The following are the association football (soccer) events of the year 1968 throughout the world.

Events

Copa Libertadores The CONMEBOL Libertadores, also known as the Copa Libertadores de América ( pt, Copa Libertadores da América), is an annual international club football competition organized by CONMEBOL since 1960. It is the highest level of competition in S ...

1968 The year was highlighted by protests and other unrests that occurred worldwide. Events January–February * January 5 – " Prague Spring": Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia. * J ...

: Won by

Estudiantes de La Plata Club Estudiantes de La Plata ( lit. "Students from La Plata"), simply referred to as Estudiantes de La Plata , is an Argentine professional sports club based in La Plata. The club's football team currently competes in the Primera División, whe ...

after defeating

Palmeiras Sociedade Esportiva Palmeiras (), commonly known as Palmeiras, is a Brazilian professional football club based in the city of São Paulo, in the district of Perdizes. Palmeiras is one of the most popular clubs in South America, with around ...

on an aggregate score of 2–0. *29 May –

European Cup The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...

won by

Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The ...

after defeating Benfica 4–1 in extra time at

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 200 ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. * 30 May – The Dutch national team plays its 300th official match in history, drawing 0–0 in a friendly against

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...

. *5 June –

Alan Mullery Alan Patrick Mullery (born 23 November 1941) is an English former footballer and manager. After enjoying a successful career with Fulham, Tottenham Hotspur, and the England national team in the 1960s and 1970s, he became a manager working with ...

becomes the first

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

player to be sent off in an international match during a 0–1 defeat to

Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label= Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavij ...

in the European Nations' Cup semi-finals in

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

. * 19 September – Dutch club ADO makes its

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

an debut by defeating

Grazer AK Grazer AK, founded 18 August 1902 as Grazer Athletiksport Klub (in Austria the abbreviation GAK is more common), is an Austrian sports club, from the city of Graz in the federal state of Styria (''Steiermark''). The football section used to be on ...

(4–1) in the first round of the

Cup Winners Cup The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The cup was, chronologically, the second seasonal inter-European club competition organised by UEFA. The tournam ...

, with four goals from Piet Giesen.

Winners club national championship

Asia

* : Al-Oruba

Europe

* :

Manchester City Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

* :

AS Saint-Étienne Association Sportive de Saint-Étienne Loire (), commonly known as A.S.S.E. () or simply Saint-Étienne, is a professional football club based in Saint-Étienne in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, France. The club was founded in 1933 and competes in ...

* : KR * :

A.C. Milan Associazione Calcio Milan (), commonly referred to as AC Milan or simply Milan, is a professional Association football, football club in Milan, Italy, founded in 1899. The club has spent its entire history, with the exception of the 1980–81 ...

* :

Ajax Amsterdam Amsterdamsche Football Club Ajax (), also known as AFC Ajax, Ajax Amsterdam, or simply Ajax, is a Dutch professional football club based in Amsterdam, that plays in the , the top tier in Dutch football. Historically, Ajax (named after the l ...

* :

Ruch Chorzów Ruch Chorzów () is a Polish association football club based in Chorzów, Upper Silesia. It is one of the most successful football teams in Poland: fourteen-time national champions, and three-time winners of the Polish Cup. Currently the team play ...

* :

Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language *Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Foo ...

* :

Real Madrid Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid. Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...

* : Fenerbahçe * :

1. FC Nürnberg 1. Fußball-Club Nürnberg Verein für Leibesübungen e. V., often called 1. FC Nürnberg (, en, 1. Football Club Nuremberg) or simply Nürnberg, is a German association football club in Nuremberg, Bavaria, who currently compete in the 2. Bund ...

North America

Toluca Toluca , officially Toluca de Lerdo , is the state capital of the State of Mexico as well as the seat of the Municipality of Toluca. With a population of 910,608 as of the 2020 census, Toluca is the fifth most populous city in Mexico. The city ...

* / **

Atlanta Chiefs The Atlanta Chiefs were an American professional soccer team based in Atlanta, Georgia. The team competed in the National Professional Soccer League (NPSL) in 1967 and the North American Soccer League (NASL) from 1968 to 1973 and again from 1 ...

( NASL)

South America

* **

San Lorenzo San Lorenzo is the Italian and Spanish name for Lawrence of Rome, Saint Lawrence, the 3rd-century Christian martyr, and may refer to: Places Argentina * San Lorenzo, Santa Fe * San Lorenzo Department, Chaco * Monte San Lorenzo, a mountain on t ...

