As Europe’s elite football clubs prepare for the 2023/24 season of the Champions League, a new European Cup history book covering the inception of the tournament and its early golden age has launched.

‘Connecting the Continent: The Birth of the European Cup and Football’s Golden Age’ covers every season from 1955/56 when Real Madrid won the inaugural tournament through to AC Milan’s 1969 triumph over a young Ajax side.

Adopting a chronological timeline, readers will be transported back to the 50s and 60s, allowing an opportunity to see the gradual shifts of power and trends in a defining period in European football history.

The book also shines a light on some of the lesser known clubs who went toe to toe with

todays Superclubs in a more meritocratic era as well as exploring some of the complex political issues that impacted the early seasons of the Europe’s premier football competition.

Connecting the Continent is the first book by Gavin H. MacPhee a Football Science graduate. He began his writing career covering the Highland League in the North-East of Scotland. He fell in love with European football at an early age.

Connecting the Continent is currently available in both ebook and paperback formats. Purchase your copy here.