Sporting Lions stronger than Benfica Eagles

Sporting CP LISBOA crowned themselves Portuguese men’s national champions for the seventh time in their history after defeating the five-time-in-a-row winners Sport LISBOA e Benfica 3-1 (21-25, 26-24, 25-23, 25-20) on Wednesday night at the Pavilhão do Estádio da Luz in the Portuguese capital. This victory came in the fifth and final game of the championship series completing this year’s Liga Una Seguros. 

After losing the first two matches, Sporting completed a terrific comeback, winning the next three matches in a row. The Liga Una Seguros playoff was a kind of final showdown, as the Lisbon rivals had split victories in the regular season and in the most recent competitions they had played. This is Sporting’s first title since 2017/2018. Sporting de Espinho leads the all-time honours with as many as 18 titles, followed by Técnico (13) and Benfica (12).

In a true duel of opposites, Venezuelan Edson Valencia (Sporting) and Brazilian Felipe Banderó (Benfica) scored 22 points apiece, both curiously achieving the same 49% attack efficiency as well. With this triumph, the Lions of Alvalade put the icing on the cake in a truly special 2024/2025 season, having already lifted the 2024 Iberian Cup and the 2024 Super Cup trophies as well.

In statements at the end of the game, Sporting coach João Coelho highlighted the achievement: “A special thank you to all the families of these athletes and my staff. They were tireless in their support during good and bad times. They are the ones who suffer the most from our absence. Thank you to the fans, who were incredible throughout the season. I cannot complain. We started winning this championship here, a year ago, during the conversation we had in the locker room. It was a show of confidence that we will never forget. This year, when the final series was 0-2, the same thing happened in training. There are heartfelt words that come at the right time, allowing the team and the players to free themselves from the pressure and play to their limits, as it happened today.

We won three trophies out of four; it is a magical night. It depended much more on us to write our own history than on anything else. It is unrepeatable, an extraordinary feat against a team that rarely lost at home and, much less, allowed a 0-2 final to be turned around.” 

Liga Una Seguros – Title Playoff 2024/2025

Match 1:
SL Benfica vs Sporting CP 3-1 (21-25, 25-23, 25-22, 25-20)
Match 2:
Sporting CP vs SL Benfica 1-3 (21-25, 25-15, 20-25, 27-29)
Match 3:
SL Benfica vs Sporting CP 1-3 (24-26, 22-25, 25-23, 22-25)
Match 4:
Sporting CP vs SL Benfica 3-0 (25-20, 25-19, 25-23)
Match 5: 
SL Benfica vs Sporting CP 1-3 (25-21, 24-26, 23-25, 20-25)