The 1965–66 FIBA European Champions Cup was the ninth season of the European top-tier level professional basketball club competition FIBA European Champions Cup (now called EuroLeague). It was won by Simmenthal Milano, for the first time in its history, the first of the club's three EuroLeague championships.
| 1965–66 FIBA European Champions Cup | |
|---|---|
| League | FIBA European Champions Cup |
| Sport | Basketball |
| Final Four | |
| Champions |  Simmenthal Milano |
| Runners-up |  Slavia VŠ Praha |
Simmenthal defeated Slavia VŠ Praha, by a score of 77–72, in the final of the first ever Champions Cup Final Four held in the EuroLeague competition, with two venues used: a venue in Milan, and the Palazzo dello sport arena in Bologna, Italy.[1] The Italian team, featuring future the Basketball Hall of Fame member Bill Bradley, defeated the favorites and former champs, CSKA Moscow, in the semifinal, by a score of 57–68.
Competition system edit
26 teams. European national domestic league champions, plus the then current FIBA European Champions Cup title holders only, playing in a tournament system. The competition culminated in a Final Four.
First round edit
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg | 3rd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Fenerbahçe 
|
143–146 |  Dinamo București
|
85–71 | 58–75 | |
Wiener 
|
139–161 |  Vorwärts Leipzig
|
75–82 | 64–79 | |
Gladsaxe Efterslægten 
|
96–171 | Slavia VŠ Praha
|
57–84 | 39–87 | |
Gießen 46ers 
|
150–191 | Simmenthal Milano
|
77–88 | 73–103 | |
Etzella 
|
98–162 |  CSKA Cherveno zname
|
51–72 | 47–90 | |
Collegians 
|
84–152 |  Denain Voltaire
|
51–78 | 33–74 | |
KR 
|
109–149 |  Alvik
|
48–60 | 61–89 | |
AEK 
|
153–150 |  Wisła Kraków
|
72–71 | 81–79 | |
Wydad AC 
|
193–191* |  Benfica
|
53–54 | 77–76 | 63-61 |
Aldershot Warriors 
|
144–213 |  Racing Mechelen
|
83–113 | 61–100 |
*Series decided over a third game after having tied aggregate score after the two home-away games.
Second round edit
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg | 3rd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Racing Mechelen
|
210–150 |  Helsingin Kisa-Toverit
|
116–79 | 99–74 | |
Honvéd 
|
143–182 | Slavia VŠ Praha
|
62–100 | 81–82 | |
| Vorwärts Leipzig
|
123–175 |  CSKA Moscow
|
66–87 | 57–88 | |
| Wydad AC
|
172–238 | AEK
|
96–113 | 76–125 | |
| Alvik
|
149–201 |  Real Madrid
|
88–113 | 61–91 | |
| Denain Voltaire
|
126–139 | CSKA Cherveno zname
|
61–53 | 65–86 | |
Hapoel Tel Aviv 
|
118–187 | Simmenthal Milano
|
65–80 | 53–87 | |
| Dinamo București
|
207–213* |  Zadar
|
92–78 | 56–70 | 59-65 |
*Series decided over a third game after having tied aggregate score after the two home-away games.
Quarterfinals group stage edit
For the first time in the competition history, the quarterfinals were played with a round-robin system, in which every Two Game series (TGS) constituted as one game for the record. A third decisive game was played if the aggregate score of the first two games was tied.
| Top two places in each group advance to Semifinals |
Group A editGames edit
Standings edit
|
Group B editGames edit
Standings edit
|
Final four edit
Semifinals edit
March 31, Milan
| Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Slavia VŠ Praha
|
103–73 | AEK
|
March 30, Palazzo dello sport, Bologna
| Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
|---|---|---|
| CSKA Moscow
|
57–68 | Simmenthal Milano
|
3rd place game edit
April 1, Milan
| Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
|---|---|---|
| AEK
|
62–85 | CSKA Moscow
|
Final edit
April 1, Palazzo dello sport, Bologna
| Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Simmenthal Milano
|
77–72 | Slavia VŠ Praha
|
| 1965–66 FIBA European Champions Cup Champions |
|---|
 Simmenthal Milano 1st Title |
Final standings edit
| Team | |
|---|---|
 |
Simmenthal Milano
|
 |
Slavia VŠ Praha
|
 |
CSKA Moscow
|
| AEK
|