Editing Atlético Madrid (section)

===Golden age (1947–1965)===
[[File:Helenio Herrera Elgrafico.jpeg|thumb|upright|[[Helenio Herrera]] won two league titles as Atlético manager.]]
Under [[Helenio Herrera]] and with the help of [[Larbi Benbarek]], Atlético won La Liga again in [[1949–50 La Liga|1950]] and [[1950–51 La Liga|1951]]. With the departure of Herrera in 1953, the club began to slip behind Real Madrid and [[FC Barcelona|Barcelona]] and for the remainder of the 1950s were left to battle it out with Athletic Bilbao for the title of third team in Spain.

However, during the 1960s and 1970s, Atlético Madrid seriously challenged Barcelona for the position of second team. The [[1957–58 La Liga|1957–58 season]] saw [[Ferdinand Daučík]] take charge of Atlético, where he led them to second place in La Liga. This resulted in Atlético qualifying for the [[1958–59 European Cup]] since the winners, Real Madrid, were the reigning European champions. Inspired by Brazilian centre-forward [[Vavá]] and [[Enrique Collar]], Atlético reached the semi-finals after beating [[Drumcondra F.C.|Drumcondra]], [[PFC CSKA Sofia|CSKA Sofia]] and [[FC Schalke 04|Schalke 04]].<ref>[http://www.europeancuphistory.com/euro58.html European Cup & Champions League History 1955–2010] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170930145736/http://www.europeancuphistory.com/euro58.html |date=30 September 2017 }}. Europeancuphistory.com. Retrieved 20 November 2010.</ref> In the semi-finals, they met Real Madrid, who won the first leg 2–1 at the [[Santiago Bernabéu Stadium|Santiago Bernabéu]] while Atlético won 1–0 at the ''Metropolitano''.<ref>[https://www.rsssf.org/ec/ec195859.html European Competitions 1958–59] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160112171048/http://www.rsssf.com/ec/ec195859.html |date=12 January 2016 }}. rsssf.org. Retrieved 20 November 2010.</ref> The tie went to a replay and Real won 2–1 in Zaragoza.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/history/season=1958/index.html |title=1958/59: Di Stéfano keeps Madrid rolling on |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130501044830/http://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/history/season%3D1958/index.html |archive-date=1 May 2013 |work=[[Uefa.com]] |date=3 June 1959 |access-date=20 November 2010 |publisher=[[UEFA Champions League]]}}</ref>

Atlético, however, gained their revenge when, led by former Real coach [[José Villalonga]], they defeated Real in two successive Copa del Rey finals in [[1960 Copa del Generalísimo final|1960]] and [[1961 Copa del Generalísimo final|1961]]. In 1962, they won the [[1961–62 European Cup Winners' Cup|European Cup Winners' Cup]], beating [[ACF Fiorentina|Fiorentina]] 3–0 after a replay.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://en.archive.uefa.com/competitions/ecwc/history/season=1961/intro.html |work=[[Uefa.com]] |title=UEFA Cup Winners' Cup |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150904090138/http://en.archive.uefa.com/competitions/ecwc/history/season%3D1961/intro.html |archive-date=4 September 2015 |date=1 June 1962 |access-date=20 November 2010}}</ref> This achievement was significant for the club, as the Cup Winners' Cup was the only major European trophy that Real Madrid never won. The following year, the club reached the [[1962–63 European Cup Winners' Cup|1963]] finals, but lost to [[Football League First Division|English]] side [[Tottenham Hotspur F.C.|Tottenham Hotspur]] 5–1.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://en.archive.uefa.com/competitions/ecwc/history/season=1962/intro.html |work=[[Uefa.com]] |title=UEFA Cup Winners' Cup |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160112171124/http://en.archive.uefa.com/competitions/ecwc/history/season%3D1962/intro.html |archive-date=12 January 2016 |access-date=20 November 2010 |date=1 June 1963}}</ref> Enrique Collar, who continued to be an influential player during this era, was now joined by the likes of midfielder [[Miguel Jones]] and midfield playmaker [[Adelardo Rodríguez|Adelardo]].<ref>[http://www.bdfutbol.com/en/j/j5413.html Adelardo, Adelardo Rodríguez Sánchez] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180401081046/http://www.bdfutbol.com/en/j/j5413.html |date=1 April 2018 }}. BDFutbol (26 September 1939). Retrieved 20 November 2010.</ref>

Atlético's best years coincided with dominant Real Madrid teams. Between 1961 and 1980, Real Madrid dominated La Liga, winning the competition 14 times. During this era, only Atlético offered Real any serious challenge, winning La Liga titles in [[1965–66 La Liga|1966]], [[1969–70 La Liga|1970]], [[1972–73 La Liga|1973]] and [[1976–77 La Liga|1977]] and finishing runners-up in [[1960–61 La Liga|1961]], [[1962–63 La Liga|1963]] and [[1964–65 La Liga|1965]]. The club had further success winning the Copa del Rey on three occasions in [[1965 Copa del Generalísimo final|1965]], [[1972 Copa del Generalísimo final|1972]] and [[1976 Copa del Generalísimo final|1976]]. In 1965, when they finished as [[1964-65 La Liga|La Liga]] runners-up to Real after an intense battle for the titles, Atlético became the first team to beat Real at the Bernabéu in eight years.