Liechtenstein Cup: The Strangest Competition In European Football
The Liechtenstein Football Cup might just be the strangest cup competition of all 55 countries that are members of the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA).
Second-tier clubs playing in European competition, double-figure scorelines in the final, and world record cup champions, are just some of the bizarre scenarios that the competition produces.
Where does it take place?
All matches take place in the tiny German-speaking country of Liechtenstein located in the Alps and sandwiched between Switzerland and Austria. It is the fourth smallest country in Europe.
The country has a population of around 39,000 according to recent United Nations estimates.
The final of the tournament is usually held in the Rheinpark Stadium located on the banks of the river Rhine in Liechtenstein's capital city Vaduz.
The approximately 7,500-person capacity stadium is home to both the Liechtenstein national football team and club side FC Vaduz.
What is the history of the cup?
The Liechtenstein Football Cup is currently in its 79th iteration.
In the semi-finals scheduled for April 2024, Triesenberg take on Triesen, and Balzers face record champions Vaduz.
Vaduz are not just record champions of the Liechtenstein Football Cup, but world record holders of a domestic cup competition.
They have won the cup 49 times, failing to win only one of the last 24 competitions.
In the 2015-16 final, Vaduz mercilessly fired eleven goals past FC Schaan in an 11-0 victory.
How does it work?
Much like many other national football knock-out cup competitions, all clubs in the country are entered. For England, 729 teams entered this season's FA Cup. For the Liechtenstein Football Cup, just 17!
Who plays in it?
There are only seven football clubs in Liechtenstein, all of which were entered into the current edition of the cup.
The remaining ten spots are filled up by reserve teams of the seven clubs.
Teams from the same football club cannot draw each other until the semi-final stage is reached, from this stage reserve teams can face up against their senior teams.
This unusual scenario happened most recently in the 2022-23 season when FC Balzers defeated FC Balzers II 3-0.
Reserve clubs have even gone deeper into the competition than their senior counterparts such as in the 2006-07 season when FC Triesenberg II advanced to the second round, but FC Triesenberg were knocked out.
A nation without a football league.
The cup remains the only way to determine a champion of Liechtenstein football as there is no league in the country.
Even geographically smaller nations such as San Marino and Gibraltar both have a national league system.
Andorra and Malta have the smallest leagues in UEFA with eight teams each, just one more team than there is in Liechtenstein.
Liechtensteiner football clubs follow other expatriate European football clubs such as AS Monaco and Swansea City by playing in a league belonging to another nation.
All Liechtensteiner teams play in the Switzerland league structure.
Vaduz are the best-ranked Liechtensteiner team, currently playing in the Swiss 2nd tier.
They became the first team from Liechtenstein to play in Switzerland's highest tier after winning promotion following the 2007/08 season.
Because they participate in the Liechtenstein Football Cup, Liechtensteiner clubs do not participate in the Swiss Cup despite being part of the Swiss league structure.
Can Liechtensteiner teams play in European competition?
The prize for winning the Liechtenstein Football Cup is just the same as the prize for winning the national cup of any of the 55 UEFA member nations - a place in qualifying for either the UEFA Europa League or Europa Conference League.
Some big teams have travelled to Liechtenstein in European qualifying fixtures such as Paris Saint-Germain, Eintracht Frankfurt and Beşiktaş.
Vaduz became the first and only Liechtensteiner team to qualify for European competition when they made the group stages of the 2022–23 UEFA Europa Conference League.
They failed to win any of their group-stage matches and were knocked out in last place.
Playing in the Swiss 2nd division at the time, Vaduz joined a rare group of clubs who competed in European competition despite not being in the top division of their league structure at the time.
English teams Wigan Athletic and Birmingham City are other examples of teams to play in Europe despite being in a lower division.
Because of the lack of a national league, there is no way for Liechtensteiner teams to qualify for the UEFA Champions League or UEFA Europa League through a league setting.
They would not be allowed to play in those competitions even if they finished in qualifying positions via the Swiss Super League (Although this scenario is yet to happen).
This is because they are not allowed to represent Switzerland in European competitions.
The only way a Liechtensteiner team can play in Europe’s premier competition is if they:
Win the Liechtenstein Football Cup to enter UEFA Europa Conference League qualifying.
Qualify for the UEFA Europa Conference League.
Win the UEFA Europa Conference League to automatically qualify for the following season’s UEFA Europa League.
Win the UEFA Europa League to automatically qualify for the following season's UEFA Champions League.
This almost impossible process would take three seasons to complete.
It is probably safe to say that no Liechtensteiner team will ever play in the Champions League.
Is Liechtenstein a footballing nation?
Liechtenstein are hardly a European football powerhouse. In the entire history of the national team, they have never qualified for any FIFA World Cup or UEFA European Championship.
The Blue-Reds lost every single game they played in 2023, scoring only once. This left them in 203rd position in the FIFA World Rankings, just one position above their lowest-ever ranking.
It has been over three years since they won an international fixture, last beating Luxembourg away 2-1 in a friendly on the 7th October 2020.
