Super cup
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A super cup is a competition, in association football, basketball, handball, volleyball and rugby union which often forms the 'curtain raiser' to a season, and typically involves only two teams who have qualified through success in other competitions during the previous season.
It is typically contested on a national level by two competition winners of the previous season: the national knock-out cup winner and the highest level league champion. There are also continental super cups, like the UEFA Super Cup in football, which puts together winners of the top and second-tier UEFA competitions and the Recopa Sudamericana between CONMEBOL Libertadores and the Sudamericana winners, and cross-border super cups between champions of neighbouring leagues, such as the Campeones Cup between the winners of the highest level leagues in the United States and Mexico, and the Champions Cup for the champions of both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
The now-defunct Intercontinental Cup was a super cup played between the continental champions of Europe and South America, with winners retroactively recognised by world governing body FIFA as World Champions prior to the creation of the official FIFA Club World Cup and the CONMEBOL-UEFA Cup of Champions between the winners of the European Football Championship and the Copa América, which rebranded once again in 2022 after the 29-year hiatus.
Sometimes, these are two-legged ties, with a match played at each side's stadium, but increasingly they are one-off fixtures at a neutral venue, such as a national stadium. Some Super Cups have even been staged in venues outside their home country, such as the Italian, French, Spanish, Turkish, Mexican, and Egyptian games and increasingly function as publicity events for that league in the global market.
If the league champions are also the national cup winners, they may play a selected XI team, or more commonly the runners-up from one of the competitions, typically from the league.
The Finalissima between the national team continental champions of UEFA and CONMEBOL, also known as the CONMEBOL-UEFA Cup of Champions, plus its women's counterpart, are rare examples of 'super cups' between national sides.
Football
[edit]National super cups
[edit]The following nations have an active super cup competition:
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AFC
[edit] Bahraini Super Cup Bahraini Super Cup
 Bangladesh Challenge Cup Bangladesh Challenge Cup
 Brunei Super Cup Brunei Super Cup
 CNCC Charity Cup CNCC Charity Cup
 Chinese FA Super Cup Chinese FA Super Cup
 Indian Super Cup Indian Super Cup
 Iranian Super Cup Iranian Super Cup
 Iraqi Super Cup Iraqi Super Cup
 Japanese Super Cup Japanese Super Cup
 Jordan Super Cup Jordan Super Cup
 Kyrgyzstan Super Cup Kyrgyzstan Super Cup
 Kuwait Super Cup Kuwait Super Cup
 Lebanese Super Cup, Lebanese Women's Super Cup Lebanese Super Cup, Lebanese Women's Super Cup
 Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah Cup Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah Cup
 Maldivian FA Charity Shield Maldivian FA Charity Shield
 Mongolia Super Cup Mongolia Super Cup
 MFF Charity Cup MFF Charity Cup
 Oman Super Cup Oman Super Cup
 Gaza Strip Super Cup, West Bank Super Cup Gaza Strip Super Cup, West Bank Super Cup
 Qatari Sheikh Jassim Cup, Qatar Cup Qatari Sheikh Jassim Cup, Qatar Cup
 Saudi Super Cup Saudi Super Cup
 Singapore Charity Shield Singapore Charity Shield
 Syrian Super Cup Syrian Super Cup
 Tajik Supercup Tajik Supercup
 Thailand Champions Cup Thailand Champions Cup
 LFA Super Taça LFA Super Taça
 Turkmenistan Super Cup Turkmenistan Super Cup
 Uzbekistan Super Cup Uzbekistan Super Cup
