Second-tier Beira-Mar played in the UEFA Cup in 1999–2000, although they were a top team in the qualifiers. But Torreense is the first team from the second division to qualify by winning the Taja de Portugal.
“The Portuguese Cup has been played in its current form since 1938 and it was the first time a second division team won it,” Portuguese football journalist and former Benfica goalkeeper Jose Delgado told BBC Sport.
You can imagine when they can beat a huge club like Sporting in the final, it was quite a surprise and for the city it’s something very, very special.”
After defeating Lillestrom, they have already exceeded the expectations of some.
“I thought Torreense could go through the Europa League without a point,” said Delgado. “The truth is they already have three points and that’s one thing.
“I don’t think it will happen again in Portuguese football. But Torreense has it.”
With Portugal sitting outside of UEFA’s top five leagues, every club in the Champions League, Europa League or Conference League is obliged to perform well to earn important ranking points for their country.
“For Portuguese football, for everyone [thought it] It was nice for a club like Torreense to win the trophy, but we also had some concerns,” said Delgado.
“In the first game everyone thought Torreense had no chance against Lillestrom and they won. It was a pretty good surprise. But for Torreense it’s like a fairy tale because they are a small club.”