The 1979–80 season was the 20th season of the European Cup Winners' Cup, a football tournament organised by UEFA for the cup winners from each of its member associations. The competition was won by Spanish club Valencia, who beat Arsenal of England on penalties after a goalless final at the Heysel Stadium in Brussels, Belgium. It was the only Cup Winners' Cup to be decided on penalties (although two previous finals had required replays). It was Valencia's third European title, adding to the two Inter-Cities Fairs Cup titles they won in the 1960s.
| Final positions | |
|---|---|
| Champions |  Valencia (1st title) |
| Runners-up |  Arsenal |
Preliminary round edit
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Rangers 
|
3–0 |  Lillestrøm
|
1–0 | 2–0 |
B 1903 
|
7–0 |  APOEL
|
6–0 | 1–0 |
First leg edit
Second leg edit
B 1903 won 7-0 on aggregate.
First round edit
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Dynamo Moscow 
|
w/o |  Vllaznia Shkodër
|
– | – |
Sliema Wanderers 
|
2–9 |  Boavista
|
2–1 | 0–8 |
Cliftonville 
|
0–8 |  Nantes
|
0–1 | 0–7 |
Young Boys 
|
2–8 |  Steaua București
|
2–2 | 0–6 |
Reipas Lahti 
|
0–2 |  Aris Bonnevoie
|
0–1 | 0–1 |
ÍA 
|
0–6 | Barcelona
|
0–1 | 0–5 |
| B 1903
|
2–6 | Valencia
|
2–2 | 0–4 |
| Rangers
|
2–1 |  Fortuna Düsseldorf
|
2–1 | 0–0 |
| Arsenal
|
2–0 |  Fenerbahçe
|
2–0 | 0–0 |
Wrexham 
|
5–7 |  Magdeburg
|
3–2 | 2–5 (aet) |
Panionios 
|
5–3 |  Twente
|
4–0 | 1–3 |
IFK Göteborg 
|
2–1 |  Waterford
|
1–0 | 1–1 |
Wacker Innsbruck 
|
1–3 |  Lokomotíva Košice
|
1–2 | 0–1 |
Beerschot 
|
1–2 |  Rijeka
|
0–0 | 1–2 |
Arka Gdynia 
|
3–4 |  Beroe Stara Zagora
|
3–2 | 0–2 |
Juventus 
|
3–2 |  Győri ETO
|
2–0 | 1–2 |
First leg edit
| Young Boys | 2–2 | Steaua București |
|---|---|---|
Zwygart  42', pen'Schönenberger 78' |
Stoica 38' Iordănescu 44' |
Second leg edit
| Steaua București | 6–0 | Young Boys |
|---|---|---|
| Nițu 1' Sameș 7', 65'Aelenei 47'Răducanu 56'Zahiu 72' |
Steaua București won 8–2 on aggregate.
Juventus won 3–2 on aggregate.
| Boavista | 8–0 | Sliema Wanderers |
|---|---|---|
| Aílton 7' Júlio Carlos 16', 28', 57'Moínhos 34'Salvador 53'Folha 63'Óscar 90' |
Report |
Boavista won 9–2 on aggregate.
Second round edit
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dynamo Moscow
|
1–1 (a) | Boavista
|
0–0 | 1–1 |
| Nantes
|
5–3 | Steaua București
|
3–2 | 2–1 |
| Aris Bonnevoie
|
2–11 | Barcelona
|
1–4 | 1–7 |
| Valencia
|
4–2 | Rangers
|
1–1 | 3–1 |
| Arsenal
|
4–3 | Magdeburg
|
2–1 | 2–2 |
| Panionios
|
1–2 | IFK Göteborg
|
1–0 | 0–2 |
| Lokomotíva Košice
|
2–3 | Rijeka
|
2–0 | 0–3 |
| Beroe Stara Zagora
|
1–3 | Juventus
|
1–0 | 0–3 (aet) |
First leg edit
| Beroe Stara Zagora | 1–0 | Juventus |
|---|---|---|
| Stoyanov 80' (pen.) |
Second leg edit
| Boavista | 1–1 | Dynamo Moscow |
|---|---|---|
| Moínhos 34' |
Report | Minayev 26' |
1–1 on aggregate. Dynamo Moscow won on away goals.
Juventus won 3–1 on aggregate.
Quarter-finals edit
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dynamo Moscow
|
3–4 | Nantes
|
0–2 | 3–2 |
| Barcelona
|
3–5 | Valencia
|
0–1 | 3–4 |
| Arsenal
|
5–1 | IFK Göteborg
|
5–1 | 0–0 |
| Rijeka
|
0–2 | Juventus
|
0–0 | 0–2 |
First leg edit
Second leg edit
Juventus won 2–0 on aggregate.
Semi-finals edit
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nantes
|
2–5 |  Valencia
|
2–1 | 0–4 |
| Arsenal
|
2–1 | Juventus
|
1–1 | 1–0 |
First leg edit
Second leg edit
Arsenal won 2–1 on aggregate.
