| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Country | Bulgaria |
| Final positions | |
| Champions | Litex Lovech (4th title) |
| Runners-up | Pirin Blagoevgrad |
The2008–09Bulgarian Cup was the 27th season of the annual knockoutfootball tournament forBulgaria. The competition started on 15 October 2008 with the preliminary round and ended on 26 May 2009. The defending champions wereLitex Lovech, who successfully defended their title againstPirin Blagoevgrad and resultantly qualified for the2009–10 UEFA Europa League.
Seven teams entered the preliminary round: four teams from the amateur level, plus three teams from theB Group. Six of the teams played against another opponent, while the seventh team, amateur side Almus Bier, received a bye to the first round of the cup. The matches were played on 15 October 2008. Of the professional teams, onlyAkademik Sofia lost, suffering a 3–0 defeat away to Slivnishki Geroy.[1]
| Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
|---|---|---|
| 15 October 2008 | ||
| Slivnishki Geroy (III) | 3–0 | Akademik Sofia (II) |
| Brestnik 1948 (III) | 1–3 | Pirin Gotse Delchev (II) |
| Dorostol 2003 (III) | 1–2 (a.e.t.) | Chavdar Etropole (II) |
| Almus Beer (IV) | bye | |
Note: Roman numerals in brackets denote the league tier the clubs participated in during the 2008–09 season.
The first round included the four teams advancing from the preliminary round as well as the remaining 28 teams from theB Group. The matches were played on 29 October 2008. Both amateur teams were eliminated in this round. In a close series of matches, five games went to extra time and in three cases the teams were separated after a penalty shootout.[1]
| Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
|---|---|---|
| 29 October 2008 | ||
| Etar-1924 (II) | 1–3 | Pirin Blagoevgrad (1922) (II) |
| Belite orli (II) | 0–2 | Balkan Botevgrad (II) |
| Slivnishki Geroy (III) | 2–2 (a.e.t.) (2–4p) | Pirin Gotse Delchev (II) |
| Botev Krivodol (II) | 1–0 | Beroe (II) |
| Marek (II) | 0–0 (a.e.t.) (4–5p) | Minyor (II) |
| Almus Beer (IV) | 0–3 | Vidima-Rakovski (II) |
| Spartak Plovdiv (II) | 1–0 | Dunav Ruse (II) |
| Chavdar Etropole (II) | 3–1 | Kom-Minyor (II) |
| Sportist Svoge (II) | 1–0 | Lokomotiv Stara Zagora (II) |
| Svetkavitsa (II) | 1–1 (a.e.t.) (4–5p) | Montana (II) |
| Lyubimetz 2007 (II) | 2–1 (a.e.t.) | Svilengrad 1921 (II) |
| Spartak Pleven (II) | 0–2 | Chernomorets Balchik (II) |
| Nesebar (II) | 2–1 (a.e.t.) | Naftex (II) |
| Chavdar (II) | 2–0 | Rilski Sportist (II) |
| Maritsa (II) | 2–1 | Shumen (II) |
| Rodopa Smolyan (II) | 2–1 | Kaliakra Kavarna (II) |
The 16 teams fromA Group entered in the second round, joining the 16 winners from the first round. The matches were played from 11 November to 3 December 2008. Six of the ties required extra time, but no penalty shootouts were required.[1]
| Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
|---|---|---|
| 11 November 2008 | ||
| Lyubimetz 2007 (II) | 1–2 | Vihren Sandanski |
| Minyor (II) | 0–2 | OFC Sliven |
| 12 November 2008 | ||
| Balkan Botevgrad (II) | 1–0 | Lokomotiv Mezdra |
| Spartak Varna | 1–2 | Pirin Blagoevgrad (1931) (II) |
| Vidima-Rakovski (II) | 1–0 | Chavdar Etropole (II) |
| Litex Lovech | 2–0 | Botev Plovdiv |
