| Organising body | Venezuelan companies [1] |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1952 |
| Abolished | 1975 |
| Region | Venezuela |
| Number of teams | 4 |
| Last champions |  East Germany (1975) |
| Most successful club(s) |  Real Madrid(2 titles) |
The Small World Cup (Spanish: Pequeña Copa del Mundo) was a football tournament held in Venezuela between 1952 and 1975 (with some journalists considering 1952–57 the period of greatest relevance, and the second period that took place between 1963 and 1975 as of minor relevance).[2] In most of the occasions, the competition was played by four participants from Europe and South America. In the first period, clubs from three countries would win the tournament: Spain, Brazil and Colombia. Five clubs have won the trophy in this period: Real Madrid, São Paulo, Millonarios, Corinthians, and Barcelona.
When the Europeans Champions Clubs' Cup was started in 1955, the Venezuelan competition lost importance and was discontinued in 1957. Although the tournament was relaunched in 1963, its relevance decreased as another competition was happening at the time, the Intercontinental Cup (first held in 1960) was then established as the major, official intercontinental competition for both South American and European clubs.
During the 1963–75 period, the trophy was also named "Copa Ciudad de Caracas". However, there is controversy surrounding this name, as during this period the Taça Ciudad de Caracas was named after different trophies taking place in the same city, different championships, so in 1966 Botafogo was considered the winner and competed against Santos in the grand final, winning the Trophy called Journalists Circle Cup (Copa Círculo de Pediodicos Deportivos), however Valencia also competed with Vitoria Guimares and won the Símon Bolivar trophy. Thus, the winner of the Caracas tournament that year is controversial, as the greatest relevance was the Botafogo and Santos game, where great players such as Garrincha and Pelé starred. Then, in 1967, the tournament in Caracas was between, again, the Journalists Circle Cup (Copa Círculo de Pediodicos Deportivos), where teams such as Barcelona, Botafogo and Peñarol played. And, later in the year, the so-called Copa Cuadricentenario de Caracas took place, which was played between the teams Athletic Bilbao, Platense and Académica Coimbra, super regional teams that no longer exist.
In 1968 the Tournament took place in Caracas in which the Oldemario Ramos Trophy was offered, played between the teams of Benfica, Botafogo and Argentina XI. in which Botafogo became the great champion.
This competition is considered by some journalists as a predecessor of Intercontinental Cup, in that it regularly featured clubs from Europe and South America.[2][3] However, there has come to light no 1952–1960 original source indicating that it had any influence for the creation of the Intercontinental Cup, or that it was effectively hailed in 1952–1957 as a club world trophy. Nevertheless, some clubs like Real Madrid highlight this trophy in their history as a world championship or trophy section of their web-sites and publications.
- ^ Pequeña Copa del Mundo by Andrés Acosta on RSSSF
- ^ a b El primer torneo internacional de clubes by José Quesada on Fútbol Retro.es
- ^ EL RAPTO DE DI STÉFANO ARRUINÓ LA PEQUEÑA COPA DEL MUNDO by Iván Castelló on Eurosport, 18 Apr 2020