Playing a major tournament or a final at home can bring added pressure, but it is often a blessing. Though home advantage is no guarantee of success, most teams would prefer to play an important fixture in familiar surroundings and in front of their own fans.
In international tournaments, host nations are therefore often among the favourites, while clubs are seen to have an advantage if they are due to play a cup final in their own stadium.
When it works out, the atmosphere is special. Here, we look at some of the national teams and club sides in men’s football that won major finals at home…
32. Qatar
Qatar beat Japan 3-1 to win the 2019 Asian Cup in Abu Dhabi and four years later, the Maroons retained their title on home soil.
In the 2023 Asian Cup showpiece, the hosts beat Jordan 3-1 at the Lusail Stadium, which was the venue for the 2022 World Cup final.
31. Nigeria
Nigeria have won the Africa Cup of Nations three times – in 1980, 1994 and 2013 – and the first of those victories came on home soil.
After topping their group following victories over Tanzania and Egypt, plus a draw against the Ivory Coast, the Super Eagles edged out Morocco in the last four and beat Algeria 3-0 in the final in Lagos.
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30. Australia
Australia left the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) to join the Asian Football Confederation (ACF) in 2006 and the Socceroos went to their first Asian Cup in 2007.
After narrowly losing the final to Japan in 2011, Australia won the next edition of the Asian Cup, beating South Korea 2-1 after extra time at Sydney’s Stadium Australia in January 2015.
29. Porto
The final of the Portuguese cup, the Taça de Portugal, is usually played at Lisbon’s Estádio Nacional. However, it also took place on several occasions at Porto’s old Estádio das Antas.
And in one of those finals, Porto came out on top in a 1-0 victory over Braga, in May 1977. The Estádio das Antas was demolished in 2004 after the Estádio do Dragão was opened in November the previous year ahead of Euro 2004.
28. Iran
Iran won the Asian Cup three times in a row between 1968 and 1976, with the last of those triumphs coming in front of 100,000 fans in the capital, Tehran.
After victory in a round-robin format in 1968, Iran beat South Korea 2-1 after extra time in Bangkok in the 1972 final, before a 1-0 win at home against Kuwait to take home the trophy again in 1976.
27. Ajax
Ajax have won the KNVB Cup more times than any other Dutch club and a couple of the Amsterdam side’s final victories came at their old De Meer home.
In the 1967 final, Ajax beat NAC Breda 2-1 after extra time to win the trophy, with the great Johan Cruyff on target in that match. And with Cruyff as coach in 1986, the Amsterdam side beat RBC 3-0 in another KNVB Cup final at the same stadium, before going on to win the European Cup Winners’ Cup the following season.
26. Roma
In the last of the two-legged Coppa Italia finals, Roma beat Inter 7-4 on aggregate after a stunning 6-2 win in the first match at the Stadio Olimpico. The following year, the final was played in a one-off match back at that same stadium and Roma came out on top once again in a 2-1 victory.
The Coppa Italia had mostly featured a one-off match in the final between the late 1950s and 1980, when Roma beat Torino on penalties. The final was then played over two legs the following year, with Roma beating Torino again on penalties after 1-1 draws in both Rome and Turin.
25. Lazio
Lazio have won the Coppa Italia seven times and four of those triumphs have come in one-off finals at the club’s Stadio Olimpico home in Roma.
The Eagles first won the competition in 1958, beating Fiorentina 1-0 at the Olimpico. And after two-legged wins in 1998, 2000 and 2004, Lazio beat Sampdoria on penalties in the 2009 final at the Stadio Olimpico, edged out fierce rivals Roma in a 1-0 win at the teams’ shared stadium in 2013 and defeated Atalanta 2-0 on familiar ground to claim the title again in 2019.
24. Paris Saint-Germain
Before it was moved to the Stade de France in 1998, the Coupe de France final was played at the Parc des Princes and that was handy for tenants Paris Saint-Germain.
PSG won the cup competition at the Parc in 1982, 1983, 1993 and 1995, defeating Saint-Étienne, Nantes (twice) and Strasbourg in those finals. The Parisians also came out on top in the inaugural final at the Stade de France in 1998, with a 2-1 victory over Lens.
23. Japan
Japan won the Asian Cup for the first time in 1992, beating Saudi Arabia by a single goal in the final in Hiroshima.
Takuya Takagi scored the winner for the Japanese, who were coached by Dutchman Hans Ooft. Japan went on to win the Asian Cup again in 2000, 2004 and 2011.
22. United States
The CONCACAF Gold Cup is usually held in the United States and all seven of the USMNT’s wins in the competition have come on home soil.
