Second-tier Beira-Mar played in the 1999-2000 Uefa Cup, although they were a top-flight team at the time of qualifying. But Torreense are the first team from the second division to qualify by winning the Taca de Portugal.
“The Portuguese Cup has been played since 1938 in its current model and it was the first time that a second division team won it,” Portuguese football journalist and ex-Benfica goalkeeper Jose Delgado tells BBC Sport.
“You can imagine when they could defeat a giant club like Sporting in the final, it was quite a surprise and for the city, it’s something very, very special.”
After beating Lillestrom, they have already exceeded the expectations of some.
“I thought that Torreense could go through the Europa League with no points,” adds Delgado. “The truth is that they already have three points and that is something.
“It’s something that I don’t think will ever happen again in Portuguese football. But Torreense has this.”
With Portugal ranked outside Uefa’s top five leagues, every club in the Champions League, Europa League or Conference League has a responsibility to perform well to earn their nation important ranking points.
“For Portuguese football, everybody [thought it] was nice that a club like Torreense won the cup, but also we had some concerns,” says Delgado.
“The first game everybody thought that Torreense had no chance against Lillestrom and they won. It was quite a good surprise. But it’s like a fairytale for Torreense because they are a small club.”