- Metropolitano ** Vélez Sársfield - Nacional * **

Botafogo Botafogo (local/standard alternative Brazilian Portuguese pronunciation: ) is a beachfront neighborhood (''bairro'') in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is a mostly upper middle class and small commerce community, and is located between the hills o ...

- Taça Brasil ** Santos - Torneio Roberto Gomes Pedrosa * :

Olimpia Asunción Club Olimpia is a Paraguayan sports club based in the city of Asunción. The club promotes the practice of various sports with most importance given to the football, rugby and basketball sides, the former being the highest priority and most su ...

International tournaments

African Cup of Nations The Africa Cup of Nations referred to as AFCON (french: Coupe d'Afrique des Nations, sometimes referred to as CAN, or TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons), and sometimes as African Cup of Nations, is the main internat ...

Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...

(12–21 January 1968) *# *# *# *

1968 British Home Championship The year was highlighted by protests and other unrests that occurred worldwide. Events January–February * January 5 – "Prague Spring": Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia. * Januar ...

(21 October 1967 – 28 February 1968) :: *

UEFA European Football Championship The UEFA European Football Championship, less formally the European Championship and informally the Euro, is the primary association football tournament organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). The competition is contes ...

(5–10 June 1968) *# *# *# *

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a multi ...

Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...

(13–26 October 1968) *# *# *#

Births

* 1 January –

Davor Šuker Davor Šuker (; born 1 January 1968) is a Croatian football administrator and former footballer who played as a striker. He served as president of the Croatian Football Federation from 2012 to 2021. He began his footballing career in his hometo ...

, Croatian international footballer * 31 March –

Francesco Moriero Francesco "Checco" Moriero (; born 31 March 1969) is an Italian football former player and current manager, who played as a midfielder, usually as a winger on the right flank. He is the current head coach of the Maldives national football team. ...

, Italian international footballer and manager * 1 April – Bulat Esmagambetov, Kazakhstani footballer * 16 April – Martin Dahlin, Swedish international footballer * 18 April – Adelio Salinas, former Paraguayan footballer * 1 May –

Oliver Bierhoff Oliver Bierhoff (born 1 May 1968) is a German football official and former player who played as a forward. He has previously served as the national team director of the German Football Association. A tall, strong and prolific goalscorer, Bierh ...

, German international footballer * 2 May –

Pedro Ramos Pedro Ramos Guerra (born April 28, 1935), is a Cuban former professional baseball pitcher, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Washington Senators / Minnesota Twins, Cleveland Indians, New York Yankees, and the expansion Washin ...

, Ecuadorian football referee * 22 May –

Gabriel Mendoza Gabriel Rafael Mendoza Ibarra (born 22 May 1968), commonly known as Coca Mendoza for his similarity with the television actress Coca Guazzini, is a Chilean former professional footballer who played as a right-back and central midfielder. Mend ...

, Chilean international footballer * 5 June –

Percy Olivares Percy Celso Olivares Polanco (born 5 June 1968) is a Peruvian former professional footballer who played as a left-back. He is the father of footballer Christopher Olivares. Club career Born in Lima, Olivares started playing professionally wit ...

, Peruvian footballer * 6 June –

Edwin Vurens Edwin Vurens (born 6 June 1968) is a Dutch football manager who coaches Dutch amateur side Docos. Vurens is a former international player who played professionally as a striker for clubs in the Netherlands and Switzerland. Football career Playi ...

, Dutch footballer * 22 June – Fabián Guevara, Chilean footballer * 25 June –

Dorinel Munteanu Dorinel Ionel Munteanu (; born 25 June 1968) is a Romanian retired professional footballer and manager. A former midfielder, Munteanu is the most capped Romanian player of all time, with a total of 134 appearances and 16 goals. He played in tw ...

, Romanian international footballer * 26 June –

Paolo Maldini Paolo Cesare Maldini (; born 26 June 1968) is an Italian former professional footballer who played primarily as a left back and centre back for AC Milan and the Italy national team. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest defenders of a ...

, Italian international footballer * 14 August –

Onésimo Sánchez Onésimo Sánchez González (born 14 August 1968), known simply as Onésimo as a player, is a Spanish former professional footballer who played as forward or winger, currently a manager. Onésimo was mainly associated with Real Valladolid thr ...

