Competition format
Wednesday 13 July 2005
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Villarreal twice won through to the UEFA Cup (©Getty Images)
The UEFA Intertoto Cup was originally conceived in 1961 as a means of generating money for football pools companies in the summer closed season. It came under UEFA's jurisdiction in 1995 and evolved into an alternative qualifying route into the UEFA Cup, as well as allowing clubs who had not qualified for the UEFA Champions League or UEFA Cup to experience European club football. The 2008 edition was the last, replaced for 2009/10 by expanded UEFA Cup qualifying.
European success
The UEFA Intertoto Cup, which traditionally began in June, was open to clubs who finished directly behind the qualifiers for UEFA's two major club competitions in their respective domestic championships. It provided a springboard to success for several sides after its inception. UEFA Intertoto Cup winners in 1995, FC Girondins de Bordeaux went on to reach the UEFA Cup final the following May, while Bologna FC, AJ Auxerre and Villarreal CF (twice) have since reached the latter stages of the UEFA Cup having qualified through the Intertoto route.
Format change
The format of the UEFA Intertoto Cup changed for the 2006/07 season with three rounds played instead of the previous five. The eleven victorious sides from the UEFA Intertoto Cup third round advanced to the second qualifying round of the UEFA Cup, which replaced the old system where the winners of three finals all progressed into the UEFA Cup first round.
Knock-out competition
For all ties in the competition expect the group stage in the early competitions, clubs played two matches against each other on a home and away basis, with the club scoring the greater aggregate of goals qualifying for the next round. The main access list of competing teams iwas dependent on the number of associations that wish to participate. Forty-nine associations had one place each in principle, but if an association declined to enter a side, its berth could be allocated by UEFA to another nation.
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