Santos and Peñarol. Standing In the Footsteps of Giants.
By Gordon FleetwoodThe date was September 30, 1962, and the place was a stadium in the Belgrano district of Buenos Aires. There, two heavyweights were getting ready to end their momentous fight. The victor would walk away as king of South American club football. On one side stood the incumbent, Peñarol, led by their star forward, the great Alberto Spencer. In the other corner Santos of Brazil—spear-headed by the legendary Pelé—looked to take the throne. The Uruguayans were going for their third title in a row, which at that time accounted for all the titles in the existence of the newly formed competition called the Copa de Campeones. Only Santos stood in Peñarol’s way. The first leg at the Estadio Centenario had finished 2-1 in Santos’ favor, while the return leg in Brazil at the Vila Belmiro had ended with a controversial 3-2 win to the Uruguayans. Thus, the fate of trophy would be decided in a playoff on neutral ground. The stage was set at River Plate’s Estadio Monumental on that September day for the clash of titans.
However, something tipped the scales in favor of the Brazilians. An injured Pelé had not played in the first two games. With him, an excellent side became extraordinary. It wasn’t even a contest as Santos swept aside Peñarol 3-0. Pelé scored two of the goals. Peñarol were dethroned, and Santos collected their first ever trophy in the competition.
Many things have changed since that day forty-nine years ago.
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