United In Europe: Origins

Next Tuesday, United face Olympiacos in what will be the club's 250th European Cup match. To mark the occasion, we recall outing number one...

On 22 May 1956, during a meeting of the club board, Matt Busby made the most significant decision of his career: Manchester United would defy the Football League and enter the European Cup.

His judgement was prompted by diminutive chairman Harold Hardman, a former England amateur international who asked if the club should accept UEFA’s invitation to compete. As Busby once explained, his response was characteristically straightforward: “My reply was: ‘Well, Mr Chairman, football has become a world game. It no longer belongs exclusively to England, Scotland and the British Isles. This is where the future of the game lies’.”

Although the idea of European competition was presented to FIFA in 1927, it wasn't formed until the 1955/56 season following a campaign for a "Championship of Champions" by French magazine L’Equipe. Chelsea, as title winners, entered but quickly withdrew at the insistence of the Football League. But such pressure would not stop Busby a year later.

Thankfully, Hardman shared his manager’s ambition and, despite receiving a letter of warning from the Football League, mainly due to worries over an already congested fixture list, United broke new ground. Busby was questioned by the media, with some calling him a stubborn reactionary, but history proves his foresight blazed a trail for English football to follow.

“There was money to be made for the club, there was a new kind of adrenaline inducing excitement for the players and there was an opportunity for spectators to enjoy the skills of continental players,” Busby reasoned. “It also seemed to be the logistical progression that the champions of England should pit their talents against the best in Europe. You cannot make progress by standing still.”

In the preliminary round, United were drawn against RSC Anderlecht and travelled to Belgium without talismanic powerhouse Duncan Edwards, whose injury allowed Jackie Blanchflower to excel in his absence. After a display of grandeur at Astrid Park, the Babes secured a 2-0 first-leg lead thanks to goals from Dennis Viollet and Tommy Taylor. As the Guardian reported, this maiden voyage into Europe was an unequivocal success: “If one wants to feel British and proud of it, travel round with Manchester United... It was a triumph of team spirit and a credit to all concerned.”

Old Trafford did not have floodlights so the return leg was played at Manchester City’s Maine Road, where heavy rain had created large pools of water on the pitch. But writing in his United Review programme notes, Busby explained fans would be delighted if the match was “only half as entertaining” as the first. Thankfully, the manager’s faith was repaid in spades.

United secured a 10-0 win via goals from Viollet (4), Taylor (3), Billy Whelan (2) and Johnny Berry in what remains the club’s biggest victory, inspiring Busby to describe the triumph as “the finest exhibition of teamwork I had ever seen from any side, either at club or international level”. Even Jef Mermans, the Anderlecht captain, was in awe of the Babes. “After United had scored their sixth goal, they still ran as hard as they had at the start," he explained. "We have played against the best teams of Hungary and Russia but never been beaten like this. Why don’t they pick this team for England?”

Further victories over Borussia Dortmund and Athletic Club set up a semi-final defeat to Real Madrid, who went on to win the cup for a second successive year. Undeterred, and having won the title by eight points, United returned for a second crack of the whip during the 57/58 campaign. But as everyone knows, that pursuit of glory was cut short by the Munich air disaster, a tragedy that denied Busby's Babes from reaching their immeasurable potential.

Weeks later, a depleted Reds side was beaten by AC Milan as Busby lay hospitalised in Germany. While the boss had considered quitting, wrongly blaming his own ambition for the chain of events that had ended in tragedy, his wife Jean and son Sandy convinced him to continue. “I need no reminding of the bitter sadness and suffering of Munich,” Busby later said. “I grieve still for my fine young players who lost their lives… Like the rest of life, we just have to do our best and do what seems right at the time.”

The rebuilding process began and 10 years later – on 29 May 1968 – United lifted the European Cup for the first time, bringing some semblance of closure to events 10 years prior. "When Bobby Charlton took the cup, it cleansed me," Busby said. "It eased the guilt of going into Europe. It was my justification.”

That Wembley win defines all Manchester United stands for and on the eve of our 250th European Cup match, Sir Matt remains a source of inspiration.