top flight of Portuguese football, covering the period from 1 September 1936 to 30 June 1937. Benfica competed in the Campeonato da Liga, the Campeonato de Portugal and in the Campeonato de Lisboa.

Benfica entered the new season aiming to defend its league title while also targeting success in the Campeonato de Portugal and the Campeonato de Lisboa. Under new manager Lippo Hertzka, who replaced Vítor Gonçalves after the club’s first league triumph, the team rebuilt parts of the squad with notable additions such as Guilherme Espírito Santo. Benfica finished runner-up in the Campeonato de Lisboa after losing the title on the final matchday, but excelled in the league, securing back-to-back championships, becoming the first team to do so in Portuguese league history. In the Campeonato de Portugal, the club advanced to the semi-finals, where it was eliminated by Sporting.

Benfica entered the season seeking to defend the league title it had secured the previous year, to reclaim the Campeonato de Portugal title, and to win the Campeonato de Lisboa. After guiding the team to its first league championship, manager Vítor Gonçalves left the club and was replaced by the Hungarian coach Lippo Hertzka. During the off-season, Francisco Gatinho departed for Belenenses and Guedes Gonçalves joined União de Lisboa, while club icon Vítor Silva retired. Several players were added to the squad, with Guilherme Espírito Santo being the most notable arrival.

Before the start of the Campeonato de Lisboa, Benfica played eight preparation matches, recording three wins, two draws, and two losses. Six of these encounters were against local rivals Belenenses and Sporting, with the most notable taking place on 13 September, a 2–1 victory marking the farewell match of Vítor Silva, who scored the winning goal.^[1]

Benfica began the Campeonato de Lisboa with a goalless draw against Casa Pia,^[2] followed by a 5–0 home defeat to Sporting in the first Derby de Lisboa of the season.^[3] The team responded with a 3–1 victory over Belenenses, but dropped points again in a 1–1 away draw with Barreirense. In the following two matches, Benfica scored a total of 13 goals, winning both, and moved into first place after Sporting dropped points in the same round.^[4]

On 22 November, Benfica visited Sporting in a decisive clash, drawing 1–1 and retaining first place, now level on points with Belenenses.^[5] The team then travelled to face Belenenses, winning 4–3 with a hat-trick from Rogério Sousa.^[6] A 3–1 win over Barreirense ensured that the title would be decided on the final matchday. However, a surprising 2–1 loss to Carcavelinhos in the last round handed the championship to Sporting.^[7]

Before the start of the Campeonato da Liga, Benfica played four preparation matches, winning three and drawing one. Two of these were against Porto, with Benfica winning 5–1 in Lisbon^[8] and drawing 3–3 in Porto.^[9] Benfica began its league title defense with a 2–1 away victory against Vitória de Setúbal. The team won its next two league matches as well, finishing January in first place with a two-point lead over Porto.^[10]

On 14 February, Benfica visited Sporting in the derby, winning 4–1 with two goals from Rogério.^[11] The team followed this result with victories over Académica and Belenenses, ending the month with a four-point lead over Académica.^[12] Benfica began March with an away trip to face Porto in O Clássico, losing 2–1 and seeing its lead reduced to two points.^[13] The team then responded with two more victories, scoring 11 goals, and finished the month with a three-point advantage at the top of the table.^[14]

April began with a 6–0 win over Leixões, before Benfica faced Sporting in the derby. On 11 April, Benfica defeated Sporting 5–1, maintaining a three-point lead with three matches remaining.^[15] In the following match, the team beat Académica, but a 1–0 away loss to Belenenses postponed the title decision to the final round.^[16] On the last matchday, Benfica hosted Porto in O Clássico, winning 6–0 and securing its second league title, becoming the first team to win back-to-back championships in league history.^[17]

After winning the league title, the team competed in the Campeonato de Portugal, facing Barreirense in the round of 16 and advancing to the quarter-finals thanks to a single goal from Alfredo Valadas in the first leg.^[18] In the next round, Benfica met Marítimo, winning 6–2 on aggregate and setting up another Lisbon derby in the semi-finals. A 3–2 home victory in the first leg, in which the team reached half-time with a three-goal lead, gave Benfica the advantage.^[19] However, a 4–2 defeat in the second match eliminated Benfica from the competition.^[20]

  Win   Draw   Loss   Postponed

The squad for the season consisted of the players listed in the tables below, as well as staff member Lippo Hertzka (manager).

Note 1: Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

Note 2: Players with squad numbers marked ‡ joined the club during the 1936-37 season via transfer, with more details in the following section.