 UAE Super Cup UAE Super Cup
 Vietnamese Super Cup Vietnamese Super Cup
 Yemeni Super Cup Yemeni Super Cup
CAF
[edit] Algerian Super Cup Algerian Super Cup
 Coupe Houphouët-Boigny Coupe Houphouët-Boigny
 Djibouti Super Cup Djibouti Super Cup
 Egyptian Super Cup Egyptian Super Cup
 Ghana Super Cup, Ghana Women's Super Cup Ghana Super Cup, Ghana Women's Super Cup
 Kenyan Super Cup Kenyan Super Cup
 Libyan Super Cup Libyan Super Cup
 Mauritanian Super Cup Mauritanian Super Cup
 Namibia Super Cup Namibia Super Cup
 Nigeria Women's Super Cup Nigeria Women's Super Cup
 Super Coupe du Congo Super Coupe du Congo
 Senegalese Super Cup Senegalese Super Cup
 Somalia Super Cup Somalia Super Cup
 Tanzania Community Shield Tanzania Community Shield
 Tunisian Super Cup Tunisian Super Cup
CONCACAF
[edit] Supercopa de Costa Rica Supercopa de Costa Rica
 Salvadoran Supercup Salvadoran Supercup
 Copa Campeón de Campeones Copa Campeón de Campeones
 Honduran Supercup Honduran Supercup
 Campeón de Campeones Campeón de Campeones
 Suriname President's Cup Suriname President's Cup
 Trinidad and Tobago Charity Shield Trinidad and Tobago Charity Shield
 NWSL Challenge Cup NWSL Challenge Cup
CONMEBOL
[edit] Supercopa Argentina Supercopa Argentina
 Trofeo de Campeones de la Liga Profesional Trofeo de Campeones de la Liga Profesional
 Supercopa Internacional Supercopa Internacional
 Supercopa do Brasil Supercopa do Brasil
 Supercopa de Chile Supercopa de Chile
 Superliga Colombiana Superliga Colombiana
 Supercopa Ecuador Supercopa Ecuador
 Supercopa Paraguay Supercopa Paraguay
 Supercopa Peruana Supercopa Peruana
 Supercopa Uruguaya Supercopa Uruguaya
OFC
[edit]UEFA
[edit] Albanian Supercup Albanian Supercup
 Andorran Supercup Andorran Supercup
 Armenian Supercup Armenian Supercup
 Belarusian Super Cup Belarusian Super Cup
 Belgian Supercup Belgian Supercup
 Bosnian Supercup Bosnian Supercup
 Bulgarian Supercup Bulgarian Supercup
 Croatian Supercup Croatian Supercup
 Cypriot Super Cup, Cypriot Women's Super Cup Cypriot Super Cup, Cypriot Women's Super Cup
 FA Community Shield (formerly the Charity Shield), Women's FA Community Shield FA Community Shield (formerly the Charity Shield), Women's FA Community Shield
 Estonian SuperCup, Estonian Women's Supercup Estonian SuperCup, Estonian Women's Supercup
 Faroe Islands Super Cup Faroe Islands Super Cup
 Trophée des Champions, Trophée des Championnes Trophée des Champions, Trophée des Championnes
 Georgian Super Cup Georgian Super Cup
 DFL-Supercup, DFB-Supercup Frauen DFL-Supercup, DFB-Supercup Frauen
 Pepe Reyes Cup Pepe Reyes Cup
 Greek Super Cup Greek Super Cup
 Icelandic Super Cup Icelandic Super Cup
 Israel Super Cup Israel Super Cup
 Supercoppa Italiana, Supercoppa Italiana (women) Supercoppa Italiana, Supercoppa Italiana (women)
 Kazakhstan Super Cup Kazakhstan Super Cup
 Kosovar Supercup Kosovar Supercup
 Latvian Supercup Latvian Supercup
 Lithuanian Supercup Lithuanian Supercup
 Maltese Super Cup Maltese Super Cup
 Moldovan Super Cup Moldovan Super Cup
 Johan Cruyff Shield, Nederlandse Supercup vrouwenvoetbal Johan Cruyff Shield, Nederlandse Supercup vrouwenvoetbal
 Mesterfinalen Mesterfinalen
 NIFL Charity Shield NIFL Charity Shield
 Polish SuperCup Polish SuperCup
 Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira, Supertaça de Portugal Feminina Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira, Supertaça de Portugal Feminina
 President's Cup President's Cup
 Romanian Super Cup Romanian Super Cup
 Russian Super Cup Russian Super Cup
 Super Coppa Sammarinese Super Coppa Sammarinese
 Supercopa de España, Supercopa de España Femenina Supercopa de España, Supercopa de España Femenina
 Turkish Super Cup Turkish Super Cup
 Ukrainian Super Cup Ukrainian Super Cup
Defunct super cups
