Curse of Guttmann: How pay dispute has inflicted 100 years of misery on Benfica

Sports fans are by nature a superstitious lot and are no strangers to their clubs being "cursed." It took the Boston Red Sox 86 years to break the Curse of the Bambino, while for the Chicago Cubs, it's 104 years and counting. So in the annals of great sporting hoodoos, Portuguese football club Benfica has a way to go.

However, after eight defeats in European finals since 1962, it becomes harder to deny that the club's Bela Guttman curse lives on.

Known as the Jose Mourinho of his era, Guttman had just led Benfica to back-to-back European Cup victories and the Portuguese club looked set to rule the international stage for years to come.

However, shortly after steering his side to victory over Real Madrid in 1962, Guttman quit when his request for a pay rise was turned down.

On leaving he allegedly cursed the club, declaring "not in a hundred years from now will Benfica ever be European champion."

And so far it hasn't.

It has lost to AC Milan (twice), Inter Milan, Manchester United and PSV Eindhoven in the European Cup and Anderlecht, Chelsea and now Benfica in the Europa League or UEFA Cup as it was formerly known.

The last European Cup final it was involved in was held in Vienna, where Guttman is buried, and legend Eusebio even went to the grave of his former manager to pray for the curse to be lifted.

Benfica fans will be consoling themselves that there only 43 years to go.