Since winning the inaugural edition on penalties against Honduras in 1991, the USA have beaten Panama and Mexico each in two finals, plus Costa Rica and Jamaica, with their last trophy sealed against El Tri after extra time in Paradise, Nevada in 2021.
21. Barcelona
Barcelona won the old European Cup Winners’ Cup four times, which was at least twice more than any other club, and also finished as runners-up on two occasions.
In the 1982 final, Barça beat Standard Liège 2-1 in the final at Camp Nou, coming from behind to win thanks to goals from Allan Simonsen and Quini. And in the Copa del Rey, the Blaugrana have won two finals at Camp Nou – 3-1 against Zaragoza in 1963 and by the same scoreline versus Athletic Club in 2015, en route to the treble.
20. Feyenoord
The UEFA Cup final was a two-legged affair between 1972 and 1998, with matches played home and away to decide the winner.
Ahead of the 1997/98 season, a single-match format for the final was introduced and in 2002, Feyenoord beat Borussia Dortmund 3-2 at their own De Kuip stadium in Rotterdam. The competition was rebranded as the Europa League in 2009.
19. Tunisia
Tunisia won the Africa Cup of Nations for the first time in 2004, defeating Morocco 2-1 in the final in front of 60,000 fans in the harbour city of Radès.
Francileudo Santos and Zlad Jaziri scored the goals which sealed victory for the hosts, coached by former France boss and Euro 2000 winner Roger Lemerre.
18. South Africa
South Africa won the Rugby World Cup in June 1995 and in February 1996, the country’s footballers claimed the Africa Cup of Nations.
Mark Williams scored both the goals in the final as Bafana Bafana beat Tunisia in front of 80,000 fans in Johannesburg and president Nelson Mandela was there to take part in the celebrations.
17. Ghana
Ghana have won the Africa Cup of Nations four times and two of those triumphs came on home soil – in the 1963 and 1978 editions of the tournament.
In 1963, Ghana beat Sudan 3-0 in the AFCON final at the Accra Sports Stadium and in 1978, the Black Stars defeated Uganda 2-0 to win the trophy at the same venue.
16. Ivory Coast
Ivory Coast sacked coach Jean-Louis Gasset after a 4-0 defeat at home to Equatorial Guinea in the group stages of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, but snuck into the last 16 as the fourth-best of the third-placed teams.
The Elephants went on to beat defending champions Senegal on penalties following a late equaliser, before defeating Mali after a last-minute leveller and a winner in added time at the end of extra time. After a 1-0 win over DR Congo in the last four, the hosts then came from behind to beat Nigeria 2-1 in the final and seal a third AFCON crown in epic fashion and a first in front of their own fans.
15. Algeria
Algeria won the Africa Cup of Nations for the first time in 1990, starting and finishing their campaign with victories over Nigeria.
In their opening game, Algeria thrashed the Nigerians 5-1 at the Stade du 5 Juillet in Algiers and the hosts edged out the Super Eagles by a single goal in a much more even contest in the final at the same stadium two weeks later.
14. Colombia
Iván Córdoba scored the only goal of the game as Colombia beat Mexico to win the 2001 Copa América final at the Estadio El Campín in Bogotá.
Colombia won all six matches en route to their first ever title in a tournament which saw Brazil surprisingly eliminated by Honduras and Argentina pull out due to security concerns.
13. Mexico
Mexico have won the CONCACAF Gold Cup more times than the United States, despite the fact the continental competition has been held primarily in the USA.
El Tri ran out 4-0 winners against the USA in the 1993 final, with over 130,000 fans in attendance at the Estadio Azteca. And a decade later, Mexico edged out guest side Brazil in the 2003 showpiece. In 1999, El Tri also beat Brazil 4-3 in a thrilling Confederations Cup final in Mexico City.
12. Inter
Inter won back-to-back European Cups in 1964 and 1965, beating Real Madrid in Vienna in the first of those two finals and defeating Benfica at San Siro in the second.
Brazilian winger Jair scored the only goal of the game as the Nerazzurri edged out the Portuguese giants in front of 89,000 fans in the familiar surroundings of their home ground in Milan.
11. Real Madrid
Real Madrid won the inaugural European Cup in 1956 and followed up that success with another triumph in front of their own fans in the 1957 final.
With over 120,000 packed into the Santiago Bernabéu, Los Blancos beat Fiorentina 2-0 courtesy of an Alfredo Di Stéfano penalty and a Paco Gento effort – both in the second half. Madrid have also won two Copa del Rey finals at the Bernabéu, while several of their early successes in the cup competition came at their old Hipódromo and Tiro del Pichón venues.