[edit] Trofeo de Campeones Trofeo de Campeones
 Austrian Supercup Austrian Supercup
 Azerbaijan Supercup Azerbaijan Supercup
 Bangladesh Super Cup Bangladesh Super Cup
   BeNe Super Cup BeNe Super Cup
 Super Coupe Roger Milla Super Coupe Roger Milla
   North American Club Championship North American Club Championship
 Czech Supercup Czech Supercup
 Danish Supercup Danish Supercup
     Baltic Champions Cup Baltic Champions Cup
 Supercoupe du Gabon Supercoupe du Gabon
 DFV-Supercup DFV-Supercup
 Hong Kong Community Cup Hong Kong Community Cup
 Szuperkupa Szuperkupa
 Indian Super Cup Indian Super Cup
 Indonesian Community Shield Indonesian Community Shield
 Supercopa MX Supercopa MX
 Moroccan Super Cup Moroccan Super Cup
 Top Four Cup Top Four Cup
 Macedonian Super Cup Macedonian Super Cup
 Copa Federación Copa Federación
 Slovak Super Cup Slovak Super Cup
 Slovenian Supercup Slovenian Supercup
 Korean Super Cup Korean Super Cup
 Swiss Super Cup Swiss Super Cup
 Supercupen Supercupen
 Thai Super Cup (top 4 places in last season, 2009 only) Thai Super Cup (top 4 places in last season, 2009 only)
 Kor Royal Cup Kor Royal Cup
 Sheriff of London Charity Shield Sheriff of London Charity Shield
 Soviet Super Cup (also known as the Season's Cup) Soviet Super Cup (also known as the Season's Cup)
 Yugoslav Super Cup Yugoslav Super Cup
 Northern Cypriot Super Cup Northern Cypriot Super Cup
Cross-border super cups
[edit]   Copa Aldao (league champions) Copa Aldao (league champions)
   Czech-Slovak Supercup (cup winners) Czech-Slovak Supercup (cup winners)
   Livonia Cup (league champions) Livonia Cup (league champions)
   Champions Cup (league champions) Champions Cup (league champions)
     Campeones Cup (league champions) Campeones Cup (league champions)
   Saudi-Egyptian Super Cup (league champions vs. cup champions) Saudi-Egyptian Super Cup (league champions vs. cup champions)
Continental super cups
[edit]Some continental football federations also have their own super cups:
- AFC: Asian Super Cup (defunct)
- CAF: CAF Super Cup
- CONMEBOL: Recopa Sudamericana
- UEFA: UEFA Super Cup
Regional super cups
[edit]- UAFA: Arab Super Cup (defunct)
Intercontinental super cups
[edit]Most of the continental football confederations have jointly held a competition pitting their champions against each other:
- CONMEBOL & UEFA: Intercontinental Cup (defunct)
- CONCACAF & CONMEBOL: Copa Interamericana (defunct)
- AFC & CAF: Afro-Asian Club Championship (defunct)
All of these competitions are now defunct and have been succeeded by the FIFA Club World Cup and the FIFA Intercontinental Cup, which features the champions of all of the confederations. In 2017, FIFA retroactively recognised the winners of the European/South American Cup as world champions.[1]
A similar tournament was held at international level, the FIFA Confederations Cup. It was initially held on a biennial basis, every odd year, from 1993 until 2005 when it became quadrennial, the year before a World Cup in its host country. It featured the six continental champions, the World Cup winners and the host. The 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup was the 10th and last Confederations Cup before FIFA abolished it for an expanded Club World Cup. CONMEBOL and UEFA relaunched the CONMEBOL-UEFA Cup of Champions in 2020, previously held as the European/South American Nations Cup in 1985 and 1993, to be contested between the champions of both confederations. The rebooted cup, now branded as the Finalissima, held its first edition in 2022, with quadrennial editions to follow. The two confederations launched a Women's Finalissima in 2023, involving the most recent winners of the Copa América Femenina and Women's Euro. It is also planned to be a quadrennial event.
