1956–57 European Cup

A total of 22 teams participated in the competition. AGF, Anderlecht, Rapid Wien and Real Madrid returned to the competition, after participating in the inaugural edition. Galatasaray was the only team, other than the title holder, who didn't enter as a national association champion, as Süper Lig was not founded until 1959. ==Preliminary round==

The draw for the preliminary round took place in UEFA headquarters in Paris on 29 June 1956. The 21 challengers of Real Madrid were grouped geographically into three pots. The first four teams drawn in each pot would play the preliminary round in September, while the remaining three clubs received byes. The calendar was decided by the involved teams, with all matches to be played by 1 October. First leg ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- Second leg Borussia Dortmund 5–5 Spora Luxembourg on aggregate; play-off needed. ---- Slovan UNV Bratislava won 4–2 on aggregate. ---- Athletic Bilbao won 5–3 on aggregate. ---- Manchester United won 12–0 on aggregate. ---- Nice won 6–2 on aggregate. ---- Dinamo București won 4–3 on aggregate. Play-off Borussia Dortmund won play-off 7–0. ==Bracket==

First leg ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- Second leg Red Star Belgrade won 6–3 on aggregate. ---- Real Madrid 5–5 Rapid Wien on aggregate; play-off needed. ---- Nice 3–3 Rangers on aggregate; play-off needed. ---- Manchester United won 3–2 on aggregate. ---- Fiorentina won 2–1 on aggregate. ---- Grasshopper won 2–1 on aggregate. ---- Athletic Bilbao won 6–5 on aggregate. ---- CDNA Sofia won 10–4 on aggregate. Play-off Nice won play-off 3–1. ---- Real Madrid won play-off 2–0. ==Quarter-finals==

First leg ---- ---- ---- Second leg Manchester United won 6–5 on aggregate. ---- Red Star Belgrade won 4–3 on aggregate. ---- Fiorentina won 5–3 on aggregate. ---- Real Madrid won 6–2 on aggregate. ==Semi-finals==

First leg ---- Second leg Fiorentina won 1–0 on aggregate. ---- Real Madrid won 5–3 on aggregate. ==Final==

The top scorers from the 1956–57 European Cup (including preliminary round) were as follows: ==Notes==