10. Chile
Chileans are hugely passionate about football, but the South American nation had to wait until 2015 for their first major trophy in the men’s game.
It came in the Copa América on home soil and included victory on penalties against Argentina, Lionel Messi et al in the final at the Estadio Nacional in Santiago. A year later, La Roja repeated that success in the Copa América Centenario final in the United States, beating Argentina on penalties again.
9. Spain
Spain’s glorious era between 2008 and 2012 yielded two European Championships and a World Cup – but those triumphs came in Austria and Switzerland, South Africa, and Poland and Ukraine, respectively.
Long before that, Spain’s men won the 1964 European Nations’ Cup on home soil, beating the Soviet Union 2-1 in the final at the Santiago Bernabéu.
8. Egypt
Egypt have won the Africa Cup of Nations seven times in total and three of those continental crowns have come on home soil.
Only three teams took part in the 1957 and 1959 editions, with the United Arab Republic (a union between Egypt and Syria) victorious in a round-robin format in the latter, defeating Sudan 2-1 in the decisive match in Cairo. More recently, Egypt beat Cameroon in the 1986 final and Ivory Coast in 2006 – both on penalties in the capital.
7. Brazil
Brazil famously lost to Uruguay at the Maracanã in the 1950 World Cup’s decider and were brutally beaten by Germany in a 7-1 loss in Belo Horizonte in the semi-finals of the 2014 tournament.
But the Seleção have also tasted success at home, winning the South American Championship as hosts in 1919, 1922 and 1949. More recently, Brazil ended a 40-year drought in the continental competition by claiming the 1989 Copa América at the Maracanã, beating Uruguay 1-0 to win the trophy – albeit not in a final. In 2016, Brazil’s men won Olympic gold in football for the first time, defeating Germany on penalties in the final. And in 2019, the Seleção added another Copa crown with a 3-1 win over Peru – also at the Maracanã.
6. England
England’s sole World Cup win came in the 1966 tournament, with Sir Alf Ramsey’s side playing all six of their matches at Wembley, including the 4-2 extra-time win over West Germany to claim the trophy.
Geoff Hurst became the first player to score a hat-trick in a World Cup final, but his second strike to make it 3-2 was controversial as it hit the crossbar and bounced back out, with no evidence that the shot crossed the line.
5. West Germany
West Germany’s first World Cup win came in 1954 as Die Mannschaft stunned favourites Hungary in Switzerland in a 3-2 win which became known as the Miracle of Bern.
Two decades on, West Germany added another title at home, with a 2-1 win against the Netherlands thanks to a Paul Breitner penalty and a Gerd Müller effort after the hosts had gone behind to an early Johan Neeskens spot-kick in Munich.
4. France
France’s first major title in men’s football came in 1984, when Michel Platini led Les Bleus to European Championship glory on home turf, scoring nine out of 14 goals en route to the title – including one in the final against Spain.
And in 1998, Zinédine Zidane was the inspiration as France won a first ever World Cup, scoring twice for Les Bleus in a shock 3-0 win over Brazil in the final at the Stade de France.
3. Italy
The second FIFA World Cup took place in Italy and the Azzurri came away with the trophy after beating Czechoslovakia 2-1 after extra time in the final in Rome.
Over three decades later, Italy went on to win the European Championship in 1968, overcoming the Soviet Union on a coin toss in the last four before beating Yugoslavia in a replay in the final after the teams’ first match at Rome’s Stadio Olimpico had ended in a 1-1 draw.
2. Argentina
Argentina won their first World Cup on home soil in 1978, sealing the trophy with a 3-1 extra time victory over the Netherlands at River Plate’s Estadio Monumental. To reach the final, the Albiceleste needed to beat Peru by four goals in their final group game and advanced thanks to a 6-0 win amid rumours of influence from the nation’s military dictatorship.
Argentina’s men also won the South American Championship (a precursor to the Copa América) as hosts in 1921, 1925, 1929, 1937, 1946 and 1959.
1. Uruguay
Uruguay won Olympic gold in men’s football in the 1924 and 1928 Olympics and followed up those triumphs by claiming the title in the first official World Cup in 1930, beating Argentina 4-2 in the final at Montevideo’s Estadio Centenario.
The Celeste also won the South American Championship at home in 1917, 1923, 1924, 1942, 1956 and 1967, adding another title in Montevideo in its current format as the Copa América in 1995 by beating Brazil 5-3 on penalties after a 1-1 draw.