Other tournaments like this have been held, including the Intercontinental Champions' Supercup (contested by the past winners of the Intercontinental Cup), the Club Challenge, previously held as Supercopa Euroamericana (pitting the Copa Sudamericana and UEFA Europa League winners), the J.League-Sudamericana Championship (pitting the Copa Sudamericana and J.League Cup winners), the Copa de Oro (pitting all the most recent CONMEBOL competition winners), and the Copa Iberoamericana (pitting the Copa de Oro and Copa del Rey winners).
Basketball
[edit]National super cups
[edit] Algeria Basketball Supercup Algeria Basketball Supercup
 Austrian Supercup Austrian Supercup
 Belgian Supercup Belgian Supercup
 Dutch Supercup Dutch Supercup
 French Match des Champions French Match des Champions
 German BBL Champions Cup German BBL Champions Cup
 Greek Super Cup Greek Super Cup
 Israeli Supercup Israeli Supercup
 Italian Supercup Italian Supercup
 Jordan Basketball Supercup Jordan Basketball Supercup
 Polish Supercup Polish Supercup
 Portuguese SuperCup Portuguese SuperCup
 Romanian Supercup Romanian Supercup
 Slovenian Supercup Slovenian Supercup
 Spanish Supercup Spanish Supercup
 Turkish Presidential Cup Turkish Presidential Cup
Regional
[edit]- BNXT Supercup (Belgium & the Netherlands)
- Adriatic Supercup (former Yugoslavia)
Continental level
[edit]- FIBA Europe SuperCup Women: contested between the winners of EuroLeague Women and EuroCup Women.
Water polo
[edit]National super cups
[edit] Supercopa de España de Waterpolo: an annual men's water polo match contested between the winners of División de Honor de Waterpolo and Copa del Rey de Waterpolo. Supercopa de España de Waterpolo: an annual men's water polo match contested between the winners of División de Honor de Waterpolo and Copa del Rey de Waterpolo.
 Supercopa de España de Waterpolo Femenino: an annual women's water polo match contested between the winners of División de Honor Femenina de Waterpolo and Copa de la Reina de Waterpolo. Supercopa de España de Waterpolo Femenino: an annual women's water polo match contested between the winners of División de Honor Femenina de Waterpolo and Copa de la Reina de Waterpolo.
Continental super cups
[edit] Men's LEN Super Cup: an annual water polo match organized by LEN (European Swimming League) and contested by the reigning champions of the two European club competitions, the LEN Champions League and the LEN Euro Cup. Men's LEN Super Cup: an annual water polo match organized by LEN (European Swimming League) and contested by the reigning champions of the two European club competitions, the LEN Champions League and the LEN Euro Cup.
 Women's LEN Super Cup: an annual water polo match organized by the LEN (European Swimming League) and contested by the reigning champions of the two European club competitions, the LEN Euro League and the LEN Trophy. Women's LEN Super Cup: an annual water polo match organized by the LEN (European Swimming League) and contested by the reigning champions of the two European club competitions, the LEN Euro League and the LEN Trophy.
Motorsports
[edit]- The ADAC Supercup, commonly known as Supercup, was a German sportscar racing series held between 1986 and 1989.
- Ginetta GT Supercup, a British 2-class 1-make sports car racing series.
- Porsche Supercup, an international one-make racing series for Porsche 911 Carreras.
- Mieczysław Połukard Criterium of Polish Speedway Leagues Aces, Józef Piłsudski Stadium, Bydgoszcz, Poland, curtain raiser, official opening of the new season in motorcycle speedway in Poland
Rugby
[edit]- The current format of the rugby league World Club Challenge sees the winners of the Super League from Europe face the National Rugby League winners from Australasia, and was last played in 2024. In 1997, 2015, 2016 and 2017, the game formed part of an expanded tournament that included as few as four and as many as twenty-two teams.
- The Charity Shield is a defunct super cup competition in British rugby league, contested by the winners of the RFL Championship First Division and RFL Challenge Cup.
- The Super Powers Cup was an annual international rugby union competition contested by national teams from Canada, Japan, Russia and United States. In 2005, its name was changed to the Super Cup.
Other sports
[edit]- IIHF Super Cup, a defunct ice hockey competition.
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "FIFA Council approves key organisational elements of the FIFA World Cup" (Press release). FIFA. 27 October 2017. Archived from the original on October 27, 2017. Retrieved 27 October 2017.
 
	






