1961–62 European Cup

The 1961–62 European Cup was the seventh edition of the European Cup, an continental club tournament that was held across Europe. Twenty nine teams competed in the European Cup with Malta making their first appearance at a European Cup competition and the Soviet Union champion coming back after a three year absence.

Background
The European Cup is a club competition that was form for the 1955-56 season. It was during that season where the format of a knockout competition between clubs was born with the league winners of each nation being sent to compete in the competition.

Twenty nine teams were entered into the tournament with Malta sending their league winners for the first time while the Soviet Union sent a representative once again in the European Cup. The defending champion was Budapest Honvéd who were joined by the champions of Hungary in Vasas SC.

Preliminary round
The draw for the preliminary round took place in Copenhagen, Denmark, on Tuesday, 4 July 1961. As title holders, Budapest Honved received a bye, and the remaining 28 teams were grouped geographically into two pots. The first team drawn in each pot also received a bye, while the remaining clubs would play the first round in September.