| CSKA Sofia | 2–1 (a.e.t.) | Lokomotiv Plovdiv |
| Chavdar (II) | 1–2 | Spartak Plovdiv (II) |
| Pirin Gotse Delchev (II) | 3–0 | Belasitsa Petrich |
| Maritsa (II) | 2–0 | Sportist Svoge (II) |
| Nesebar (II) | 1–0 (a.e.t.) | Chernomorets Balchik (II) |
| Montana (II) | 2–0 (a.e.t.) | Pirin Blagoevgrad (1922) |
| 13 November 2008 | ||
| Botev Krivodol (II) | 2–1 | Slavia Sofia |
| Rodopa Smolyan (II) | 2–1 (a.e.t.) | Chernomorets Burgas |
| 26 November 2008 | ||
| Lokomotiv Sofia | 1–2 (a.e.t.) | Levski Sofia |
| 3 December 2008 | ||
| Minyor Pernik | 2–1 (a.e.t.) | Cherno More Varna |
The third round was played on 7 December 2008 and featured the 16 winners of round two. The biggest win of the third round wasCSKA Sofia's 5–0 victory atBalkan Botevgrad.[1]
| Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
|---|---|---|
| 7 December 2008 | ||
| Montana (II) | 0–2 | Pirin Blagoevgrad (1931) (II) |
| Spartak Plovdiv (II) | 2–3 | Vihren Sandanski |
| Maritsa (II) | 1–5 | Litex Lovech |
| Balkan Botevgrad (II) | 0–5 | CSKA Sofia |
| Vidima-Rakovski (II) | 0–3 | Minyor Pernik |
| Rodopa Smolyan (II) | 1–3 | Botev Krivodol (II) |
| Nesebar (II) | 2–1 | Pirin Gotse Delchev (II) |
| Levski Sofia | 2–1 (a.e.t.) | OFC Sliven |
The quarter-finals were held on 4 March 2009. All four away teams won their matches to advance to the semi-final stage.[1]
| 4 March 2009 | Vihren Sandanski | 0–2 | Levski Sofia | Kyustendil |
| 14:00 EET | Report | G. Ivanov 13'Tasevski 28' | Stadium:Osogovo Attendance: 1,630 Referee: Nikolay Yordanov (Sofia) |
| 4 March 2009 | Botev Krivodol (II) | 1–4 | Minyor Pernik | Byala Slatina |
| 14:30 EET | Vladinov 87' | Report | Hazurov 17',33' Janković 63'Rumenov 78' | Stadium:Chavdar Attendance: 2,750 Referee: Ivaylo Stoyanov (Petrich) |
| 4 March 2009 | Nesebar (II) | 1–5 | Litex Lovech | Nesebar |
| 14:30 EET | Hristov 9' | Report | Popov 28' 71' Doka 60'Bibishkov 75'Cvetanov 77' | Stadium:Gradski Attendance: 680 Referee: Angel Angelov (Sofia) |
| 4 March 2009 | CSKA Sofia | 1–1 (a.e.t.) (3–5p) | Pirin Blagoevgrad (1931) (II) | Sofia |
| 16:00 EET | Marquinhos 58' | Report | Delev 70' | Stadium:Balgarska Armiya Attendance: 2,130 Referee: Anton Genov (Gabrovo) |
| Penalties | ||||
Todorov Saidhodzha Toshev Marquinhos  | NakovHazurovPeevPalankovGalchev | |||
Both semi-finals were held on 29 April 2009.Litex Lovech beatMinyor Pernik, andPirin Blagoevgrad (1931) defeatedLevski Sofia, in each case by a single goal.[1]
| 29 April 2009 | Minyor Pernik | 0–1 | Litex Lovech | Pernik |
| 14:00 EEST | Bibishkov 57' | Stadium:Minyor Attendance: 5,000 Referee:Stanislav Todorov (Shumen) |
| 29 April 2009 | Pirin Blagoevgrad (1931) (II) | 1–0 | Levski Sofia | Blagoevgrad |
| 16:30 EEST | Peev 56' | Stadium:Hristo Botev Attendance: 6,000 Referee: Georgi Ignatov (Sofia) |
Last season's winnersLitex Lovech defended their title with a 3–0 win againstPirin Blagoevgrad (1931) at theGeorgi Asparuhov Stadium in Sofia.[1] By winning, Litex Lovech ensured they would enter in the third qualifying round of the following season'sUEFA Europa League.[2] The game was broadcast live onBulgarian National Television.[3]
| Pirin Blagoevgrad (1931) | 0–3 | Litex Lovech |
|---|---|---|
| Niflore 20' Doka 72'Bibishkov 86' |