Theirs was a scintillating performance which many believe has never been surpassed.

A later generation of Real players were nicknamed  "Galacticos" but this side was every bit as worthy of the accolade.

When World Soccer magazine launched in the autumn of 1960, they immediately dubbed them "The Greatest Team in the World."

Since the competition had first been established in 1955, Real Madrid had reigned supreme. Four victories and no one else had a look in.

Club President Santiago Bernabeu had been a key figure in the success story of the club. In the seventeen years since he first took office, he had built them an impressive stadium and provided the means for them to entice superstars from across the world.

Most prominent amongst these was the supremely talented Argentinian Alfredo di Stefano, to be joined later by Ferenc Puskas of Hungary. Puskas had led the Hungarians to Olympic gold in 1952 and also inspired them to the 1954 World Cup final.

The uprising in 1956 and its brutal aftermath left him seeking a future elsewhere. He went to Madrid.

In October 1959, Real played their opening match of their new European campaign and scored seven without reply against Luxembourg’s Jeunesse d’Esch. Puskas himself scored a hat-trick. Real won the away leg 5-2 for a 12-2 victory on aggregate.

In those days, the competition was set up in a different fashion to today. There were no qualification groups, only straight knockout.

In the next round Real were paired with the French club Nice. The tie did not take place until February 1960.

In the first leg Real led 2-0 before Nice came storming back to win 3-2. It was the only time Real were defeated in that season’s competition. It had been a superb effort by the Frenchmen but there was no stopping the champions in Madrid, where four goals took them through.

In the last four it was Real Madrid against Barcelona in a European Cup "clasico". Real won both legs and Barca’s coach Helenio Herrera lost his job partly because of the result.

In the other semi, the Germans from Eintracht Frankfurt travelled to Glasgow to meet Rangers. An Eintracht spokesman had suggested: "We are very tired now. We have been playing sometimes three matches a week in the league and Cup, and it is possible we will not be at our best against Rangers."

Eintracht found the net six times in the first match and did so again in the second for an astonishing 12-4 aggregate victory. It meant a swift return to Scotland.

Real were the first to arrive for the final. They made an immediate impression when they took to the training field for the first time, watched by many personalities from Scottish football.

"They are the most impressive players I have ever seen, when they train, they follow instructions to the exact letter" said former Rangers and Scotland star Willie Waddell.

He was not alone in his appreciation.

“Their control of the ball is simply marvellous. They shoot at goal with precision. I have learned a lot", said Ian St John, a future star with Liverpool and Scotland who was then playing for his hometown side Motherwell.

That night, the Eintracht players touched down at the airport where they were greeted by Scottish Football Association secretary Willie Allan.

In those days, there were few travelling supporters. Many Scottish fans remembered Eintracht’s performances against Rangers in the semis, so crowds of local football fans headed to Hampden to try and snap up the few remaining tickets that had been returned to the box office.

A ticket on the East Terrace that evening cost five shillings (£0.25/$0.30/€0.28). At the other end of the scale, a seat in the centre of the South Stand required an outlay of 50 shillings (£2.50/$3.05/€2.82). In hindsight, it might just have been the biggest bargain in football history.

Future Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson was then 18 years old and attached to Scottish amateur club Queens Park. He watched the match from the schoolboys enclosure.

Eintracht walked out in smart red lace up shirts with white sleeves. Real Madrid wore their familiar all white strip.

After eighteen minutes Erwin Stein reached the byline for Eintracht and crossed into the near post for Richard Kress to score the opening goal.

As Puskas later recalled: "They were one up before we had even opened our eyes."

It wasn’t long before Real hit back. Two goals in three minutes from Di Stefano gave them an advantage they would never lose.

On the stroke of half time, Puskas lashed in a third and added three more in the second half.

"Everything we did seemed to come off and once we hit that peak we felt we could beat any side in the world" he said later.

Midway through the second half, a pulsating five minute spell of action completed the scoring. Di Stefano registered his hat-trick and Stein scored two for the Germans.

When referee Jack Mowat brought proceedings to a halt it was 7-3 in favour of Real Madrid.

Although Di Stefano with three goals and four goal Puskas both had claims on the match ball Puskas gave it to Eintracht’s Stein.

"I really want this ball but this guy’s scored two and lost the match. It’s the least I can do", reflected Puskas as he handed the ball over.

Back in the mid fifties when the European Cup had been established, it had been at the suggestion of Gabriel Hanot, a journalist on the French sporting newspaper L’Equipe.

The following day, their front page carried a headline "7-3 : Invincible ce REAL!"

It went on to report that "the crowd and millions of television viewers were dazzled by the class and ease of Real who at the end of the match, made one think of the Harlem Globetrotters basketball."

German newspapers agreed writing: "They completely deserved their victory. Particularly in the second half, they demonstrated their superiority over the Germans."

The reporter for the Spanish newspaper Marca said simply "I do not think we will see a game like it."

The Times of London thundered "Real Madrid, with its brilliant performance on Scottish soil, has maintained the suggestion that it is the best club in the world."

Before they left Glasgow, Real were feted by crowds in the city. Not even a delay at the airport could spoil the lustre of their victory.

Even that striking all white strip worn by the champions inspired others.

Tottenham Hotspur manager Bill Nicholson adopted it when his side played in Europe and new Leeds boss Don Revie jettisoned the club’s traditional blue and gold shirts in favour of all white.

Later that year, Real beat the Uruguayan side Penarol over two legs to win the first Inter Continental Cup, a competition which has now grown to become the FIFA Club World Cup. It meant they could with some justification claim to be the greatest club side in the world.