On This Day in Football History - 25 May: The Miracle of Istanbul, Celtic's European Triumph & More
by Tom GottAh, 25 May. A nice, calm day. A day in which nothing exciting has ever happened in football ever. How nice.
Oh, well that's if you ignore perhaps the single most incredible comeback in the history of football. You know the one.
Let's have a look at what this day in history has offered up.
1928 - World Cup Plans Approved
We've seen some fantastic World Cup tournaments in the past, and that's all thanks to a not-so-little meeting between FIFA officials on this day back in 1928.
The idea to hold an 'International Football Championship' was approved, and eventual winners Uruguay were selected as hosts after winning the two previous Olympic tournaments.
1947 - England 10-0 Portugal
Remember when England used to be exciting to watch? Me neither. Turns out, you might have to go all the way back to 1947 to see the Three Lions on top form.
In what was only a friendly in Lisbon, England stormed to a 10-0 victory thanks to four goals from Stan Mortensen, four from Tommy Lawton and one from both Stanley Matthews and Tom Finney.
Fun fact: Lawton's first came after just 17 seconds, making it the fastest goal in England's international history at the time. That record was broken by Lawton himself just a few months later as he netted after 12 seconds in a 5-2 win over Belgium. Speedy.
1967 - Celtic Make History
Celtic became the first British side to win the European Cup when they saw off an Inter side who had won two of the previous three trophies.
Coming back from 1-0 down to win 2-1 thanks to an 84th-minute winner, the victory was seen as a turning point for football. Inter's defensive style had led them to glory before, but Jock Stein's Lisbon Lions threw caution to the wind and stormed to glory with a free-flowing, attractive style of play.
1996 - Atlético Madrid Win the Double
Having sat back and watched Real Madrid and Barcelona dominant Spanish football for over a decade, Atlético Madrid wrestled the league title away from the two giants on this day in 1996.
They added the trophy to the Copa del Rey, which they won a month earlier, completing the first double in club history.
1998 - 'The Greatest Playoff Final Ever'
Charlton Athletic and Sunderland's enthralling 4-4 draw in the 1998 First Division playoff final has gone down in history as perhaps the greatest playoff game of all time.
Charlton's Clive Mendonca stole the headlines with a hat-trick, and he then went on to slot his penalty in the shoot-out to send the Addicks to the top flight.
2001- David Beckham Bags a Stunner
David Beckham put on another free-kick clinic in 2001 in England's 4-0 friendly victory over Mexico by netting this picture-perfect effort.
The game meant nothing whatsoever, but do we really need to justify watching Becks do what he did best?
2005 - Istanbul
You knew it was coming.
After falling 3-0 down to AC Milan in the first half of the 2005 Champions League final, Liverpool roared back after the break and tied the score up at 3-3, before going on to win the game on penalties.
The match set a record for the most goals scored in a Champions League final, but nobody cared about that because everyone was so caught up in the madness which they had just witnessed.
2007 - Gareth Bale Joins Tottenham
Tottenham Hotspur parted with an initial £5m to lure a 17-year-old Gareth Bale away from Southampton on this day in 2007.
Things started off horribly, but then the Welshman tore Maicon apart at San Siro and propelled himself to greatness, earning Spurs a cool £85m when they sold him to Real Madrid six years later.
Don't worry, Arsenal fans, this is a special date for you too. The Gunners signed Granit Xhaka on this day in 2016, so everyone's happy! Yeah!
2013 - Bayern Munich Edge Out Dortmund
The first all-German Champions League final took place in 2013 and saw Bayern Munich narrowly come out on top against Jürgen Klopp's Borussia Dortmund.
The score was tied at 1-1 until the 89th minute, when Arjen Robben burst through the defence to scuff home a dramatic late winner.
2019 - Celtic Complete Treble Treble
One treble wasn't enough for Celtic. Two trebles weren't even enough. The Hoops had to go and win a Treble Treble, which was completed on this day in 2019.
A 2-1 win over Hearts in the Scottish Cup final ensured Celtic had won each of the last nine domestic trophies available, and they've already won the 2019/20 title and League Cup. If the Scottish Cup comes back, it could be the quadruple treble.
2019 - Valencia Stun Barcelona in Copa del Rey
Seven years after winning the Copa del Rey on this day, Barcelona came out on the losing end in the final against Valencia.
After getting Corner Taken Quickly Origiii-ied' by Liverpool a few weeks earlier, Barcelona seemingly capitulated. They drew their final league game against Eibar before falling 2-1 to Valencia in the cup final a few days later.