, Spanish football player and manager * 15 August –

Ulugbek Ruzimov Ulugbek Ikramovich Ruzimov (15 August 1968 – 8 May 2017) is a retired football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means ...

, Uzbekistani footballer * 20 August – Klas Ingesson, Swedish international footballer and manager (died 2014) * 11 September –

Slaven Bilić Slaven Bilić (; born 11 September 1968) is a Croatian professional football manager and former player. He is the current manager of EFL Championship side Watford. Bilić, who played as a defender, began his career in 1988 with his hometown c ...

, Croatian international football player and manager * 14 September – Jorge Gómez, Chilean footballer * 15 September – Juan Carlos Garay, Ecuadorian footballer * 17 September – Francesc Vilanova, Spanish footballer and manager (died 2014) * 18 September –

Carlos Guirland Carlos Alberto Guirland Báez (born 18 September 1961) is a retired association football midfielder from Paraguay. He played professional football in Paraguay, Chile and Argentina during his career. Career Born in Misiones Province, Guirland b ...

, Paraguayan footballer * 8 October –

Zvonimir Boban Zvonimir "Zvone" Boban (; born 8 October 1968) is a Croatian former footballer who currently works at UEFA as the Chief of Football. Boban played as a midfielder and was usually deployed as an attacking midfielder. He played most of his professi ...

, Croatian international footballer * 17 October – Héctor Ferri, Ecuadorian footballer * 20 October –

Jonathan Akpoborie Jonathan Akpoborie (born 20 October 1968) is a Nigerian former professional footballer who played as a forward and spent the majority of his playing career in Germany. Club career Akpoborie started his professional career at Julius Berger, ...

, Nigerian international footballer * 24 October –

Osmar Donizete Cândido Osmar Donizete Cândido (born 24 October 1968, known as Donizete Pantera, is a Brazilian retired footballer, who played as a forward, and the assistant manager at CFZ do Rio. Dubbed as ''Donizete Pantera'', a nickname he received in Mexico, ...

, Brazilian international footballer * 18 November – Barry Hunter, Northern Irish international and scout * 13 December – Carlos Hasselbaink, Dutch footballer * 26 December – Thijs Waterink, Dutch footballer

Deaths

January

* 4 January –

Armando Castellazzi Armando Castellazzi (; 7 October 1904 – 4 January 1968) was an Italian professional footballer and manager who played as a midfielder. Club career Born in Milan, Castellazzi spent his entire club career in the 1920s and 1930s playing for Amb ...

, Italian midfielder, winner of the

1934 FIFA World Cup The 1934 FIFA World Cup was the second edition of the FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football championship for senior men's national teams. It took place in Italy from 27 May to 10 June 1934. The 1934 World Cup was the first in w ...

and first man to win the

Serie A The Serie A (), also called Serie A TIM for national sponsorship with TIM, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and the winner is awarded the Scudetto and the Cop ...

both as player and as manager. (63)

June

* 17 June –

José Nasazzi José Nasazzi Yarza (24 March 1901 – 17 June 1968) was a Uruguayan footballer who played as a defender. He captained his country when they won the inaugural FIFA World Cup in 1930. Career He was born in Bella Vista, Montevideo to Giusepp ...

, Uruguayan defender, winner of the

1930 FIFA World Cup The 1930 FIFA World Cup was the inaugural FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national football teams. It took place in Uruguay from 13 to 30 July 1930. FIFA, football's international governing body, selected Uruguay as host nati ...

and by many regarded as Uruguay's greatest ever player. (67)

August

* 30 August - Luitpold Popp, German international footballer (born 1893)

November

* 10 November – Santos Iriarte, Uruguayan forward, winner of the

. (66)

December

* 21 December –

Vittorio Pozzo Vittorio Pozzo (; 2 March 1886 – 21 December 1968) was an Italian football player, manager and journalist. The creator of the '' Metodo'' tactical formation, Pozzo is regarded as one of the greatest managers of all time, and is the only man ...

, Italian manager, winner of the

and

1938 FIFA World Cup The 1938 FIFA World Cup was the third edition of the World Cup, the quadrennial international football championship for senior men's national teams and was held in France from 4 June until 19 June 1938. Italy defended its title in the final, be ...

and the only manager that won the

FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament has ...

twice. (82) * 28 December – Fernando Giudicelli, Brazilian midfielder, Brazilian squad member the

. (62)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:1968 In Association Football Association football by year